With a recently released album and an upcoming film, the epic Icelandic post-rock quartet Sigur Rós is having a busy end of the year. For those unfamiliar with the term "post-rock," it is a genre in between rock and experimental that uses typical rock instruments - guitars, bass, drums - but utilizes non-rock musical theory. Instead of power chords, post-rockers focus on texture and timbre. More often than not, post-rock bands write instrumental music, widely incorporating characteristics of jazz, electronic, ambient, and orchestral music. If vocals are used, they are usually more for an aural effect than a literary one - as demonstrated by Sigur Rós' vocalist Jonsi Birgisson, who sings with a falsetto like Radiohead's Thom Yorke.
Sigur Rós, formed in 1994, takes its name after Birgisson's sister, who is named Sigurrós and was born the same day the band was formed. Soon after writing their material, the group got a record deal with the record label Bad Taste, which was owned by the Sugarcubes - Björk's band before she went solo. Since releasing their debut Von in 1997, the band has become astoundingly popular throughout the world.
Sigur Rós' latest album, Hvarf/Heim, isn't a new album per se, but a double-disc compilation album. The Hvarf disc has studio versions of unreleased songs except for "Hafósl," which was released as the B-side of Hoppípolla in 2005. The Heim disc has acoustic versions of released songs - allegedly recorded at a recent performance for the band member's family and friends in Iceland. Hvarf means disappeared or haven and Heim means home in Icelandic. If you liked Takk or ( ), you will enjoy the Hvarf disc, in my opinion. The new songs are true to the Sigur Rós composition formula - epically crescendoing, ethereal ambience. If anything, the album is a slower and heavier than previous material.
The first track on Hvarf - "Salka" - is named after bassist Georg Holm's stepdaughter. Jonsi's falsetto is almost angelically high-pitched so if you don't like high-pitched, "whining" vocals, this song might annoy you. He essentially repeats the same phrase throughout the entire song, but the result is mesmerizing. It accompanied by a simple guitar part and gentle, droning percussion that follows a simple oscillating rhythm. Even in its loudest sections, the song is soft.
2008 Woodie Awards
