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The BQE By Jeremy Grand The BQE, named of course for the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, is the latest release from Sufjan Stevens, the super talented singer/songwriter who brought us the critically acclaimed Illinoise in 2005, as well as Michigan, Seven Swans and Run, Rabbit Run, which was also released recently. An entirely instrumental piece, Stevens utilizes to his fullest capacity his symphonic orchestra to create this beautiful narrative dedicated to the titled parkway. Fans at first may be disappointed to hear a lack of Steven’s soothing folkish vocals, but part of the experience of his music is the background orchestration. It’s almost as if he is stepping aside (although it was all written by himself) to let his band shine through. Originally a part of a music festival commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) in 2007, it was performed as a multimedia event, featuring a film entitled BQE, an homage to the expressway, with the instrumentals as its soundtrack. The soundtrack comes bundled as a CD/DVD package with the original BQE film and an accompanying booklet. Steven’s vocals are missed in this nearly epic symphony, but it is definitely a much to be embraced experience that proves the depth of his character, musical influence and brilliance. 
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