Word: sigur
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...secret that post-rockers Sigur Rós make music that reflects their Icelandic roots: ethereally beautiful, pastoral, and momentous, yet glacial in its motions. The quartet distills the essence of their homeland into extended experimental records that occasionally pay lip service to classical and pop music, but nonetheless remain firmly rooted in their own world. The group never concede a shred of their perfectly-structured compositions for the sake of accessibility, and in fact, their lyrics are often sung in a gibberish language of the band’s invention...
...Sigur Rós haven’t released an album since 2008’s “Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust,” and despite their indefinite hiatus, lead vocalist and guitarist Jón “Jónsi” Birgisson has stayed busy, releasing an album titled “Riceboy Sleeps” with his boyfriend, graphic artist Alex Somers, last year. Jónsi’s first solo effort, “Go,” features the instrumental arrangements of composer Nico...
...first hint that this is a pop album at its heart comes at the very start: unlike nearly all of Sigur Rós’ more symphonic releases, the best song on “Go” is the first one. “Go Do” may back Jónsi’s familiar soaring falsetto with chiming percussion and orchestral flourishes, but it is nonetheless a consummate pop song—and a great one. From the opening, cheerfully syncopated vocal samples through the disconcertingly straightforward verse-chorus-verse structure...
...Go” is always more wistful than mournful. “Grow Till Tall,” the album’s longest track, is a meandering, spare number that constantly threatens to build to a crashing, desolate conclusion—in a manner reminiscent of many of Sigur Ros’ best songs—but never actually does so. Instead, it underpins Birgisson’s nostalgic wailing with a couple of whining violins and jittering electronics, ensuring lyrics like “You’ll really want to grow and grow till tall / They...
...seem limiting to constantly compare Jónsi to Sigur Rós, but Jónsi invites the association by making music that has so much in common with his band—his own heartrending falsetto, simple but perfectly arranged orchestral support, and an unabashedly emotional atmosphere—and then self-consciously moving away from much of what defines them. Where Sigur Rós were sprawling, Jónsi is concise. Where Sigur Rós were languorous, Jónsi is propulsive. Where Sigur Rós were grandiose, Jónsi is playful...