Sufjan Stevens "Futile Devices" Live on Soundcheck

[UnnoticedThing]

i love his little teeth gap

[phvloodymir]

I just wish I could see his face when he sings "I think of you as my brother" for I've never completely understand the feeling in that.

[JoseGarnelo]

@phvloodymir spiritual unity ;)

[dgubz]

Gosh I wish I knew him in real life...

[Zygiro]

Whoever is ripping on this song/sufjan stevens should shut the fuck up because he's a god damn angel and a perfect human.

[fancysinger]

Everything sounds so fragile

[GOLDRUSHESKIMO]

To the troll saying Sufjan is whiny, you're just jealous he gets attention without using derogatory language to do so.

[NoahChubb]

@GOLDRUSHESKIMO I mean, I hate to be a douche about it, but Suf DOES say "I'm not fucking around" in the song I Want To Be Well about 15 times. Is that derogatory? Man, I'm such a troll.

[MrKojiJen]

thought the other guitarist was gaius baltar for a sec. got excited. haha.

[prox147]

definition of a little bitch

[xLordOfTheFliesx]

@prox147

Huh?

[prox147]

@xLordOfTheFliesx i meant to call it a gay song, its just a another whiny bitch

[MelleB90]

@prox147 Yeah it's a whiny song, but chicks dig that shit!

[xLordOfTheFliesx]

@prox147

I'm not sure what you mean. He's not whining about anything. The song's not even necessarily despairing. So....huh? Also, how could a song be gay? Also, have you heard any of his more ambitious stuff? Holy moly, the dude's amazing. 

[pooscifer]

@prox147 boy uuuz trollin

[VentraleStar]

@prox147 I didn't know songs had sexual preferences....

[terriblelove1]

Is that Bryce Dessner?!

[mdsq36]

@terriblelove1 indeed it is :) they contribute to each others work often.

[ZeroSquirrel]

TEARS, that is all. And also the guitars are just doing a cannon with the same melody I believe... The ambience it creates is just, perfect.

[eyesintheroad]

i never seem able to make out if the characters in his song are male or female, nor their sexual orientations for that matter.

[SH1THEAD4000]

head nod head nod. OK. Yes. MMMhhhmm. Yup. Good.

[sooth15]

So beautiful, I get chills.

[candycrayonrawr]

unf unf unf unf

[candorpluslove]

music that's worth buying

[IDontKnowCorp]

This song is too too real

[SputnikAndrade]

Wow, his voice is just... beautiful

[kLaOyYlOeLeA]

that's a tie...around his head=another reason to love sufjan stevens. 

[aritheory]

It's quite easy, unlike so many SS songs, to determine the meaning. "words are futile devices" simply means that nothing he says will have any positive or meaningful effect so it isn't worth saying them. A feeling a lot of people know well. It might not necessarily be bad though, it could also mean that something is so perfect that nothing you say will do it justice. Another feeling I'm sure we all know too well. An incredible song by an incredible artist.

[mrmartinconte]

@aritheory I think it's easy, but for a different reason. Sufjan seems to have personal intentions in all his lyrics, a part that we'll never come to, with religious struggle, personal relationships, etc. But what makes us able to "say what it means" is his incredible honesty and lyricism with words.

[mrmartinconte]

From there, you and I can each connect and provide context for this song in our own lives, and with our own understanding. I like your interpretation, but I don't think it's necessarily the meaning. Only one of the millions of meanings this song will have for people.

[handal1973]

Oh my gosh ! hes smile OHHH!!

[Skullz930]

He has that Don Draper smile lol. Sufjan's the man!!!

[phrozen17]

He's totally sleeping with that girl hes eying up. I didn't fall off the turnup truck yesterday

[JACKSONEVERSON]

sufjan's music is among the most amazing!

[vinicioFS]

This cant be Live. Sounds exactly like the studio version.

[ShareYourUnderwear]

I am crying.

[WavesofMagenta]

Truth is, every guy has a man crush. Mine happens to be on this man

[brunooricardo]

isn't that guy the guitarrist from The National?

[AbigailAndI]

Chills.



[NiniDooDooDoo]

I do love you, Sufjan.

[hosway1992]

I would totally swap sexual preferences for this man.

[MightyMartel]

@hosway1992 Why not just add another preference?

[emill40]

Words are feudal devices.

[ImpoForrest]

@emill40 Futile brah.....futile.



[emill40]

@ImpoForrest

faaiiirly sure he says feudal

[ImpoForrest]

@emill40 Futile: incapable of producing any result; ineffective; useless; not successful (Meaning words are useless devices but yet we use them to sort things out).

Feudal: of, pertaining to, or like the feudal system, or its political, military, social, and economic structure.

Hmmmmm that's interesting. Don't think he's talking about how his words are military, economically structured devices...

[emill40]

@ImpoForrest

if you actually listen to the other lyrics it works out perfectly

[COLORHERSTRANGE]

Perfect, always amazing.

[aardvarkwade]

He's just the stunner.

[rayanneflowers]

<3

[mcflygcfan]

Wow, he's such an amazing and talented artist...and his music is so different, I guess that's just what makes it beautiful...:)

[fillXinXblankXstares]

Marry me, Sufjan <3 I would not normally switch gender roles and propose to a man when it should be the man proposing to a woman, But I can make an exception for you !!!!

[nubbs]

@fillXinXblankXstares

well, the gender roles are often switched in his songs, this one possibly included (he might be singing about someone's thoughts about him -- hence the part about "watching you play guitar")

[cbondoc92]

why is this only two and a half minutes and not forever?!

[thepweencess]

omg he was so adorable when he rubbed his eye and smiled :p

[92balthazar]

I am in love with that man.

[Tomosama1]

Thats the face of a true precise artist. Wonderful.

[CrimsonEmpire]

what mic is that at, 0:33?

[purpleshoes]

@CrimsonEmpire I don't know the exact model, but its a small diaphragm condenser mic

[CrimsonEmpire]

what's the name of the singer with the crazy bowl cut?

[CrimsonEmpire]

wow.... how, just how does he make this music. It's absolutely bewildering.... and a little frustrating too.

[xLordOfTheFliesx]

Did he only play two songs?

[ShareYourUnderwear]

I wish he made an album of all the Age of Adz songs without the voice changing thing. Because after seeing this, I never want to listen to the album again.

[marandy451]

He is a very delicious man. All kinds of yummy ;-)

[daderth]

you know, when you watch unplugged versions like this, and the musicians stay silent after finishing the song and they just smile at each other and there is this kind of sacred atmosphere... well, then you realize these people are true musicians

[ThePatrickSGh]

Perfect

[jensuxxx]

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL FUCKING MAN

[v4l3nt1n3]

Goosebumps...

[drewsiemac]

Saw him in Atlanta last November. Looked my way twice. What an experience.

[Sullz]

I gotta admit... I teared up when he smiled at the end

[stfukyleee]

The smile..at the end...my world just melted

[gabrielgallmusic]

sufjan, revealed



[BansheeBeat9000]

He is the sexiest man alive.

[Fantasticawesomeguy]

I love how he smiles when he's singing. Its gold.

[sladkykoshka]

what a lovely performance

[72815E26]

An acoustic version of the Age of Adz would be brilliant

[senecaz22]

amazing

[simonewhite]

awww, beautiful!!!



[pete4lyfe]

such a beautiful performance

[ToDisappearBand]

Just... wow.