The Ascension | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 25, 2020 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 80:30 | |||
Label | Asthmatic Kitty | |||
Producer | Sufjan Stevens | |||
Sufjan Stevens chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Ascension | ||||
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The Ascension is the eighth studio album by American musician Sufjan Stevens. It was released through Asthmatic Kitty on September 25, 2020.[2] The record was influenced by a range of artists, particularly Ariana Grande and her 2018 song "Thank U, Next".[3]
NPR's Lindsay Zoladz describes The Ascension as "an 80-minute meditation that revisits nearly every one of the grand themes he has explored during his two-decade career: Love, death, faith, desire, place, country, apocalypse, resurrection."[4]
The album's lead single, "America", was released on July 3, 2020.[5] A second single, "Video Game", was released on August 13 along with a music video choreographed by Jalaiah Harmon.[6][7] A third single, "Sugar", and its music video were released on September 15.[8][9]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 7.9/10[10] |
Metacritic | 80/100[11] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The A.V. Club | B[13] |
Exclaim! | 10/10[14] |
The Independent | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Mojo | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
NME | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Paste | 8.0/10[18] |
Pitchfork | 7.0/10[19] |
Record Collector | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Slant Magazine | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Sydney Morning Herald | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Ascension received positive reviews upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to ratings from publications, the album received an average score of 80 based on 25 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[11] Music critic Tom Hull gave it an A-minus and said "singer-songwriter" may be "too self-limiting" a designation for Stevens, who "is a pop composer of grand sweep and delicate bearing, an heir to Brian Wilson working on if anything a broader canvas. His is not a style I'm fond of, but half of these songs click for me, and the others seem to be lurking in the depths, awaiting their moment."[23] Pitchfork's Sam Sodomsky, however, was more tempered in his praise, noting: "But despite its allusions to pop music escapism, The Ascension is, by design, kind of a drag: a dark and emotionally distant mood piece whose lyrics rarely touch on the specifics necessary to anchor the music, and whose music is rarely exciting enough to elevate his words."[24]
Critic/Publication | List | Rank | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
Consequence of Sound | Top 50 Albums of 2020 | 19 | [25] |
Double J | Top 50 Albums of 2020 | 30 | [26] |
Exclaim! | Top 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 20 | [27] |
Mojo | Top 75 Albums of 2020 | 50 | [28] |
The New York Times (Jon Pareles) | Best Albums of 2020 | 1 | [29] |
Slant Magazine | Top 50 Albums of 2020 | 17 | [30] |
Under the Radar | Top 100 Albums of 2020 | 13 | [31] |
All tracks are written by Sufjan Stevens
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Make Me an Offer I Cannot Refuse" | 5:18 |
2. | "Run Away with Me" | 4:07 |
3. | "Video Game" | 4:15 |
4. | "Lamentations" | 3:42 |
5. | "Tell Me You Love Me" | 4:21 |
6. | "Die Happy" | 5:46 |
7. | "Ativan" | 6:32 |
8. | "Ursa Major" | 3:42 |
9. | "Landslide" | 5:04 |
10. | "Gilgamesh" | 3:50 |
11. | "Death Star" | 4:04 |
12. | "Goodbye to All That" | 3:48 |
13. | "Sugar" | 7:36 |
14. | "The Ascension" | 5:56 |
15. | "America" | 12:29 |
Chart (2020) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[32] | 28 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[33] | 28 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[34] | 107 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[35] | 59 |
French Albums (SNEP)[36] | 143 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[37] | 26 |
Irish Albums (OCC)[38] | 48 |
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[39] | 34 |
Scottish Albums (OCC)[40] | 15 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[41] | 96 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[42] | 44 |
UK Albums (OCC)[43] | 35 |
US Billboard 200[44] | 90 |
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[45] | 9 |
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[46] | 1 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[47] | 31 |
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[48] | 18 |
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[49] | 2 |