Colin Stetson (born in Ann Arbor, MI, in 1975) is a Canadian-American saxop… Read Full Bio ↴Colin Stetson (born in Ann Arbor, MI, in 1975) is a Canadian-American saxophonist, multi-reedist, and composer based in Montreal. He is best known as a regular collaborator of the indie rock acts Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, Bell Orchestre, and Ex Eye. In addition to saxophone, he plays clarinet, bass clarinet, French horn, flute, and cornet.

Stetson earned a degree in music from the University of Michigan in 1997. Six years in San Francisco followed, then another four in Brooklyn, NY. Over this time, he developed his techniques on saxophones and clarinets, culminating in the release of the album New History Warfare Vol. 1″ on Agoo Records in 2008.

His album New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges” will be released Feb. 22, 2011 on Constellation. The final album of the trilogy, New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light, was released by Constellation Records in April 2013, and was a long-list nominee for the 2013 Polaris Music Prize.

Aside from his work as a soloist, Stetson has brought his talents to the stage and studio with dozens of artists, including Tom Waits, Arcade Fire, TV on the Radio, Feist, Bon Iver, Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed, David Byrne, Jolie Holland, Sinead O’Connor, LCD Soundsystem, The National, Angelique Kidjo, and Anthony Braxton.

He is a regular member of the bands Sway Machinery and Bell Orchestre and has been a touring member of Bon Iver in support of their new record in 2011, on which he also appears.

A collaborative studio album with violinist Sarah Neufeld entitled "Never Were the Way She Was" was released in 2015. Subsequent albums include "SORROW: A Reimagining of Henryk Górecki's 3rd Symphony" (2016), "All This I Do for Glory" (2017), Chimæra I (2022)...

Since 2013, Stetson has contributed, the scores to several films and television series.

Constellation Artist Page: www.cstrecords.com/colin-stetson
Billions Artist Page: www.billions.com/colinstetson

SPINDRIFT
Colin Stetson Lyrics

We have lyrics for 'SPINDRIFT' by these artists:

Covenant I know how it ended up here on this frozen,…
Covenant (2006 - Skyshaper) I know how it ended up here on this frozen,…
Rush As the waves crash in On the western shore The wind blows…
Sunday Driver Strange kind of panic in the air running wild, unbound tak…
Tiles Serve the need Spin the fable Disguise the deed Weaving s…

We have lyrics for these tracks by Colin Stetson:

A Dream of Water There were those, who didn’t run, there were those, who coul…
All the Colors Bleached to White Red Is a fast color always zooming away This was something e…

Lord I Just Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes Lord, I just can′t keep from crying sometimes Lord, I just…

The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos

TRACKS

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Comments from YouTube:

@Spealt

7y↑1.7K

The fact that you can make a saxophone sound like this is amazing.

@g4insbourg270

6y↑66

MrNickPeters no it isn't, he's doing circular breathing

@skateordie002

6y↑50

Saxophones are surprisingly versatile.

@mackenzieperrault7382

5y↑16

One word: Reverb

@christophervolk6087

5y↑13

That's why I play it. Incredible versatility

@WobblesandBean

5y↑33

@Henk Nope. Watch him play live. The sound NEVER stops.

14 More Replies...

@felixflores4743

5y↑733

They definitely should have this man record for more horror movies. Sounds positively disturbing , pure genius. I can imagine so many good horrific disturbing scenes with this beautiful piece of music.

@md-nw6br

4y↑48

Felix Flores he’s doing the soundtrack for The Color Out Of Space!!

@TheGooseman14

4y↑47

He also did the ost for hereditary, its chilling

@KingBard

4y↑38

And now they're using him for Uzumaki

@rzk_audio

4y↑11

I find this music peacefully trance inducing... Interesting... Stetson's work in horror is second to none, though. Colour out of Space is a masterpiece of film and music.

@krieger1969

4y↑3

@KingBardOG hello fellow unus annus viewer

4 More Replies...

@theaxiomreport4308

6y↑685

This just in:

This artist is an absolute genius with his articulation of notes. He expresses a sinister yet beautiful aspect of the human experience. He can really play that sax.

