Sufjan Stevens - The Avalanche

[CillaLuvzU]

Amazing

[NiniDooDooDoo]

He looks good in a tie :)

[MeLlamoAllison]

Whenever I hear these clips of him talking about his songs, it just makes me love them more.

[music996ify]

This is good shit!

[cbendersf]

Authentic talent.

[cbendersf]

This is real music!

[cbendersf]

This gave me goose flesh

[natattack96]

Oh he is amazing. The ending is so very Sufjan-like! Love it.

[airplanedance]

holy shara worden

[Swingfinger]

His new stuff grows on you but I still miss this material

[MrBadgerking]

is the guy playing the acoustic guitar in  the backround the guitarist from the national?

[venerableweevil]

@MrBadgerking Yes.

[Danzig6718]

@MrBadgerking Yea, he totally is. Sufjan performs with The National as well sometimes. Look at their performance on David Letterman of "Afraid of Everyone".

[MidGroundInertia]

Wow, he was so different live back then.

[muziektelevisie]

haha, he just claps for himself at the end

[joekirklin]

He has an amazing knack for off-the-cuff ramblings that make no sense. Not sure why he does it, but it's hilarious and original. Can't wait to see him and his peeps on tour this fall.

[intolerence]

Wow so this is what people mean when they say a song can give you goosebumps

[jugzter]

This is magic

[trisarahtoppz]

wait this is amazing!!!

[Iplayabanjo]

cool

[livigirl93]

GAAAAA im sooo jelouse!!!!!!!

[lukeisastalker]

that is the guy from the national on the guitar isn't it. oh, i am in love.

[guyyute]

@lukeisastalker I don't know, but SS just played with the National on Letterman.

[Glasscherf]

@lukeisastalker Yeah, it's Bryce Dessner

[Bennyjidude89]

Wow... The Strings' part is brilliant.

[abeillevert]

oh, sufjan, my father's watching that bill o'reilly show but with you in the world i believe there's hope yet....

[GEANIESKATE]

Someone asked about the vocalist in the background...that's Shara Worden from My Brightest Diamond. I attended this festival in Cincinnati and it was an amazing line up: Sufjan Stevens, My Brightest Diamond, Amiina, and several others

[kobald62]

Oh my god...that sounds amazing! I can't express how jealous I am about this haha.

[pouidg]

I love the way he naturally tune his banjo at 1:05

[pouidg]

The string part is good.

[mrschaef]

awesome! but what the hell is going on with that soprano voice in the background (or not so background, really...)

[mandygoesto]

ahahahhaa :) sufjan is the best

[shaysrebellion23]

he's actually pretty funny

but my friend has an avanche.

4.3 V8 it ain't bad.

[treehugger02084]

this is brilliant... i love it!

[josmcg]

excellent

[kesew22]

Is that the guitarist from the National in the back?

[SjaakWilson]

I think so, Sufjan did also play the guitar on there last album.

[snakkebobla]

I reALLY need to find this guy and sit down and have a conversation with him. Preferably on a date.

[griffinthecity]

... about what? : \

[madkaye]

hahaha. I was cracking up when he was talking about the avalanche...transformer toy thing.

[54spiritedwill54]

I love his rambling narratives

[gdlunatic]

what in the world was he on about in the beginning, i cracked up mainly due to the fact that i didn't get it. i don't know 'bout him, but i hate public speaking, and imagining people in their underwear does not help.

[supermaaannnn1]

hes such a nerrd.... i love it :)

[BeMoWoLover]

I think its really wierd how i moved to illinois from virginia wich he talks about, and i also drive an avalanche

[shuckslbj]

Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Nick Cave on acoustic guitar in the back there.

Haha. Or so it might look.

Sufjan Stevens is hardcore.

[ilovemutemath]

He is a GENIUS.

[banana14k]

anyone know what kind of banjo he plays?

[shuckslbj]

What did he say at :13 that was so funny? Mandolins?

[bilbo41190]

i think he said "manliest of medlies"

maybe?

[madkaye]

He was talking about the insignias painted on the top of the memorial hall stage. You can't tell from this video, but there is an old hand-painted ceiling above the stage. It has a bunch of "virtues" written on it like "equity" and "patriotism." One of them said "manliness" and he was joking about it, saying that it was a manly medley. =]

[DarknessHowls]

At 5:28, I'm surprised he didn't break a string or something. >.>

Great performance.

[bellabella90]

The violinist in the center with the hat is one of the best musicians I have ever met in my life.

Oh and Sufjan, as always, is breathtaking

[kaisergwill]

does anyone know what the chords for this are?

i cant find them anywhere.

[nowonderimconfused]

On a guitar with standard tuning, throw a capo on the first fret, then it's Dsus2, Am, F and C. Some fancy fingerpicking and hammering-on, and Robert's your father's brother.

[phrozen17]

My favourite song from that album

[tracgyrl]

THANKS SO MUCH FOR POSTING!

[healingv1sion]

One of the very few performers who sound even better live! I still can't believe I missed the concert he had in ATL--I still think he'll never come back.

[jumpinjackc]

does anyone have any clue where i can find a banjo tab to this song?

[s0ulrider]

Ive never heard of him before...Im hooked. Thanks for posting this and introducing him to me.

[malkmusinthemiddle]

Is the guitar player the guy from the national? Looks like he needs to pee near the end.

[boknox]

yes it is. Bryce curates the music now festival (this one). He (and the rest of the national) i believe are from Cincinnati. He and Sufjan are neighbors in NYC and friends. Also, if you have seen the Sufjan leblogoteque where he plays on top of a roof, it is on top of this building.

[solstice5292]

This is how music was supposed to be.

[timmygc4567]

Sufjan said in an interview he was conflicted between writing small things like folk songs and big things like orchestral explosions of noise. Sounds a lot like what he says about jupiter and pluto. Coincidence? Probably.

[TheBoss2332]

Hopefully he will always keep a balance of both.

[lars3939]

I love his rambling narratives...