For a 2 and half hour ambient new-age style piece I actually believe this to be a really good centerpiece for the genre because of how damn great the progressions and builds are through the five major ideas laced throughout Convocations. In general, the heartache of losing a loved one is enough to put someone on edge, considering Sufjan?s dad passed away days after the release of his grand and electrifying ?The Ascension?. In this piece, each section is devoted to a somewhat set of processing steps that he took while dealing with the loss of his father (sort of like the 5 steps of grieving but in his own light). While each of the pieces very much is layered in dense synth work and drone ideas, each one is very much different in mood and aesthetic. With the overall greatness of the record, there is still a lot of reasons not to find this perfect. In general, some of the pieces can drone on, and sometimes the ideas can feel a bit dry or one-dimensional. However, if you like this style of music you more or less know what you?re getting into and therefore this is a truly interesting and grand listen.
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