Sufjan Stevens has shared a new song – listen to ‘Lamentation II’ below.

The track is included on the second part of Stevens’ upcoming five-part, 49-track album ‘Convocations’, which is due out next month.

Last week (April 6), Stevens shared the album’s first preview, ‘Meditations V’, and the rest of the tracks from the ‘Meditations’ part of the album premiered two days later.

After today’s release of ‘Lamentation II’, the rest of the ‘Lamentation’ series of tracks will debut later this week (April 15). Following them will be ‘Revelations’ (April 22), ‘Celebrations’ (April 29) and ‘Incantations’ (May 6).

The new instrumental record from Stevens will be released digitally on May 6 via Asthmatic Kitty. A 5xLP coloured vinyl edition of ‘Convocations’ will follow on August 20.

The forthcoming project is comprised of five volumes – ‘Meditations’, ‘Lamentations’, ‘Revelations’, ‘Celebrations’ and ‘Incantations’ – and sees Stevens reflect “on a year of anxiety, uncertainty, isolation and loss” through 49 new songs.

Stevens created the album in tribute to his biological father, who died just two days after ‘The Ascension’ was released. According to a press release, each ‘Convocations’ volume represents “a different stage” of the mourning process.

Sufjan Stevens’ last album ‘The Ascension’ was released last September. In a four-star review of the album upon its release, NME said: “The unashamed pop feel of ‘The Ascension’ is regularly coupled with the sort of wiry electronics you might expect to hear in a Glastonbury dance tent at 4am.

“These anxious instrumentals echo the album’s uneasy outlook and fear of the future, and when they combine forces it often makes for an astonishing listen. The world is pretty shitty at the moment and it’s easy to feel helpless, but as the horror show that is 2020 continues to rumble on, ‘The Ascension’ is yet another ample soundtrack to rage-dance to.”