@dannyburzun7757

4y↑6

The Axiom Report
The absolute genius of the artist is that you want to believe so badly but in reality he could just be having fun doing what he loves.
While you take so much meaning that will carry through your life , he thinks nothing

Who knows

@Bati_

@Danny Burzun Feelings over everything, exactly.

@Krizwar16

4y↑707

I love the ways it feels. To me it's not scary, It's more like the nature of the universe. That's what it sounds like. This man knows to play with the rythm of the universe

@MsFuzzipoo

4y↑26

That's a perfect and beautiful way to describe Stetson!

@lucascoelho3171

4y↑20

The rythm of the spirals

@misanthropicservitorofmars2116

4y↑13

It’s the cosmic unknown.

@marcelsirois1815

4y↑6

Wow what a perfect way to quantify his sound.

@bussydestroyer5602

4y↑18

It’s unsettling because it feels so cosmic, it’s just organized chaos that doesn’t resolve and seems like it can go on forever in many different directions and it leaves your senses confused.

10 More Replies...

@cvf4ever

5y↑1K

Mesmerizing, just like a spiral

@senpai7101

5y↑11

Powerless Man pee in urinal

@happysatan7404

5y↑6

Dont

@remmy8282

5y↑2

Ghost Squid 🌪

@anthemlog

DON'T

@azy7trillion886

4y↑2

Shut up Shut up sh

4 More Replies...

@DukeOnkled

3y↑31

I don't know why people call this one disturbing. This song in particular feels dreamlike, ethereal. I feel at ease, drifting.

@rakjtt1534

5y↑900

Damn, I’ve been a fan of Colin Stetson and Junji Ito for years, and out of the blue my buddy sends me the Uzumaki teaser. One of those seemingly impossible artistic matchups that actually came true

@MsFuzzipoo

4y↑37

Dude, I don't know you but I'm genuinely happy for you. I've had that magical artistic mashup happen before with other artists: it's incredible!
I've been a Junji Ito fan for decades, but hadn't heard of Colin Stetson until the teaser... Now I'm a huge fan of both. I've been slowly making my way through Stetson's albums and damn! Stetson is a genius and a BEAST.

@risto4216

4y↑11

Only makes me think about how dissapointed i am in not seeing the kojima x del toro silent hill game, like fuck man, it was meant to happen, 2 of the absolute best people to work on reshaping and revolutionizing the silent hill formula for years to come.

@safnhuo

4y↑5

@Risto
This just made me imagine Akira Yamaoka and Colin Stetson collabing on a silent hill ost.

@douglasevangelista3870

4y↑4

you can fells the spirals in the music... the sprial in my ears...

@jorgeal3x867

4y↑5

@Risto kojima x del toro x junji ito actually :c

4 More Replies...

@sledgehammer5033

5y↑314

Just in case anyone popped up here from Hereditary and didn’t know, the vocalizing sound is him singing through the horn while playing simultaneously

@aprioris.knowledge2765

5y↑11

How

@sledgehammer5033

5y↑39

Cortez Johnson he uses contact mics attached to his throat to capture the sound. It doesn’t sound exactly like this live unless he has the whole setup but still incredible.

@aprioris.knowledge2765

5y↑6

@yungdresscode thats pretty amazing most music doesnt sound exact in a venue so even getting close to this is insane ive never heard anythinf quite like that or never thought something like that was possible is it a technique he applied specifically ? Like is he the one who kinda made it up or perfected it?

@sledgehammer5033

5y↑20

Cortez Johnson from what I know he pioneered the contact mics for his music but he also uses circular breathing, a technique that allows instrumentalists to have a constant tone through inhaling and exhaling at the same time by holding air in your cheeks, it’s super complicated. That on top of the mic singing makes his music one of a kind.

