ágætis byrjun
This most recent album from
the Icelandic band Sigur Ros takes the listener to a place in the mind that plays as complete euphoria. They have
been compared to Radiohead and Bjork, but take that chemistry and make it their own, with orchestrations that course over
ones mental landscape as clear and pure as Iceland itself. Singer Jonsi Birgisson has a falsetto that compares to no
other, and his style is only complimented by his words in the delicate language of Hopelandish, a language that Sigur Ros
created. The apex comes in songs like StarLfur which becomes so delicate in the middle, just Bigisson and his guitar,
and transforms into a triumphant victory of music and man. This album has been voted the greatest Icelandic record of
the 20th century, and a follow-up is scheduled for release before 2002 bows out to the New Year.
-Ryan Adams
June 6th, 2002
who, what, where?
released in iceland june 1999 and in europe august 2000, this is sigur rós'
most successful album to date. it is available on cd and 12" through fatcat records. it was released in north america in 2001 through pias recordings. you can order the north american re-release at insound.com.
1. intro [1:36 mins]
2. svefn-g-englar [10:04 mins]
3. starálfur [6:47 mins]
4. flugufrelsarinn [7:47 mins]
5. ný batterí [8:11 mins]
6. hjartað hamast (bamm bamm bamm) [7:11 mins]
7. viðrar vel til loftárása [10:18 mins]
8. olsen olsen [8:03 mins]
9. ágætis byrjun [7:56 mins]
10. avalon [4:00 mins]
sigur rós were formed by jónsi, georg and the former drummer ágúst in 1994. they were later joined by kjartan
and when ágúst left the band after the recording of ágætis byrjun in order to pursue a career in graphic design, he was replaced
by orri. sigur rós hail from iceland, and rightly claim to bring you the beautiful landscape of their homeland to you with
their music. its impossible to justify it with words, you have to listen to it to understand. check out the downloads page
and listen to some tracks. you won't regret it.
the band consist of jón þor (jónsi) birgisson (vocals, guitars), kjartan (kjarri) sveinsson (keyboards),
orri páll dýrason (drums) and georg (goggi) holm (bass). they create a remarkable sound considering the basic instruments
used. jónsi often uses a cello bow to play his guitar, resulting in an effects-laden, atmospheric, totally unique sound. his
voice is probably the most unique thing about sigur rós. a falsetto somewhere between thom yorke and a choir boy. the band
have released two albums so far in iceland, plus one remix album (von brigði - recycle bin). the first album is called von
(hope) and is quite experimental and ambient. it often surprises people that this is a debut album, and some believe it to
be a concept album but this has never been confirmed.
the band really found their feet with their second album, the masterpiece that is ágætis byrjun (a good
beginning). the album was subsequently released in the uk in august 2000, and since then has also been released in north america
through mca records. the band are signed to fat cat records in the uk and have released two singles through them, svefn-g-englar
(sleepwalkers) and ny batterí (new batteries). the band saw a large amount of critical acclaim throughout the world in the
second half of 2000, particularly in america. this resulted in a frantic hunt by major us labels to secure the rights to their
material in america. large quantities of cash were offered, although in the end the band chose the deal which gave them most
artistic freedom. this was with mca records. the band toured north america for the first time in april and may 2001, and the
vast majority of the dates sold out straight away. perhaps due to the large amount of hype in the american media, the shows
were attended by a many big name celebrities, somewhat to the band's surprise.
since the band released ágætis byrjun, they have composed a variety of new songs which comprise the majority
of the live sets. it can get fairly confusing with the names of the new songs, as they were untitled for a long period of
time, and only recently have we been able to determine their working titles. check out the downloads page to listen to them.
the band have also produced two videos for songs from ágætis byrjun. the first, released in june 2000,
was for svefn-g-englar. the video features members of the perlan theatre group, an icelandic group of downs syndrome actors
who regularly perform in iceland. the second video, for viðrar vel til loftárása, was released in september 2001. this remarkable
video is set in the 18th century and follows the story of two young boys. the end of the video features a football
match involving the boys, with a surprising and monumental climax.
all extra materials taken from: http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk
