Kveikur (Sigur Ros)

THERE are bands with distinctive sounds, and then there's Sigur Ros.

Kveikur: Sigur Ros

THERE are bands with distinctive sounds, and then there's Sigur Ros.

These Icelandic gentlemen have produced seven albums, including Kveikur (pronounced quaker, meaning candlewick in the mother tongue); and with each successive release they further distance themselves from any other act, past or present.

Formed in 1994, Sigur Ros has long been associated with the post-rock genre that favours sprawling, intricate compositions eschewing traditional verse-chorus structures. Kveikur is the group's their strongest album yet. It's certainly Sigur Ros's most accessible collection. Nine tracks, 48 minutes in total; only the closer, Var (Shelter), is forgettable: a wordless, aimless dead-end of sunken, delayed piano notes and sighing strings.

The other eight tracks are thrilling, powerful and inspiring. The nature of the cinematic sound, coupled with the band members' Icelandic heritage, inevitably conjures mental images of snow-capped mountains and glaciers. Its winter release is ideal. Here, the former quintet is reduced to a three-piece for the first time. Jon Por Birgisson's incomparable falsetto and bowed guitar playing practically defines this band; even his solo album, 2010's Go, was virtually indistinguishable from the Sigur Ros catalogue.

Only Georg Holm (bass) and Orri Pall Dyrason (drums) accompany him here, yet you'd never guess that based on the complexity of the production. Layered strings, clattering percussion and soaring sampled effects run through these songs, as best exemplified on second single Isjaki (Iceberg).

This is excellent music, unlike anything else on earth. For the uninitiated, Kveikur is the ideal starting point.

LABEL: XL Recordings
RATING: 4.5 stars