@aprioris.knowledge2765

5y↑6

@yungdresscode thats insane I can hear undertones and melodies in his work that stands out from any brass instrument ive ever heard in anything but to get more knowlage on how hes doing it and what hes doing makes it even more impressive no wonder his name is starting to stand out this style of music isnt as popular and if his name is jumping out of the crowd there's probably a reason

3 More Replies...

@jointoxavilandnow

4y↑404

I never thought a saxophone could make such unsettling sounds

@koolkitty108

4y↑12

The bass clarinet can do that, too

@jasminedakota3958

2y↑8

Sounds tranquil to me

@TonyB369

38w↑1

@@jasminedakota3958like a spiral 🌀

@keineahnung4331

32w

Its

Quiet calming

@NoName-ze4qn

5y↑2.3K

2017: amazing song
2018: hereditary
2019: U ZU MA KI

@heropath34.vaselisc.35

5y↑5

No Name hereditary?

@NoName-ze4qn

5y↑25

@Heropath34. Vaselisc. he made songs for the movie too

@MrSafira13

5y↑17

@No Name I KNEW I recognized this song somewhere

@DangeresqueIII

5y↑25

@Heropath34. Vaselisc. Hereditary is an artsy horror film from 2018. While there is a supernatural element, the film tackles the ideas that you can inherit problems and dysfunctions from your parents, and that you can pass them on to your kids. The final scene, witch is bizarre and surreal, has music composed by Colin Stetson. Its called Reborn and its amazing. One of the comments from the video describes as watching a sunrise in hell. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVnSFj6XQZY

@everzen6837

4y↑3

Zoo ee mama

18 More Replies...

@morningowl43

3y↑69

It doesn’t even sound like a saxophone at first if you’re unconsciously listening, sometimes it’s angry strings, other times it’s voices being whispered from heaven, it’s so ethereal and gentle and yet so abrasive and disturbing, savagely beautiful, it feels like peaking on MDMA

@Joe-ww8uw

4y↑124

I swear this man has IRON LUNGS. How does he play it so hard,so fast and so well. Dude we'll never understand him lol

@jasminedakota3958

2y↑6

Yeah it’s like he blows out his mouth while breathing in through his nose

@meleepinata

22w

Circular breathing

@grimboishungry9218

2y↑27

Though the more traditional ways of playing a saxophone are beautiful, by straying away from what's right and wrong, Colin has the ability to make it sound like a otherworldly instrument and it's amazing

@SanityMachine

5y↑44

If you get the chance, you should see him live. It was a jawdropping experience.

@CeeHoff

5y↑76

I'm seeing why this guy has been selected to make the music for Uzumaki. Mostly what he plays sounds like it's spinning around and around, slowing becoming a little more mad the deeper it gets.

@hansblikero

7y↑62

Sounds like a message from far distant stars.
Great work!

@utkarsh12

2y↑7

this guy is in another dimension. No one makes a sax sound like this

@a.nobodys.nobody

1y↑1

I heard michael wilbur play like this at the end of his psyos video (3d printed sax mouth piece). No contact mics but very similar. First time id encountered anything similar. The guy plays EDM sax dance music normally so i was surprised

@SheenylHassan

1y↑9

An absolute masterclass in circular breathing.

@Mu-bg7xq

3y↑11

This always makes me burst in tears of joy

@Gguy061

1y↑5

This guy us a visionary. He invented a new way of thinking about his instrument. Hope I can accomplish the same on guitar!

@trilbyfrier1245

31w↑2

Nobody understands when I tell them this is the music my adhd brain needs. Stimulating and calming. I hear pieces like this and always wish for more.

@lisnaxyupovis1

1y↑18

Каждая нота вызывает у меня мурашки и странные ощущения по всему телу.. Неужели я превращаюсь в спираль..?

@kimwalls8843

3y↑16

I have always loved this track. Watched "The Alpinist" in the cinema last night. When it came on during one of the climaxes it hit hard.

Thanks for the beautiful music.

