Tag: Sufjan Stevens

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UPCOMING: Sufjan Stevens – Worst Christmas Ever! (11/6/2026)

Asthmatic Kitty
Buy: Asthmatic Kitty | Bandcamp | Rough Trade Exclusive Variant | Dinked

Well… Hi there.

I’m back, ready to write about some Christmas tunes, fret about the world we live in, and make an attempt not to take each day for granted… as we wait for the AI-apocalypse.

Sufjan Stevens is back too… with a bunch old songs, and a small sprinkling of new. Announced today, the new compilation LP, Worst Christmas Ever!, pulls together some of (what they consider to be) Sufjan’s best Christmas songs onto one album. I imagine this is a better physical-media listening experience than most of the EPs, which require lots of flipping, swapping and listening to some of those throw-away tracks.

Now for the main reason to consider this record… the new song. Technically… there are 2 new songs, one original and one cover. The original, “On This Christmas (It Only Gets Better)” is included on the LP, as well as on a limited 7″ only available from the label (as a bundle) and some select stores to be named later. The 7″ is really where it is at… as it has an additional unreleased song, a cover of “Christmas Time is Here.”

I sure would love to just buy that 7″… I will wager that I’m going to pass on this bundle (which would set me back nearly $50) in the hopes of grabbing that 7″ elsewhere… and it is going to slip by me. I waited on the vinyl box sets as well, and regretted that too.

Will I learn from my past mistakes? I’m human, and American… so probably not.

EDIT: There are a few additional versions out there – variants via Rough Trade and a Dinked Edition (which has exclusive stickers and a different vinyl colorway) so far. I’m sure there will be more.

Bottom Line: I’m equal parts intrigued and conflicted (Do I need to buy these songs again?) and waiting for my $5000 check from Daddy Trump. Oh orange god-man, please give me money to buy records. I will let you destroy everything for record money…

(If you don’t sense the sarcasm… I assure you it is there.)

LISTEN

Here’s a teaser.

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Married Mother (ex-Geese) “That Was the Worst Christmas Ever!” (2020)

Self Released
Buy: Stream!

Everyone needs a layup here and there, and this faithful cover of Sufjan Stevens’ modern classic “That Was the Worst Christmas Ever!” affords me that luxury. Yes, the Irish folk band Geese’s Married Mother’s approach is much more of a parallel line rather than a perpendicular explosion, but there are some subtleties that I very much enjoyed. Their keyboard atmospherics give the song an etherial feel, while the original trades in the warmth of an occasional piano. Their notes also tend to linger longer than the original, a shimmer to Sufjan’s soft crackle. These changes in approach haven’t changed the heart of the song – it still feels very like the song we all love, just a bit grander in scope.

Bottom Line: Another excellent cover of a great song. I swear I’m not getting lazy – just catching up on some deserving songs! Also, who the heck are Geese? I can ONLY find them on Soundcloud so far… (2025 edit – they appear to be called Married Mother now. Good call – so many fowl bands right now!)

LISTEN

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Sufjan Stevens “Lonely Man of Winter” (2007/2018)

Asthmatic Kitty
Buy: Bandcamp | Vinyl 7″ (Limited to 1000) (Looks to be sold out at the label – in retailers Nov. 9)

WHAT?!?! HERE IT IS!

From Asthmatic Kitty:

In 2007, Sufjan Stevens wrote and recorded “Lonely Man of Winter” and, as part of a holiday marketing contest to promote Stevens’ Songs for Christmas boxset, traded ownership of the song to the winner, Alec Duffy. In turn Duffy gifted his song, “Every Day is Christmas,” to Stevens.

But instead of widely releasing “Lonely Man of Winter,” Duffy held listening sessions in his home and around the world, sometimes pairing the private listenings with cookies and hot chocolate.

In an end to that years-long project, Duffy – now founder/Artistic Director of the non-profit Brooklyn performance venue JACK – has decided to release the song “Lonely Man of Winter” on Asthmatic Kitty Records, digitally and on limited edition 7 inch, with funds going to support JACK’s mission of fueling experiments in art and activism.

So. I have heard it now. And yes, it is a Sufjan Stevens Christmas song, so it will obviously be much, much better than 97% of other Christmas songs. I particularly like the new mix – the electronic percussive touches especially. Had I only heard the first, original version, I might have come out and said that this could be a “filler track” on one of his Christmas EPs; It just didn’t hit me. This is the blessing and the curse of Sufjan, as he has raised expectations of his work by creating a vast, incredible back catalog with such amazing songs like “Christmas in the Room” and “Sister Winter.” Criticism in comparison to his previous work is frankly unfair; I certainly compare most songs against their Christmas music genre, rather than the artist’s past work. Don’t get me wrong, despite my waffling, I’m still damn pleased, and I am so happy to hear that mystery track from long ago. You know what would be an incredible finish to Sufjan’s holiday season though? How about a cover of Alec Duffy’s track, “Everyday is Christmas.” I kinda feel like Sufjan could knock that out of the park…

Bottom Line: Sufjan’s 2018 recording of this mysterious track from 2007 is indeed a worthy improvement.

LISTEN