Ropeadope

 "With a buzz in our ears, we play endlessly" is the translation of Sigur Rós' latest record title and will probably be how I refer to it from now on. I've had little problems pronouncing the rest of their work (except maybe on ( ) where I wasn't sure how I should pronounce it so instead just referred to it as Bears Attack Bees) but upon first glance of that intimidating piece of Icelandic verbiage, I was caught going, "Mee....Meow So ee. Meow Sue eye Vaio? Eh, fuck it." 

But confusing Icelandic titles aside, this new record officially knocked me on my ass, three weeks prior when I heard their first single "Gobbledigook." This seemed to be a different Sigur Rós -- instead of beautiful melodies that move along at the pace of a snail, here we have beautiful melodies that prove to be more energetic and alive, most of the credit going to Orri Páll Dýrason for his smashing percussion (and mean 'smashing' quite literally).

So have Sigur Rós gone pop? No, not exactly. On this record of mostly-under-five-minute gems there are a couple of classic "build, build, build some more, explode" type songs like "Festival" and "Ára bátur." Some critics find fault with this, while others appreciate a little slice of familiarity. I can see where both sides are coming from but tend to side more with the latter. "Ára bátur" is 9 minutes and rather sparse at first. I can certainly see the challenge this track presents, especially when the album is packed with brief pop songs that achieve something so great in a short amount of time.

However, the song manages to be one of the most outstanding tracks of the group's career. Done in one take with 90+ musicians on hand, it truly is the definition of grandiose.  Sigur Rós continually improve on their earlier work with each new release and Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust is no different.

SIDENOTE: To all you damned critics who continually find it necessary to compare Sigur Rós to Coldplay: this one is for you.