Review By Darian Magee – 5/5 Dragons
From August Vandala Magazine – READ MORE REVIEWS HERE
It’s been a while since I’ve reviewed an album that came remotely close to top 40, but Sigur Rós’s Ágætis Byrjun is well worth the sacrifice. Having recently been featured on both How to Train Your Dragon movies and a Game of Thrones episode, lead singer Jónsi has created quite the buzz in the Nordic country of Iceland, the album in question reaching #2 on Pitchforks best albums of the year 2000. Although all their music is worth talking about, this release in particular hosts one of favorites and I just couldn’t stay away. Svefn-g-englar (taken from the Icelandic pun “sleepwalkers”) follows the intro on Ágætis Byrjun and it’s easy to see why this song took the coveted spot of being the first listed on the album. Although I’m not exactly clear on the translation, the lyrics seem to tell a somber tale of a being frustrated by finding himself trapped without a voice. The accompanying video goes along with this story well, featuring a rather predominant group society tends to alienate, the teenage participants all possessing down syndrome. The rest of the album proves itself to be just as pensive, the combination of Jónsi’s dreamy counter tenor and a mostly string orchestra makes for a beguiling rapture.
Vandala Magazine 