Sigur Ros - Agaetis Byrjun
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Free Music Notes for Agaetis Byrjun
Free Music Review: Beautiful and sweeping
Hit: 5 Stars
Experimental Icelandic band Sigur Rós reached exceptional heights with "Agaetis Byrjun," a fluidly mellow album. Music both cool and beautiful is warmed by Jon Por Birgisson's falsetto vocals and some majestic instrumentation -- and the result is staggeringly lovely.The peak of the album is the slow, sparkling, sweeping "Svefn-G-Englar." When listening to the eerie mixture of organ, strings and chimes, think about the northern lights over a glacier. But Sigur Rós has more than just soundscapes: the orchestral majesty of "Staralfur," the ethereal music-box acoustics of "Agaetis Byrjun," and the gentle piano and swelling strings of "Vidrar vel til loftarasa."
It's hardly surprising that Sigur Rós is the biggest band in Ireland -- their music is ethereal, accessible, and so atmospheric that it's hard not to be swept away. There's a certain epic quality to their songs; what's more, they can can slowly switch from spine-tinglingly eerie to angelic ethereality.
It takes real effort to pick apart the seamless music at times. It almost feels wrong to do so. But the sweeping strings, organ and electric piano are standouts in "Agaetis Byrjun." Most uniquely, there are music-scapes created without synths. Instead, there is an electric guitar played by a cello bow -- a unique bit of brilliance.
Icelandic singers are going to sing in Icelandic, right? Wrong. Frontman Jon Por Birgisson sings in a sort of made-up language the band calls "Hopelandic." There's no discernable meaning, but Birgisson's high-pitched, melodious crooning banishes any real need for lyrics that mean something. His voice is just another instrument, like the piano or violin.
Imagine a cool, starry night with a cold breeze blowing through the trees -- that's Sigur Rós. Angelic and ethereal, "Agaetis Byrjun" is a rare musical experience without a single dud song.
Free Music Review: Superb! (but, based on just two songs (but, that's ok))
Hit: 5 Stars
I liked Bill Perez's harshing on the "critics." And I think he has it (mostly) right when he says that you'll be "pleasantly hypnotized."
I might go a little farther.
For some weeks now, I have been hearing "Svefn G Englar" on the radio. (Now I know why the DJs here in the US are hesitant to tell me what song just played.)
It took me until the song came up at the top of an hour, so that I could check the online playlist without ambiguity. And then I find that Amazon is providing the song as a free download. And then I find that they're also offering the title track, "Agaetis Byrjun," for free. Man, I can't even *type* that correctly -- the first A is supposed to have a mark over it, and the second A is supposed to be jammed against the ensuing E.
But enough fretting about typography and pronunciation. I think its kind of cool to have new favorite songs that I can't even mention. Well . . . until now, of course.
All right. Before you read any further, do this: Go up to the top of this page, click the first search box's down arrow, change it to "Music Downloads," type SIGUR ROS into the second box, and click "Go." Even if you're still on dial-up, download these two songs. Do this now. You'll get to judge for yourself.
Done? Good. Aren't these songs cool?
OK. They might not be to your taste. Initially. Hear me out.
When I first heard music like this, I sniffingly dismissed it as "heroin music." But then I outgrew my intolerance, and just let it wash over me. And now I find it strangely invigorating. In fact, I now play it loud.
Not only is it the perfect chill music, it also works for drive time tunes, too.
With Sigur Ros on, road rage seems almost incomprehensible. It seems beneath one's dignity. You listen to music like this, and you think, we might just be on a higher plane.
Free Music Review: The Good Reviews Are Apparenthetically ( Priceless )
Hit: 5 Stars
Aren't All Those Good Reviews JUST Priceless ?
With tongue firmly poked in cheek. Being "Visually Enhanced" Music is, first, enjoyed by the eye.
Which is to say that if the COVER is "interesting" the MUSIC is, possibabblely, at least as "inspired."
