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Having made their name with TV-friendly, wistful ambient rock, Sigur Ros's seventh studio album, Kveikur is an attempt to push their sound into a more obscure musical direction.
Opening track ‘Brennisteinn’ is nothing short of a volcanic eruption of moody industrial rock at it’s very finest. The new direction maybe a more dignified way of sticking a finger up to the man and proving they’re capable of creating more than just idealist melodies. The fantasy of more aggressive sounds is an exciting change for the band and the bleak darkness is welcomed with open arms.
The follow up track is a complete contrast to the opening of gloom and doom, as if waking up from a thunderstorm ‘Hrafntinna’ is the uplift in mood to keep old fans content, where we can’t help but sigh with disappointment. The enchanting percussion and haunting vocal ‘oooh’s’ is a pleasant and more poppy sound for the band but already moving back to safe territory, drat.
Watch the video for album opener 'Brennisteinn' below
It’s not that the songs aren’t beautifully composed and poignant - they really are, it’s just that we were getting pretty excited by the alternate motive of darkness and mystery. You get the feeling that the band have tried to mold into a darker hysteria but then backed away at the last minute, only just dipping their toes into the murky water. We wished they’d dived all the way in because what a sinister creation that would’ve been.
Watch title track 'Kveikur' below
The album continues to fill out with tracks like ‘Isjaki’ and ‘Rafstraumur’ that are gorgeously divine yet all seem too much like common ground for a band capable of so much more.
You can probably now sense the repetition and frustration here, but as there aren’t many bands out there that can create such strong visualizations as Sigur Ros it’s such a shame they haven’t tried to push the boundaries a little more this time around. What’s more, with an opening so bold and brilliant the album falls short of achieving something much more magical.
