Howdy and welcome to my store! Includes an MP3 download of both tracks. 
“America,” and in turn The Ascension, is an indictment of a world crumbling around us—and a roadmap out of here. 

Sufjan says the foundations of The Ascension are “a call for personal transformation and a refusal to play along with the systems around us.” And its first single stands as “a protest song against the sickness of American culture in particular.”

“America” may feel apt for the times, but it was written six years ago, originally worked on during the making of Carrie & Lowell (its forthcoming B-side, “My Rajneesh” was culled from these sessions as well).

“I was dumbfounded by the song when I first wrote it,” Sufjan says. “Because it felt vaguely mean-spirited and miles away from everything else on Carrie & Lowell. So I shelved it.”

“But when I dug up the demo a few years later I was shocked by its prescience. I could no longer dismiss it as angry and glib. The song was clearly articulating something prophetic and true, even if I hadn’t been able to identify it at the time. That’s when I saw a clear path toward what I had to do next.”

“America” with “My Rajneesh” on Side B is out as a 12-inch single July 31.

Record Condition: This record is brand new and unplayed!   Check out my other auctions and save on shipping!