Take for instance the COVER of "Rock Bottom"... EXACTLY Why Mr. Wyatt and Alfraidie Cat ever changed that is beyond understanding, however it still touches the heart all the way up the charts. With that in mind, Sigur's Ro's's A'gaetis's Byrjun's, (it is with a tear on the other cheek this type-tighter does not connect the a to the e,) COVER has been observed for the past 8 years or so, picked up and perused and neatly replaced neatly in the bin still in protective placenta . ( See :: Put THAT Book Back on the Shelf and 787 Ray Johnson gives birth to CalligRayphy's new hole ) So it passes the "Visual Review". The Smekkleysa alone is worth the price. Honestly up until now only SNIPPETS of this have reached our ears and thus just the SNIPPETS and jib-lettes are being review here, so don't expect the WHOLE Inch-A-La-La. To make it short and tweet :: The SNIPPETS are not nearly long enough, however having purchased this, we are looking forward to cele-berating the entire Jam Boring Jamboree . And with tongue still snuggling deep in cheek, we do not need to see yet another review of this review so if you wanna review this review please send a stamped self addressed antelope or Deer Post Card To :: rain rien nevermind 2101 baneberry way east, Chanhassen, MN 55317 you sofa with some fingernails and religious overtomes. Dear Kjartan Sveinsson, Wheee! Appreciate YOU being appreciated. Put The Book Back On The Shelf: A Belle And Sebastian Anthology 2aBaby TranceDance.
Free Music Review: An old guy likes this stuff too
Hit: 5 Stars
With nearly 300 reviews of this CD already written, and no one but the most deranged fan willing to read more than a few, why add another? Well, because I suspect there are listeners other than myself who look and listen and wonder how to decipher all the woozy praise or hysterical hatred. Besides, of course, buying the darn thing and listening.
I have been a fan of Sigur Ros for over 4 years, having been exposed to them by my daughter, who thought this right up my alley. And she was blindingly right. I have witnessed them twice live. This is amazing stuff. Now, not everything they do is amazing....some of it is rather pedestrian. Tedious. A little embarrassing. Even Mozart wrote uninteresting music. But there is nothing dull on this CD. It is transcendent and intoxicating. Their consistently best work to date.
I do not believe snippets or scraps can really capture what this can do. You need to immerse yourself into the world they create, a sonic palace of bizarre digital noises and weird little drones, a wispy little vocalist and a breathtakingly brilliant percussionist, and savor it all. Unlike anything else, and unrelated to anything else, it stands on its own as something worth experiencing and enjoying.
Sigur Ros is like a Jackson Pollack painting. Often when you look at a Pollack, not a print but the real thing, you wonder what the heck he thought he was up to. He got paid for that? But sometimes Pollack hit it perfectly; he took the same old swirls and drips and spatters on every painter's dropcloth and produced something gorgeous and permanent. This CD has all winners on it, a flow and a movement using the the most elementary, and often most repetitive, little sounds and weaving and blending them into a tapestry of endlessly surprising and often unimaginable beauty.
Free Music Review: Think Opera, not Rock
Hit: 5 Stars
Most negative reviewers state that Sigur Ros are boring and incomprehensible.
It is interesting that anyone would condemn Sigur Ros for being impossible to understand, considering that they are an Icelandic band and hence don't sing in English.
Besides that, anyone who dislikes Sigur Ros for this reason is missing or not appreciating a fundamental tenet of their music. It isn't supposed to make sense. At least, not to the brain. No, this music speaks to the heart. It is meaningless from a logical or rational point of view, but profound when listened to using feelings and emotions.
In this sense, Sigur Ros is not remarkably different from any "mainstream" band. The lyrics of many popular songs, especially Metal or Grunge compositions, are usually incomprehensible. Sigur Ros is the same.
The main difference between Sigur Ros and the music of other genres in which lyrics and meaning take a back seat is how they engage the listener. Grunge and Rock almost always use heavy electronic guitar riffs and strong percussive beats to interest the listener. Someone who is used to hearing this type of music will of course find Sigur Ros "boring" - Sigur Ros music contains no obvious riffs, drum beats or even linear structure.
But that is because Sigur Ros is not some form of Aural amphetamine, or alternative to beat-boxing.
It's not supposed to get the heart racing or the blood flowing, but rather the opposite. It calms and pacifies. When you listen to Sigur Ros, you don't listen for cheap thrills or empty titillation. You listen to meditate, to feel, or to relax.
The point of meditation is definitely not to be some form of entertainment. Thus, if you can't appreciate quiet reflection or find peace and beauty "boring", then you most likely won't enjoy Sigur Ros.