8:13am
10th November 2011
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Inni | The Return of Sigur Rós
By Jim Fusilli for Wall Street Journal
Mr. Birgisson, working under his first name, released a delightful solo album, “Go,” and went on a lengthy world tour to support it. When the “Go” tour ended, Mr. Birgisson said, “it was like coming home to see the guys again. It felt natural.”
The band went straight to work at their studio, set in a space once occupied by a swimming pool. They weren’t satisfied with their initial sessions. “We were recycling,” Mr. Birgisson said. But the quartet soon found its new focus.
The band’s next album is scheduled for release in the spring. Based on excerpts presented by Mr. Sveinsson, the new music promises to be as exceptional as the best of the band’s catalog. Mr. Hólm called it “introverted,” while Mr. Birgisson said it was “floaty and minimal.” “An ambient album” was how Mr. Dýrason described it, with “a slow takeoff toward something.” For a visitor who heard a preliminary recording in which Mr. Birgisson’s falsetto was surrounded by rich choral voices and what sounded like a pipe organ, the music was thrilling.
“We’ve never been gimmicked into keeping our sound similar to what we did last,” Mr. Sveinsson said. “It’s very easy for musicians to buy into that idea. It’s so unnecessary.”
From the start, Mr. Sveinsson added, “we were mainly interested in what we were doing. We knew it was special. It’s never theoretical with us. It’s just ‘go do.’ When you’re doing it, you think: ‘This is really good.’ But it doesn’t go further than that.”