@td5808

6y↑59

This is the sound that I would like to hear passing into the next world. Amazing

@MrZombiejfk

7y↑236

seriously how do you make transcendental 4 to the floor house music with one single instrument? colin stetson is a goddamn genius

@kazkisone4502

5y↑4

Rivet Ace he don’t use reverb or pedals

@schweppes1313

4y↑16

@Gonzalo Soto reverberation is not just a pedal, it's first and foremost a natural occurance of sound reflecting off of every object. play that sax in a place with minimum absorption surfaces and spacious enough for waves to diffuse, you'll get your reverb with no pedals. big empty room, brick walls, high ceiling, I wouldn't be surprised if he recorded in the same place the video was shot
also there's absolutely some post-production reverb on both sax and vocals here

@kazkisone4502

4y↑1

@cyberprick i think its just echo xd

@schweppes1313

4y↑4

@Gonzalo Soto same thing, different response time

@rougeau49

5y↑53

I'm glad Ari Aster introduced me to Stetson. I can't wait to listen to his next work on UZUMAKI next year. Amazing, he is!

@michelemichele7178

1y↑1

uzumaji!?

@mars3210

4y↑10

A MASTERPIECE. It sounds unsettling yet mesmerizing. Relaxing, yet it makes me anxious.

@wm2990

7y↑256

He blew into the sax so hard he sprouted a beard.

@TeamNuclear2011

4y↑7

This makes my soul vibrate.
I dig it.

@o0monox0o

6y↑8

This guy made the OST for "Hereditary". The music of the last scene - when P̶e̶t̶e̶r̶/Charlie/Paimon is crowned - is so sublime it gave me goosebumps. Amazing work.

@pd7287

42w↑4

Just casually playing an entire band's worth of parts using his breath and sax

@TheGoonSquadd

2y↑7

your song in The Alpinist was AMAZING . It was literally perfect with the scene.

@SanityMachine

4y↑13

Definitely recommend seeing him play live if you can sometime! Hearing this song being played in front of me was literally jawdropping, it felt like being swept around by gusts in every direction at about a thousand feet over ground.

@SanityMachine

4y↑1

just saw that I made a comment just like this about a year ago lol, still true

@lmb481

@SanityMachine 100% true fact

@TheLocalsOnlyPodcast

2y↑2

That's just incredible art. Stuff like this makes me happy to be alive.

@cb6941

1y↑3

This was stunning! I heard it randomly playing on my Alexa! I have since subscribed to your YouTube page, will certainly listen to this again! Thank you! Loved it!

@od3910

4y↑34

Hi, I'm new. Can anyone explain to me why I cry profusely at this man's music? I've never been so moved

@gemimarigby2471

2y↑6

Beautiful and moving, otherworldly, explains the unexplainable.

@Dwafiz

4y↑6

Exhilarating, in both a beautiful way and an unsettling way.

@DL-rl9bd

30w↑1

Epic creativity. This is what you get when you say F the rules, F what people think. I’m going to use this instrument exactly how I want. It doesn’t have to be jazz. It doesn’t have to be classical. It’s what I make if it. The essence of thinking outside of the musical box.

@beatle_jake

1y↑2

What a simply incredible piece...love the minimalist ostinati throughout. Reminds me quite a bit of Philip Glass's "Opening."

@quinnking8405

5y↑35

That's like some circumvented breathing like how you would play the didgeridoo. Very talented.

@retteketette

4y↑7

Finally a comment referring to that amazing ability, I can do it on didjeridoo but you can hear me doing it, he must have hella strong cheecks

@lindadietl4680

2y↑9

Admittedly although regretfully, my first exposure to Colin Stetson was the trailer for Junji Ito's Uzumaki. Years later and I believe his music has an unnatural transcendental quality.

@enterbalak

4y↑5

This is amazing, thank you.
Peace to my madness.

@CathyCoetzee

2y↑3

HOW have I only discovered you today!!! It's like discovering a piece of my soul.

@6Kubik

4y↑5

Wow, I never knew it is possible to make such a unique sound with these intruments! love it!

