Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens est un véritable troubadour des temps modernes : homme orchestre oscillant entre les genres musicaux, parolier de génie, il façonne au fil de ses albums un univers unique et poétique inspiré par une vision intime de l’Amérique. Connu en France pour la bande originale du film Call
Me By Your Name, le musicien sort le 25 Septembre un nouvel album très attendu, The Ascension.
1 Early life
Sufjan Stevens was born in 1975 in Detroit, Michigan (USA). Although the name Sufjan is Persian, meaning “come with a sword”, Stevens is not actually of Persian descent.
although bien que / sword épée / descent ascendance, origine.
2 Michigan
Even when he had just started out in music, his ability to write emotional songs with a strong narrative was immediately apparent. One of his first albums, Michigan, is an intimate tribute to the state he grew up in, blending odes to cities and landscapes with the perspective of its locals.
narrative histoire, récit / tribute hommage / to blend mélanger, mêler / landscape paysage / perspective point de vue / local habitant.
3 The Sufjan Orchestra!
Stevens is a multi-instrumentalist who can play an extremely wide range of instruments, from guitar to banjo, piano, drums and woodwinds. He often uses a variety of them in a single track. That is why some of his songs feel like he is accompanied by a full orchestra ensemble!
a wide range (of) un large éventail (de) ici, ...très divers / drums batterie / woodwind bois (instruments) / track morceau, titre.
4 Illinois
He rose to fame with Illinois, another album about a Midwest state’s culture and history. Its capital, Chicago, has its own song – which to this day is still one of Stevens’ most famous. Musically, this album also saw him evolve as an artist – going back and forth from folk to indie and paving the way for his most electronic album yet, The Age Of Adz. to rise, rose, risen to fame devenir célèbre / Midwest région du nord des É.-U. allant de l’Ohio aux montagnes Rocheuses / to go, went, gone back and forth aller et venir / indie ici, musique indépendante / to pave the way for ouvrir la voie à, poser les jalons de / yet ici, à ce jour.
5 Keeping it in the family
Stevens’ music is released through Asthmatic Kitty, the label he founded in 1999 with Lowell Brams, his stepfather.
to release sortir, produire / stepfather beau-père.
6 Oregon
Lowell Brams also gave his name to Stevens’ 2015 album Carrie & Lowell. Stevens wrote the songs after his mother passed away, and filled them with memories of visits to her home in the state of Oregon. This work was one of his most acclaimed, the songs oscillating between folk and electronica, where the lyrics are delicate ballads about grief.
to pass away décéder / to fill (r)emplir / home domicile, résidence / acclaimed salué par la critique / lyrics paroles (chanson) / grief chagrin, douleur, deuil.
7 Call Me By Your Name
Stevens recently gained international attention when he wrote two songs for the award-winning film Call Me By Your Name. The heartbreaking melody Mystery Of Love earned him several nominations at the Grammies and the Academy Awards.
award-winning primé, récompensé / heartbreaking déchirant, extrêmement triste / to earn sb valoir à qqn / grammy prix décerné chaque année aux E.-U. récompensant les meilleurs disques / Academy Awards = Oscars (award récompense).
8 A new album out
The Ascension, is set to be released on 25 September. The first track, America, has been heavily commented on as a song encapsulating the feeling of loss of identity and confusion the country is experiencing. “Now I feel a universal dread that I had never felt before,” declared Stevens in 2017, “It feels like it’s not my problem, it’s our problem.”
to be set to ici, être prévu, devoir / heavily extrêmement / to encapsulate capturer, ici traduire / dread crainte, effroi.