A couple months ago, I detailed my love for indie singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens by doing a critical analysis of one of his songs. He has what I would call a beautifully honest voice; it's clear, earnest and comes from the heart. Whether it's backed by a lone guitar or a slew of instruments, it's obvious he carefully crafts his song to connect to his listeners and provide a rich auditory experience.

A little over a week ago, I had the pleasure of going to his Hollywood Bowl concert. Since his music is considered a bit eccentric, his concerts also have quite the reputation. While I wasn't really sure what to expect, it was definitely all kinds of weird and wonderful, and honestly one of the best concerts I've ever been to.

Now, recreating a recorded experience for live performances is a difficult thing to do. There's a whole auditorium full of people to keep in mind, lights need to be coordinated, vocals become muffled and echo-y, instruments can overpower one another, etc. It's no wonder that some musicians sound great when they sing in a soundproof room to individually recorded instruments, yet some of the magic is lost when they're out in the open air with a band.

Sufjan is very aware of this, and one of the things he does for his concerts is adapt his songs to suit a live audience. Instead of performing his songs exactly as they are on his albums, he'll do things like make the more upbeat, add extra instruments, or even make it fit a different style.

The other thing he does is makes sure that his songs fill out the whole stage, transforming it into art for both the ears and eyes, and it includes a lot of wacky stuff. If you want a really good idea of what it looks like, here's his performance of his song "Too Much" on Jimmy Fallon:

When I saw him at the Hollywood Bowl, there was actually way more of everything: more lights, more neon, more glow sticks, more dancing, more energy, if that's even possible. There also were many other things that Sufjan did during the concert, like:

Reciting a monologue that sounded like an excerpt from Revelations that ended with, "And this is what God sang," then proceeding to absolutely shred it on his synthesizer.

Dressing in a glorious disco ball costume and going "full Kanye" when he got to the auto tune part of his half-hour song "Impossible Soul."

Apologizing for some of his songs being Debbie Downers and saying things like, "Nothing's impossible because you have friends, and I am one of them." It was more endearing than strange, but still worth mentioning.

Making fun of himself in quick asides in the middle of singing.

Getting everyone to sing along to "Fourth of July," a raw, emotional song about his mother's death. It ended with all of us repeatedly--and happily--singing, "We're all gonna die," as we slowly waved our arms.

Donning a colorful balloon costume--also during "Impossible Soul"--and passionately skipping around stage, even as balloons started falling off.

Everything about it gave off this general feeling of "I don't understand what's happening, but man am I having the time of my life." It makes you question if there's a deeper meaning behind his theatricality, and it can certainly be argued.

Is all the angel imagery making some kind of statement about musical idolatry? Does his decision to transform "All of Me Wants All of You"--an emotional song about broken love and strained familial relationships--into a sensual, slow jam funk reflect our own off-hand treatment of serious subjects? Is he intentionally romanticizing death so we can appreciate being alive?

Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, it's fun just to be a part of it.

And that's the beauty Sufjan's concerts, his art; you don't have to be familiar with his work to appreciate what he's singing and doing, even if it's downright bizarre.

I brought along a friend who had never heard of him before, and even though she couldn't sing along to the songs like me, we both screamed our hearts out and clapped until our hands stung.

All too soon, he finished his encore and the concert was over. It wasn't just a concert though; it was a creative endeavor born from passion and joy, and other-worldly experience filled with positive emotion.

Just because Sufjans Stevens isn't an angel doesn't mean he shouldn't be called one.