ILLINOIS RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 22, 2005 CAT. #: AKR14LP FORMAT: 2XLP NOW AVAILABLE! UPC #: 656605892610 LABEL: LIST PRICE: $19.98 P.O. Box 1282/Lander, WY 82520 USA www.asthmatickitty.com

***2xLP NOW AVAILABLE - INCLUDES LP-ONLY BONUS TRACK*** ***NOT EXPORTABLE TO AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, OR EUROPE*** ***Vinyl Non-Returnable***

Asthmatic Kitty announces the second installment of Sufjan Stevens' 50 State Project, “ILLI- NOIS”, a 22-track anthematic tone poem to The Prairie State. Following the 2003 collection of songs for his home state, "Michigan," Stevens presents an emphatic answer to the question: Can a songwriter express the spirit of a state he's never called home? With his most enterprising project to date—the result of extensive research, travel, medita- tion, and countless days and nights in the studio—admirers of his previous work and first time listen- ers will agree that the answer is yes. On this second state tour, Sufjan weaves variegated musical styles (jazz, funk, pop) and instru- mental textures (from to church organ) into a tapestry of persons famous, infamous, and anonymous, and places iconic, obscure, and ghostly. Did you know there is 15-foot bronze statue of Superman in the Ohio River town of Metropolis? Where many might see only kitsch, Sufjan finds a touchstone for a tender-yet-rocking meditation on spiritual strength. Or what about the recent UFO sightings near Highland, or the infamous Chickenmobile in Decatur, where patrons endure ice cream floats and burgers that beat Big Macs hands down. No detail is wasted. Myths, memories, and inci- dental anecdotes are swept up with symphonic flourishes, reenacting the Great Fantastical Voyage through the Land of Lincoln, the musical road trip takes you through ghost towns, grain mills, hospi- tal rooms, and the City of Broad Shoulders, with guest appearances by a poet, a president, and a serial murderer, to name a few. Implementing 25 instruments, played mostly by Sufjan himself, a two-handed horn section, string quartet and small choir, Illinois conjures up images of Danny Elfman conducting a Gilbert and Sullivan company, a minimalist ensemble, and the Marion Catholic Marching Band (state champions 24 years in a row!) on a windswept prairie football field. Guest musicians include vocalists Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond) and Katrina Kerns, drummer James McAlister (Ester Drang) and trumpeter Craig Montoro (Volcano, I'm Still Excited!!), and many others.

ALSO AVAILABLE: CD (Asthmatic Kitty) AKR03 CD (Asthmatic Kitty) AKR09 Michigan CD/2xLP (Asthmatic Kitty/Sounds Familyre) SF10 CD/LP (Sounds Familyre) SF13 Illinois CD (Asthmatic Kitty) AKR14cd