Sufjan Stevens has taken creative detours into textured electro-pop, orchestral suites, and holiday music, but Carrie & Lowell returns to the feathery indie folk of his quietly brilliant early-‘00s albums like Michigan and Seven Swans. Using delicate fingerpicking and breathy vocals, songs like Eugene, The Only Thing, and the Simon & Garfunkel-influenced No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross are gorgeous reflections on childhood. When Stevens whispers in multitracked harmony over the album's title track-an impressionistic portrait of his mother and stepfather that glows with nostalgic details-the accomplished songwriter delivers a haunting centerpiece. - iTunes
