Which indie rock artist's 2005 album 'Illinois' includes the song 'Chicago'?

“Which indie rock artist’s 2005 album Illinois includes the song ‘Chicago’?” The answer is Sufjan Stevens. Released in 2005, Illinois is Stevens’s ambitious concept album about the history, places, people, and mythology of Illinois. “Chicago” is one of its best-known tracks and combines orchestral pop, marching-band color, and Stevens’s layered vocal arrangements.

The song is partly autobiographical rather than a straightforward city anthem. Stevens connected it to difficult experiences in Illinois, including visits to Chicago and a road trip through the state. He also cited Carl Sandburg’s poem “Chicago” as an influence. That mixture of personal memory and researched state history is central to the album’s design.

A common mix-up is calling Illinois a conventional indie-rock record or assuming “Chicago” is simply a song about the city’s landmarks. The album is more specifically associated with indie folk and baroque pop, while the track’s emotional narrative is deliberately impressionistic. Stevens recorded multiple versions of “Chicago”; alternate takes later appeared on The Avalanche, an album of Illinois outtakes and extras.