Music : Agaetis Byrjun

Rating: - Art
I have been a fan of Sigur Ros from the moment I heard Agaetis Byrjun. I have listened to all of their music on and off for several years now and nothing else on the pop/rock scene has even come close to the complexity of their work. You cannot pin it down, you cannot categorise it. Every attempt to do so leaves you feeling awkward and uneasy. The fact that you cannot pin down any of the lyrics or sometimes even distinguish Jonsi's voice from the other instruments is testament to their shapeshifting nature. Sigur Ros toured Iceland this summer (2007) and a documentary by the name of "Heima" (Home) has recently been released. I have waited for my musical Messiah for a long time and now the waiting is over. Thank you Sigur Ros.

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Rating: - hhh7u6yf
I remember clearly the days when I used to look at Ágætis Byrjun in awe; staring at that oh-so-suitable angel/alien artwork, then pressing play and thinking the music was similarly inhuman. A few years of ambient and post-rock listening have allowed me to get my head around this more though, but I still find it to be an incredible and startlingly original piece of music. All those clichés about this being "glacial", "spine-tingling" and "mind-blowing" are also true. I just miss those days of wonder...

Oh, and the 6-7 minute mark on "Ný Batterí" is one of the greatest things composed by mankind. Ever.

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Rating: - a message for J. B. Seaton
who pulled your chain? whilst some of what you have so eloquently written in your somewhat tiresome rant may be true, I must say your attempt at demonstrating an intelligent and cultured view has suceeded in one area. That being that you have given credibility to the rather cliched quote from star wars' obi wan kenobi, "who's the more foolish... The fool? or the fool who follows him?" You have done nothing more than put yourself accross as the kind of person who slates what is popular by the mostly jaded masses, just out of a desire to stand out and sound knowledgeable. As such I can safely predict that your review will have little, if any, influence on peoples decision to purchase said album. Perhaps in future you may consider writing a review that speaks your opinion without what is probably an unjust condescending attitude. This would be far less a waste of yours and everbody elses time!!

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Rating: - The Millennial Euphoria Boom Started Here!
Much like fellow Icelander Björk's album Debut cannot be accurately described as such (cultists know her first was recorded at the tender age of 11), Sigur Rós's Ágætis byrjun belies its meaning of "an alright start". Sigur Rós had in fact already released their debut album, Von, in Iceland along with a remix album, before catching the ears of David Fatcat and his Brighton-based Fatcat Records with some new live material. Though their former work was dubiously received at best, Sigur Rós trounced every expectation that could possibly be afforded with a follow-up album synonymous with its time and place in pop history, coining the reflective euphoria that would inform later bands of the new millennium. The group's blend of distorted noise and orchestral pomp via falsetto vocals and offbeat guitar arrangements celebrated the past century with a stirring reverence and emotional simplicity rarely heard in today's jaded sounds, leaving the listener enraptured with poignant fascination.

Ágætis has developed a reputation of representing the band's native landscapes, all barren desolation giving way for unique vistas of ice, earth and the northern lights. This would be more convincing if the band's production and instrumentation weren't referencing earlier progenitors of prog rock so frequently, though the strikingly romantic chords and melodies betray the often soulless past sentiments of this sub-genre. One of the band's more prolific themes is that of their music being bound by a core of elemental youth and optimism, their lyrics addressing ideas of rejuvenation after destruction and shutting down whilst being offset by absurdly humorous imagery (key offenders being "Ný batterí" and "Svefn-g-englar"), all enhanced by Jonsi Birgisson's primordially elfin vocal. It would be in this respect that Sigur Rós retain their Icelandic roots best, their joie-de-vivre and patriotism shining as bright as it can whilst still taking the mick out of themselves.

In all honesty, another five-star review of this five-star album is only likely to annoy both fans and disparagers of Sigur Rós and their work. It must be said that Sigur Rós shouldn't be credited for being pioneers of popular music leading us into the new millennium with a dreamy, ethereal new sound, as many of the programming twitches and subversions present on this album have been divulged before by many a progressive rock artist or group. Yet one cannot help but appreciate them as a breath of fresh air amidst the arty, pessimistic dregs who bemoan life's luxuries as if they were poison. Sigur Rós are by turns playful, disturbed and wounded in their sound (the wistful "Starálfur" and the thrashing "Viðrar Vel Til Loftárása" display how unique and disparate the album can be best) and rightly deserve their place in the indie spotlight as Iceland's leading rock group. The start is more than alright, and nothing short of glorious.

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Rating: - Full circle
Thirty years ago I bought my very first album - Rubycon by Tangerine Dream, because I was told they did new stuff that's never been heard before. Thirty years later I'm told Sigur Ross produce new stuff that's never been heard before. I beg to differ.

It's pleasant enough, but with the pieces at the beginning and end of the album, I just get the urge to shout "Oh bloody well get on with it!". They repeat sections that don't need repeating. If they could just edit them down in to 5 and 6 minutes then they would improve dramatically.

That said, pieces 4 to 8 are superb with Ny Batteri and Hjartao Hamast being by far the best pieces on the album. Perhaps this reflects my preference for darker (and in the latter case) more bluesy sounds.

Olsen Olsen is a joy to listen to, but if you think it's original then you'll have to listen to Prokoviev's Lieutenant Kije Suite. The similarities are far to close to be coincidence, even down to the main theme being played by a solo tin whistle.

Buy this for the middle section. Svefn-G-Englar, Staralfur and the title track are all a bit too twee and long winded for me.