10 years later, Sufjan Stevens offers a startling reevaluation of 'Carrie & Lowell'

"Carrie & Lowell was an unqualified success, resonating with fans and critics alike, yet Stevens later viewed it as a failure due to unmet emotional clarity."

"In writing about his mother, Sufjan Stevens aimed for comfort and clarity but ultimately considered his work a 'miscarriage of bad intentions'."

After losing his mother, Carrie, to cancer in 2012, Sufjan Stevens wrote Carrie & Lowell to cope with his grief. The album, inspired by their complicated relationship, became a critical success for its intimate and heartfelt songs. However, in the anniversary edition essay, Stevens reflects on it as a failure in achieving the clarity he sought, describing his efforts as a 'miscarriage of bad intentions.' Additionally, Stevens faced new personal tragedies, including the loss of his partner and health diagnoses, further complicating his emotional landscape.

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