@TheSurrealist.

4y↑5

With musicians like Colin, Funny enough me and him share a name only mine has an extra “L”, Horror films will make an amazing comeback!

Musical score is something that most modern horror lacks.

@matte8677

3y↑7

Love his use of overtones especially on the alto. It’s such a big part of his distorted sound. Been trying to incorporate some oh his style into my tenor playing as well. Still haven’t gotten circular breathing down tho lol 😔

@Doostun

7y↑15

His technique is truly superb.

@johnnyloco11

7y↑12

Heard this on the radio for the first time at 7am this morning and it's been on my mind all day

@BopLouie

3y↑4

This is not scary, this sounds beautiful.

@samuelstoner5651

46w↑1

His music feels so good.

@rotten_bones

4y↑2

Нереальная музыка. Она пугает, отталкивает, но в тоже время притягивает и поражает своей красотой. Эта мелодия прекрасно сочетается со "спиралью" дзюндзи ито.))))

@timhenderson9794

1y↑4

This song speaks to me like no other

@watarukt5591

4y↑5

How beautiful... the most relaxing music to me.

@elisabeth2193

39w

In a Colin Stetson spell again after the release of the new Uzumaki trailer. I can’t wait to hear that ost, so now I’m just going through his entire discography again. If anyone wants to listen to any of his work that sounds like Uzumaki, definitely check out his score for Color Out of Space (2019). It carries a lot of the shine sound you hear in the 2021 clip of kirie walking down the hill. That movie was a cosmic horror and so will be Uzumaki

@rayzerfroggie4631

15w↑1

This is what a true master of their craft looks like. Wow

@Overseer2579

1y↑2

This is such a perfect example of Colin Stetson’s style that can be found in anything he’s contributed his music to, I.e. Hereditary, or more recently The Menu (which I think is his best film score to date)

@benlosoya4903

7y↑4

You're music sends me in the most incredible Psychedelic trip ever, keep it up love all your music

@TCNHC

5y↑4

Outstanding. Colin expanded into new territories like no other sax player. But besides his monstrous technique he has emotions and deepness in his communication.

@tracechilders1414

2y↑1

You sir are auditory magic the way you layer sounds with a sax and other brass instruments is magical I see the influence of your music more especially with other experimental musicians who I feel are influenced by your talent you are a treasure and a rare talent sir.

@AMoose454

2y↑6

Amazing. Found this on the Alpinist and can’t stop listening to it.

@timhenderson9794

1y↑2

Same here man. You must be an adventurous person

@AMoose454

1y↑1

@Tim Henderson love climbing and flying airplanes, what about you?

@kill3rbamb146

2y↑5

My god. I wonder what the audience looks like during his live shows. I bet half of them are tearing up

@mythstcg

40w

it was *otherworldly*, you just completely get lost in it

he inhales, and rockets into a beautiful piece like this, and before long you’ve lost your sense of time; he’s brilliant

@hexenmeister237

I've never seen someone make a saxophone sound so analog and magical before, this literally sounds like being in the astral plain.

@heathere8154

2y↑5

I'm here because of The Alpinist. I choked up as this played during his ascent of Torre Egger. Stunning.

@hectorrosales9752

5y↑21

This is the music I'd imagine hearing as I'm dying and slowly transcending to the heavens where I'll start my walk across the clouds to the golden gates.

I really need to listen to this while high.

@silverfishstix5099

I sound like an asshole lmao

@hectorrosales9752

@Silverfishstix Ayeeeeeee

@silverfishstix5099

@Hector Rosales LMAO

@angelagonzales250

4y↑4

Really haunting and beautiful, don't think I could stand listening to it on a daily; would drive me a bit crazy😂

@MsFuzzipoo

I've become a huge fan of Steson ( sigh yes because of the Ito trailer) and even though I LOVE his work you're not wrong... I've listened to some of his albums in their entirety through headphones and after literally thought "Damn, I have a headache. Why the hell do I have a... Ooohhhh." It wasn't because I had the volume too high. Some of his albums are just a LOT to process in one go.
Still: Worth it! ♥️

@TheMasterTelevision

4y↑6

This song really makes you feel like your dad became a spiral

@Willi611385

5y↑15

i heard your sound before hereditary got released and i love it! as i heard it in the movie it just blew my mind! good mixture.
keep on going man!

