Customer Reviews

Sigur Ros

5 star:		(173)
4 star:		(47)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(19)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

With their 2002 release...let's call it "Parentheses," Sigur Ros has taken a massive step forward as the next Radiohead. I'm sure Sigur Ros would be appalled by that statement, but nonetheless it's exactly where they are headed despite their extreme efforts to be anti-pop.

Putting all self-servicing art-for-sake-of-itself nonsense aside, this is perhaps one of the finest records I've ever had the pleasure of hearing. On their previous offerings I felt the "songs" were too ambient and were never really developed as complete ideas. It was hard to find a discernible motif anywhere and you had the impression they were making it up as they went along.

On ( ) they develop their brilliant ideas more fully, and often entire songs are based around a simple repeating piano motif, which they build from a whisper to a scream, and back to a whisper over the course of seven minutes. The production is always bordering on the outer threshold of experimentation; you are sure to hear things you've never heard before. However, they present these unique sounds in a completely accessible way, so although it's new it is also intimately familiar. That, in a statement, is the definition of musical genius.

The highlights on the record are tracks 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8. I guess it would've been easier to say what *isn't* a highlight, but that's just how this record is. To me, the far and away best song is track 4 (I'm not giving song names because each track is "Untitled"), which in seven and a half minutes embodies everything that is spectacular about this record and this band.

Some other interesting tidbits...

- There are no lyrics on this record. Some listeners have mistakenly reported that Jónsi, the lead singer, sings in Icelandic. He is actually singing in a language he calls "Hopelandic" which is nothing more than an academic name for random syllables. Many times songs are written this way, with the singer just letting whatever comes out come out, and then replacing the meaningless syllables with actual words. Jónsi has forgone this last step and instead considers his soaring Thom Yorke-ish falsetto to be more of an instrument than lead vocal.

- Allegedly, the songs on this record were inspired by ancient Viking poetry.

- Jónsi, who is also the lead guitarist, uses a cello bow on his guitar to achieve the ambient, floating overtones.

- There is a thirty-second gap of silence after track 4. This is to separate the album from its "sweet" half into its "heavy" half.

I haven't mentioned being annoyed with the overt self-importance of the record - not including song titles, not including an album title, separating the album into halves, etc. - and I won't go into too much musing about it. I will say this - Sigur Ros isn't exactly helping an anti-pop image by doing this. At first it will be appreciated only by the "alternative" folk, and then the college kids will discover it and it will become pop, thus considered "uncool" by those that originally lauded it although nothing about it has changed. This is the typical pattern of genius.

Sigur Ros should just accept the inevitable. They are far too talented and ingenious to not eventually be recognized as superstars.

I normally ignore bad posts but comments like Finbar's make me cringe. It obviously takes a minimal level of intelligence to recognize the brilliance behind this band. Even if it's not your style, to label Sigur Ros as 'boring' is the greatest faux pas there is. Okay, I've made my point and he's not worth anymore of my time..

This band's ability to break down social and language barriers and captivate millions of listeners worldwide is a feat in itself. I was totally awestruck since the very first day I heard Agætis byrjun. And they just keep getting better and better. Probably the most beautifully dark, stunning, gut wrenching track I have ever heard in my long music listening life can be found on this very album. A song without a name - Song No. 8, and justly so because no name would give it justice to live up to the emotion, soul and tension this song exudes. And to hear this song as the finale to their latest concert for their Takk Tour just made it a night to remember. The sheer majestic power and intensity of this band simply cannot be denied!!

An amazing effort from an amazing band..
Good job boys (and girls!)

