The Ascension
by Sufjan Stevens

The Ascension by Sufjan Stevens
Year: 2020
Release date: 2020-09-25
Overall rank: 1,513th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 298 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 2020 (14th)
Award Top 50 albums of the 2020s (49th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,513th)

Listen on Spotify SPOTIFY
Product Details
Availability

eBay
eBay
The Ascension Sufjan Stevens CD New Sealed Ships From USA
Condition: Brand New


eBay
eBay
Sufjan Stevens, The Ascension, Ltd Ed, Clear, Colored Vinyl, 2xLP, 2020, NEW
Condition: New


eBay
eBay
The Ascension by Sufjan Stevens CD
Condition: Very Good


  My favourite store:  

Sufjan Stevens bestography

The Ascension is ranked 7th best out of 34 albums by Sufjan Stevens on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Sufjan Stevens is Illinois which is ranked number 43 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 19,885.

Sufjan Stevens album bestography « Higher ranked (1,513th)
The Ascension
This album (1,513th)
The Ascension
Lower ranked (3,548th) »
All Delighted People EP

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Listen to The Ascension on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

The Ascension track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

Sort Sort by
#
Track
Rating/Comments
5.
Track pick (860 - 96 votes)
Average Rating: 86 (96 votes)Comments: View 0
14.
Track pick (870 - 102 votes)
Average Rating: 87 (102 votes)Comments: View 0
15.
Track pick (870 - 114 votes)
Average Rating: 87 (114 votes)Comments: View 1

Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

The Ascension rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 1,513th | 2020s rank: 49th | 2020 rank: 14th
Filter Filter
Sort Sort by
YearSourceChartRankRank Score
2026blueandthemoonTop 25 Music Albums of 20201/255
2026 imimesisTop 100 Music Albums of the 2020s53/1006
2026 RhynerTop 18 Music Albums of the 2020s12/185
2026henriknaessTop 47 Music Albums of 202025/472
2026lanadeleswiftTop 100 Music Albums of 202079/1001
2026leniadTop 100 Music Albums of the 2020s82/1002
2026 DavyTop 100 Music Albums of 202070/1002
2026martinthoTop 63 Music Albums of the 2020s27/637
2026 baystateoftheartTop 100 Music Albums of 202026/1004
2026 flamingyesdeptTop 97 Music Albums of the 2020s55/975
2026RiveraBest Of Rest 530/94 -
2026SD100852Top 100 Music Albums of the 2020s82/1002
2026LittleM1971Top 100 Music Albums of 202097/1000
2026NickD89Top 100 Music Albums of the 2020s86/1002
2026joathomeTop 92 Music Albums of 202090/920
2026 TamthebamTop 100 Music Albums of 20207/1005
2026Cheboygan74Top 75 Music Albums of 20206/755
2026ThuramThugoodTop 100 Music Albums of the 2020s76/1003
2026 paladisiacTop 100 Music Albums of the 2020s99/1000
2026 KalosTop 100 Music Albums of the 2020s42/1007
Total Charts: Help The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. 284
Total Rank Score: Help The total rank score. 1,124
You can include this album in your own chart from the My Charts page!

The Ascension collection

The Ascension ratings

Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 298 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 298 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
85/100
 
5 hours ago Rivera  Ratings distribution  2,03382/100
 
75/100
 
4 days ago Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  8,44870/100
 
85/100
 
01/12/2026 19:04 imimesis  Ratings distribution  2,01881/100
 
70/100
 
01/12/2026 15:28 boppare  Ratings distribution  2,86378/100
 
100/100
 
01/10/2026 09:47 Luigigrieco03  Ratings distribution  1087/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 76.9/100, a mean average of 76.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.1/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.4.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

The Ascension comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 18 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
85/100
From 01/26/2025 02:06 | #307220
Sufjan at his absolute most hypnotic, transcendental, confessional, introverted, aspie self as only Sufjan can do. Not his best record, but there are a good handful of absolute bangers: Sugar, Run Away with Me, Landslide, Tell Me You Love Me, Video Game, and then leaving us with the two epic tracks to close it all out.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 06/08/2022 01:02 | #286100
I've been listening to this album again ever since those first months after release, and I must say I no longer connect with it that much that I consider it to be a 10/10 (I think my emotional state around that time contributed to my attachment to the themes and sounds on this), but I still think it's a very good record.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 04/05/2022 17:53 | #283842
Uso extraordinário dos elementos eletrônicos!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 09/13/2021 17:12 | #273679
Interesting project but lacks consistency in my opinion, its a good album with good production but Sufjan can do it better as we know
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 02/26/2021 22:01 | #266714
Some mixing issues here and there. Best example of that is in the song "Death Star" - those high-pitched bells kind of hurt in the ears XD
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 01/08/2021 20:15 | #264052
Not for me. The lyrics are ok but I don't find anything else very appealing. There are a few moments that I find compelling but for the most part I didn't enjoy this.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 12/24/2020 23:59 | #263167
This is a very good album! Sufjan is a very talented lyricist and musician no matter what genre he does. I do feel like this album is a bit too long for me or else my rating would be higher.

America is the best song I’ve heard in 2020

9/10
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 11/21/2020 00:07 | #261159
I feel torn. On the one hand beautiful songs, on the other hand experimental sound constructs. Highlight: Sugar
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -2 votes (0 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 11/15/2020 20:43 | #260866
Good album by Sufjan, there is much material for me to digest but some incredibly catchy and memorable moments particularly at the end of the record.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 10/15/2020 13:14 | #259327
One word. Talent. Another cracking record from Sufjan. Love the electronic layering. Some of it is almost too hypnotic.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for The Ascension

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
Log in or register to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.
Best Albums of 2020
1. The New Abnormal by The Strokes
2. Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers
3. Fetch The Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple
4. Folklore by Taylor Swift
5. How I'm Feeling Now by Charli XCX
6. What's Your Pleasure? by Jessie Ware
7. After Hours by The Weeknd
8. Shore by Fleet Foxes
9. RTJ4 by Run The Jewels
10. The Slow Rush by Tame Impala
11. Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa
12. Set My Heart On Fire Immediately by Perfume Genius
13. Rough And Rowdy Ways by Bob Dylan
14. The Ascension by Sufjan Stevens
15. Saint Cloud by Waxahatchee
16. Songs by Adrianne Lenker
17. Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez by Gorillaz
18. Song For Our Daughter by Laura Marling
19. Circles by Mac Miller
20. A Hero's Death by Fontaines D.C.