sufjan's homemade orchestra

i've been watching clips of sufjan performances on you tube - the watching part of my listening project, i guess. sujan's performances are really interesting. and you know, it's what an artist does live that determines if the band is good, or great. i love bands that really get artistic with performances.

the first two bands that come to mind are the flaming lips and spiritualized. the flaming lips have tons of people onstage, in costumes, dancing. there are lights, video screens, confetti, balloons, disco balls, you name it. live, spiritualized can rock out, or be meditative and dreamy. the ultimate spiritualized recording - which shows off what they can do in concert - is the royal albert hall live album. with a choir and horn section joining the band, the gospel according to jason spaceman is especially kick-ass.

and sufjan, with his homemade orchestra onstage in costumes. part of the sufjan mythology is that he is largely self-taught, and likes to encourage people to play instruments they've never tried before. live, his mini orchestra totally pulls off the task of reproducing the sufjan sound, which seems like an amazing feat. on you tube, you can watch enough suf video clips to see how the sound has evolved as the musicians get tighter as a group.