The album was recorded and produced entirely by Stevens, using relatively cheap equipment for a market release. All of the tracks were recorded using 2 Shure SM57s and an AKG C1000, running through a Roland VS880EX, at a sampling rate of 32 kHz. Michigan was produced in Pro Tools, which Stevens has also used for his following albums. The instrumentation was recorded in various locations: a home in Petoskey, Michigan; Buxton School in Williamstown, Massachusetts; the N. J. Rec. Room in Clarksboro, New Jersey; and throughout Brooklyn, including Stevens' apartment and those of his friends and St. Paul's Church.
Artwork
Album art features original hand-paintings by Martha Stewart Living crafts editor Laura Normandin. The two-disc vinyl edition of Michigan contains an inscription within the run-off groove of each LP side:
"Say YES to Michigan!": This was an old state tourism board slogan.
"If you seek a Pleasant Peninsula, look about you": This is the English translation of Michigan's state motto.
"The Great Lake State": This is a popular nickname for Michigan.
Critical reception
Michigan received acclaim from critics. Brandon Stosuy of Pitchfork described the album as "a beautiful, sprawling homage" to the state, noting its "lush production", but criticizing the excessive length of some of the album's tracks.
Legacy
Upon the album's tenth anniversary, Stereogums Chris DeVille stated: " widescreen love letter to his home state was such a momentous leap forward... Sufjan has produced a wealth of fascinating, deeply affecting music over the years... Nowadays, aggressive guitar bands like Coliseum are considered punk or metal because indie rock is the kind of genre where neoclassical whiz kid Nico Muhly contributes string arrangements to seemingly every major record, where Régine Chassagne passionately rocks the accordion, where Bon Iver channels Richard Marx unironically. Michigan’s flurry of glockenspiels, oboes, trombones, and, yes, banjos had a lot to do with that." By 2005, it had sold 27,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Track listing
Bonus tracks included on the double-disc vinyl release
"Marching Band" – 3:41
"Pickerel Lake" – 3:11
"Niagara Falls" – 2:22
"Presidents and Magistrates" – 4:16
"Wolverine" – 2:10
The vinyl release also includes alternate arrangements of "Vito's Ordination Song" and "Romulus". The European re-release of the album in 2004 also contains the bonus tracks "Marching Band" and "Pickerel Lake". The song "Redford" was the inspiration for the name of the protagonist of The Roots' 2011 album Undun, who used the song as the opening to a four-part instrumental movement at the end of the album.
Tom Eaton – trumpet on "Flint ", "For the Widows in Paradise, For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti", "Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! ", and "Vito's Ordination Song"
Laura Normandin – artwork
John Ringhofer – trombone and vocals on "Oh God, Where Are You Now? "
Daniel Smith – vocals on "Vito's Ordination Song"
Elin Smith – vocals on "All Good Naysayers, Speak Up! Or Forever Hold Your Peace!", "For the Widows in Paradise, For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti", "Say Yes! to M!ch!gan!", "The Upper Peninsula", "Sleeping Bear, Sault Saint Marie", "They Also Mourn Who Do Not Wear Black ", "Oh God, Where Are You Now? ", and "Vito's Ordination Song"
Megan Smith – vocals on "All Good Naysayers, Speak Up! Or Forever Hold Your Peace!", "The Upper Peninsula", "Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! ", "Sleeping Bear, Sault Saint Marie", "They Also Mourn Who Do Not Wear Black ", and "Oh God, Where Are You Now? "
