Með suð í eyrum
við spilum endalaust
Sigur Rós
will be releasing their fifth album, Með suð í eyrum við spilum
endalaust (English translation: With a buzz in our ears we play
endlessly), on June 23rd, 2008 on EMI Records. The first song from the
album, entitled ‘Gobbledigook’. The track will then be available
worldwide for free download, via
www.sigurros.com
A pre-sale for the album will begin on www.sigurros.com on June 2nd and
anyone who pre-orders will then be able to access a stream of the full
album from June 9th. A special deluxe edition of the album to be
released later in the year, featuring a ‘Making Of…’ book, a film, and
more, will also be available to pre-order on the band’s website as of
June 2nd, in addition to a plethora of Sigur Rósgoodies – exclusive
clips, information on tickets for upcoming shows throughout the year
etc. – which will be available to those who sign up for the mailing
list on www.sigurros.com.
With A Buzz… was co-produced by the band and renowned producer Flood
and was recorded in New York City (at Sear Sound Studios), London (at
Assault and Battery Studios and Abbey Road), Reykjavík (at Álafoss, the
band’s studio, as well as a church in Reykjavik) and Havana, Cuba.
Whereas Sigur Rós’ last release – the critically-acclaimed tour film
Heima, chronicling their free tour throughout Iceland – took the band
to their homeland, their newest creation, With A Buzz…, is the first
album in the band’s career to be made outside of Iceland. It is also
their first album to feature vocalist Jón “Jónsi” Thor Birgisson’s
vocals in English on one track (the remainder are sung in Icelandic).
Inspired by the unfettered feeling of the acoustic performances filmed
during Heima, Sigur Rós decided to adopt a looser approach in the
writing and creation of their brilliant fifth album. The material for
the album was written, recorded and mixed entirely in 2008 and is being
released just one month after completion. The album glows with the
perfect imperfection of live takes, the sounds of fingers playing
guitar strings, cracked notes, and a stark, upfront presence not found
in previous Sigur Rós recordings, moving away from the reverb-induced
guitar sounds of old to something altogether more fragile and affecting.
It also contains some of the most joyous music the band has ever
recorded.
First song ‘Gobbledigook’ sets the tone for With A Buzz… with its
shifting acoustic guitars, playful vocals, time signature shifts and
swirling percussion, while ‘Inni mer syngur vitleysingur’ (‘Within me a
lunatic sings’) sparkles as one of the most anthemic songs Sigur Rós
have ever written. ‘Festival’ is epic in its elation and scope,
‘Illgresi’ (‘Weeds’) features one of Jónsi’s finest vocal melodies over
a lone acoustic guitar, and ‘Ára bátur’ (‘Row boat’) is the single
largest musical undertaking in the band’s career, as it was recorded
live in one take with the London Sinfonietta and London Oratory Boy’s
Choir, a total of 90 people playing at the same time. The band also
utilized the talents of their string-quartet friends Amiina, as well as
a five-piece brass section on certain tracks, in addition to
introducing the Mellotron into their writing/recording process for the
first time on this album, specifically on one of the most tender and
beautiful songs on the record, ‘Fljótavík’.
The spirit of With A Buzz… is best captured by the album’s stunning
artwork, contributed by acclaimed visual artist Ryan McGinley. McGinley
first met the band when he photographed Jónsi six years ago; the album
cover was taken from a flyer for McGinley’s most recent exhibit, I Know
Where The Summer Goes, which happened to find its way into Jónsi’s
inbox just as the band was deciding on how to best visually represent
their new collection of songs. The result is a perfect synergy of the
aural and the visual.
The track listing for Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust (With a buzz
in our ears we play endlessly) is… |