@mindscraftsman

3y↑3

Biologische Synthesizer Klänge. Genial der Typ. 👍

@Nunyagodambiznis

37w

To me, this doesn't sound like something that a human being can create live, on their own, with no real help from computers besides I suppose recording and possibly adding some effects to the vocal parts live reverb. That's what surprised me the most when I first listened to Colin Stetson, it just sounds so otherworldly and impossible for a single, live musician to make with no synthesizers or backing tracks. Absolutely incredible.

@vestibe6879

2y↑1

I listen to your music when I'm in my head space, love your music

@Nintendude4life

7y↑2

This is spacey and fantastic, looking forward to the album, keep it up!

@yr7314

5y↑3

Amazing!
Talent!
Every other word to describe talent!!
I feel like I’m being sent into several dimensions!
This is truly beautiful and amazing!!

@kyletroy623

2y↑1

already loved colin's music but hearing this song in the Alpinist about Marc Andre Leclerc brought alot of emotions for me. Fits perfectly in the documentary.

@carolinacarnicerolenarduzz3049

3y↑1

Amazing. Love it :)

@Paraselene_Tao

Despite Junji Ito's Uzumaki reminding me that this man exists, this has become one of favorite songs lately. Sometimes I wake up and fall asleep hearing this song in my mind. Thanks Colin Stetson.

@camipeterson6683

3y↑4

Good god he's amazing

@Mortushateslive

7y↑514

this sounds like a near death experience to me

@deliriumcb5959

6y↑47

Boy do I have a movie that you should watch.

@teamakesgames

6y↑1

Chris Bell which one?

@kurlykayla9013

6y↑26

Raybe Hereditary

@MrMusicalee

5y↑8

Kurly Kayla And Martyrs (2008)

@aprioris.knowledge2765

5y↑1

Same

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@lulubelle320

5y↑2

This is very heartrending and impressive, en français je dirais prégnant, qui s'impose à l'esprit et produit une forte impression.

@yahirc.a4640

2y↑1

Que increíbles sonidos.

@forsaken8clips272

Absolutely a beautiful piece

@leluavec7717

all of his music has this sinister form of happiness to it

@vantablack8468

4y↑6

Goddamn this song feels like traveling through space at the speed of light

@franklynspence496

50w

Transcendental 🙏🏽✨

@dawidindor8370

5y↑2

Mr Stetson this is another awesome dimension of sound-thank you

@heathen-ash2628

5y↑1

Not usually my thing BUT hats off to you thats some real musical talent, id give you multiple thumbs up if it was possible

@ghosteye131

23w↑1

Sounds like a galaxy sized celestial being singing a lullaby.

@brianrobinson75

2y↑2

Your music is transportational. I have no idea where it takes me but I go anyway

@mandemt1076

38w↑1

It’s what I imagine the inside of a Time Machine would sound like

@wilaustu

This music is really spiritual.

@polishpunk911

7y↑15

Incredible. Can't wait for the album!

@fibranijevidra

What a music piece!? Love it.

@mughettoify

6y↑2

Senza parole!!!!Meraviglioso!

@slingerdingkes

7y↑8

listening again and again and again so beautiful

@heavendreamful

6y↑1

Gorgeous album in my collection, thanks for vid and greetings from Italy!

@laurentscasino3244

Always blow me away with your technique and approach to the sax.

@ironspider3061

49w

Amazing is all i can say without writing a book on how amazing it is so many sounds and there beautiful

@PykoPon_

5y↑25

I listened to this song during my first ever trip. The trip started by sucking because it felt like my esophagus was bleeding but when this song came on, oh boy. Let's just say some planets were explored and some stars went supernova.