{"product_id":"sufjan-stevens-carrie-lowell","title":"Sufjan Stevens' Carrie \u0026 Lowell","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eUpon the release of Sufjan Stevens' seventh studio album, \u003ci\u003eCarrie \u0026amp; Lowell\u003c\/i\u003e, two divergent groups found themselves as strange bedfellows: the LGBTQIA+ community and American evangelical Christians. Both were united in praise for Stevens' beautifully melancholic music.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Critically acclaimed as one of the best albums of 2015, the elegiac and intimate record about the death of Sufjan's estranged mother reflects the musician's own paradoxical posture-\u003ci\u003eCarrie \u0026amp; Lowell \u003c\/i\u003eis both sacred \u003ci\u003eand \u003c\/i\u003eprofane, Christian \u003ci\u003eand\u003c\/i\u003e queer, traditional \u003ci\u003eand \u003c\/i\u003eprogressive, despairing \u003ci\u003eand\u003c\/i\u003e hopeful. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Theologian and cultural critic Joel Mayward considers \u003ci\u003eCarrie \u0026amp; Lowell \u003c\/i\u003eas a mystical metamodern \u003ci\u003ememento mori\u003c\/i\u003e, Sufjan's symphonic (as opposed to systematic) approach to the questions of mortality, sexuality, and God. Fusing critical observations with personal narrative, Mayward examines the unique audience reception of \u003ci\u003eCarrie \u0026amp; Lowell \u003c\/i\u003eand the questions it raises: in a world of division, how might Stevens' affecting music act as a bridge of love between seemingly irreconcilable communities? As \u003ci\u003eCarrie \u0026amp; Lowell \u003c\/i\u003ereminds us of the painful truth that \"we're all gonna die,\" perhaps it also offers a glimpse of transcendence and hope on this side of death.","brand":"Joel Mayward","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":47285771239660,"sku":"9798765132760","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0684\/1791\/3068\/files\/9798765132760.jpg?v=1770420449","url":"https:\/\/intl.allstora.com\/products\/sufjan-stevens-carrie-lowell","provider":"Allstora","version":"1.0","type":"link"}