Sigur Rós make very complex music.
I spent quite a while trying to think of a good word to encapsulate Sigur Rós’ sound, but complex was the most all encompassing one I could come up with. The band’s substantial back catalog manages to elicit nearly every emotion, ranging from pure bliss, to crushing loneliness, so trying to typify their music is almost impossible. The only constants since the band’s formation in 1994 have been vocalist/guitarist Jónsi Birgisson’s high falsetto singing voice, use of bowed guitar, and the band’s general focus on atmospherics.
Since last year’s ambient gem, Valtari, the band have been busy crafting a new, heavier sound. The first track from the band’s forthcoming seventh album, Kveikur, is a post-rock roller coaster called “Brennisteinn,” and it’s the most ass-kicking thing to come out of Iceland since they started exporting Brennivín.