This album reminds me of walking in the blistering cold in the snow. This Icelandic band creates soundscapes that are cold and sterile, yet can bring a tear to your eye. The guitarist likes to use a bow, creating long notes in these slow ballads. Most songs start off soft and slowly build to a huge crescendo. the first 4 tracks are more focused and accessible, the last four are noisier, and rely less on normal melodies. The vocals are in hoplandic i.e. gibberish, but really it is the singer trying to use his voice as any other instrument. Just the sound and inflection are what are important. I think this is the band's best album to date, but all 3 are fantastic.

please stop reading the reviews and buy this album. words cannot do it justice--as the members of sigur rós recognized also. you need to hear this work of art for yourself. every single track on this album is just everything more than astonishing. i love every single track. i love the keyboards in track one. i love the singing in track two. jonsi your voice is fn breathtaking. i love the keyboards and melodies in track three. i love track four, hands down. i love the eerieness of track five, oh man i love how he sings. i love the ending of track six. beauty. track seven is just...just close your eyes and listen. you will know. and track eight. what to say about track eight? track eight is fn awesome. all of these tracks are amazing. i am not singling any of them out for a standout or any of them for a track of lesser beauty. amazing album. honestly. get this one.

This album is simply amazing. Powerful and overwhelming. A fantastic trip.

Sigur Ros is not the "usual" kind of music. The majority of the negative reviews here state they are either pretentious, or that they cant get into the long songs and jibberish sung over the songs.

The absence of liner notes, lyrics, song titles, and vocals which are meaningless in contemporary terms just enforces the belief that music is for listening. As has been stated by another reviewer, the only message they want to convey is emotion, and no other band i have come across can convey so many different ranges of emotion on such a consistant basis. It is for this reason, although they are my favorite band of all time, i dont listen to them very often. Mogwai, Godpseed, Explosions in the Sky, all have "similar" styles in music, but no one pulls it off better then Sigur Ros. This third album (Von being their first, and Agaetis Burjym being the second) is alot more relaxed than their second (and the one that made them known).

For those who can't sit through the cd...Sigur Ros is not a band you blast in your car as you drive, or play at a party. It is the kind of music you listen to yourself on headphones, or when you walk by yourself on your discman. Thus, it is not for everyone. If you are more used to or would prefer more radio friendly songs, Agaetis Burjyn is probably more for you, but you might not be able to stand that either.

Regardless, Sigur Ros deserves a serious listen from everyone out there.

I had the luck to find this cd in the bins for $5(US). I was kind of apprehensive about getting it, because I had never heard their music beforehand. When I first listened to it, I was completly blown away. This CD is some of the best ambient music I have ever heard. Whenever I feel angry, sad, or just plain crappy, this CD helps me get through the day.
Highly reccomended.

Well, since I was raised on prog-rock and eventually outgrew the excellent Pink Floyd and Crimson, it's been a long time since I heard anything that matched them in terms of grandeur and musicality. For myself, Sigur Ros does it. This is space-rock for the 21st century. Many stunning melodic moments on this disc, particularly the deeply felt emotion of Track 4. Most of the disc is at a rather slow, funereal tempo, and much of it not only "echoes" the prog-rock heroes of yesteryear, but approaches the modern classical timbres of Arvo Part and Tavener. For me the highlight is the closing Track 8, which builds to a crescendo that left me tight in the chest when I first listened to it. The power and tension in this track leaves you hanging in an emotional high. Much of this music has so much sweep and depth that I could imagine it used for the soundtrack to Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King! this is not for everyone but definitely works for me!

I mean, isn't Iceland a tiny little country? No wonder they come up with this draggy, plaintive, admittedly quite gorgeous music.

Listen.

They're probably sitting around all day with nothing to do, wishing they lived in California or Rio, where at least it's pretty big and certainly not freezing cold (but they do have, don't forget, all that geothermal crap happening, so maybe they're not all the time freezing their butts off).

But, really, how much of this can listeners be expected to take? Isn't there a limit to angst-filled, ethereal-vocalized, numbing-drumming, guitar-twang, keyboard-drone, plinkety-plinkety piano, twilight-of-the-gods, eternally crepuscular (remember: little or no sun for many days a year) Nordic rock?

I guess not.

Just get on board with the faux-mysterioso vibe and go with the flow. That's what I've done.

And so should you.

Certainly good for a laugh or two.

WOW, that's all I have to say. This record deosn't even need a review.