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Sigur Ros - Agaetis Byrjun
 
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Sigur Ros - Agaetis Byrjun

~ Sigur Rós
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (79 customer reviews)
Price: £4.98 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
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Product details

  • Audio CD (14 Aug 2000)
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Label: Fat Cat
  • ASIN: B00004W3MS
  • Other Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (79 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,301 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

    Popular in this category:

    #3 in  Music > Indie > Post-rock

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Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s

Songs from this album are available to purchase as MP3s. Click on "Buy MP3" or view the MP3 Album.

Samples
Song Title Time Price
Listen  1. Svefn - G - Englar (Intro) 1:37£0.79
Listen  2. Svefn - G - Englar10:04£0.69
Listen  3. Staralfur 6:46£0.69
Listen  4. Flugufrelsarinn 7:48£0.79
Listen  5. Ny Batteri 8:10£0.79
Listen  6. Hjartao Hamast 7:09£0.79
Listen  7. Viorar Vel Til Loftarasa10:17£0.69
Listen  8. Olsen Olsen 8:03£0.69
Listen  9. Agaetis Byrjun 7:55£0.69
Listen10. Avalon 4:04£0.69


Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Reykjavík-based noise quartet Sigur Ros are the biggest band in their native Iceland, which should say much, much more about the collective insanity of that earthquake-ridden, blizzard-beaten crag of an island than anything to do with Sigur Ros' sound. But in their music, Sigur Ros reflect all the breathtaking glory of the Icelandic wastes--a fairy-tale explosion of unhinged elemental majesty that's finally crystalised here, their debut European release. Poised somewhere between the haunting soundscapes of Labradford and the lilting Celtic falsetto of Enya, Agaetis Byrjun is a truly breathtaking listen. Frontman Jon Por Birgisson sings in a language that Sigur Ros dub Hopelandic--an otherworldly mutation of Icelandic, sung in the falsetto cadence of angels; similarly, he plays his guitar with a violin bow, opening the floodgates for brilliant waves of feedback. And while it's the opening "Svefn-G-Englar" that's Sigur Ros' defining moment to date, there's far more that Agaetis Byrjun has to offer; the pomp and flourish of a full orchestra on "Flugufrelsarinn", or the awe-inspiring near-religious mantra of "Ny Batteri". --Louis Pattison


CD Description

This stately Iceland rock outfit took the alternative-musicworld by storm with its second album, AGAETIS BYRJUN--a haunting, eloquent, 76-minute instant classic. Frontman Jon PorBirgisson sings in a language he calls "Hopelandic" (a combination of Icelandic and his own angelic calling), over the lyrical ebb and flow of feedback-drenched guitar, gushing keyboards, gently driving bass, and drums that crash like the surf of an alien ocean. After a droning beginning, the curtains suddenly part with "Svefn-G-Englar", revealing a sound as wide open and exhilarating as Iceland's landscape. Later, the mournful violin and slowly cascading beats of "Flugufrelsarinn" give way to ghostly horn sections, orchestral crescendos, stretches of silence, crashing dissonance, sad piano lines, and a Radiohead-esque dip into the realm of rock on "Olsen Olsen". The breathtaking scope and emotional richness of this outing turned Sigur Ros into an overnight success. Within a year of AGAETIS BYRJUN's release on the small Britishlabel Fatcat Records, the band went from obscurity to selling out major venues, scoring films, and signing with MCA, who re-released the album to even wider acclaim.

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Customer Reviews

79 Reviews
5 star:
 (68)
4 star:
 (6)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (79 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The most breathtaking piece of music you'll ever hear!, 29 Jul 2002
By KidA (United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
Agaetis Byrjun is most possibly the most amazing album I have ever heard. Every track makes you tingle with emotion, and the purity and beauty of the wall of noise created will blow you away.
This album is the perfect mix of raw, violin- bow enhanced guitar, mind blowing vocals and a plethora of crazed, beautiful sounds. Culminating in a perfect state of blissful energy.

If your a fan of the more experimental radiohead or simply a person who enjoys beautiful music you should not be without this album. Listen to Svefn-G-Englar (track 2) and let your mind drift away into a blissful state of pure ecstasy.

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53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Stop reading and buy this album, 24 Nov 2001
By A Customer
Sigur Ros are a 4 piece outfit from Iceland, whose second studio album is quite simply the most jaw dropping, heart stopping piece of music that these ears have heard in ages and ages. If not ever. The sound of their music defies my desire to afford it suitable description. One review of this album that I read on the Net described it as 'the soundtrack to a Heavenly afterlife'. I will offer little that is more fitting than that.

However, reviews require comparisons and I would be failing you if I didn't provide one - however inadequate.

Imagine the sound of Air's 'Moon Safari'. Add the sound of Radiohead at their evocative, powerful best. Mix in the sort of piano and string work that would make you weep for joy if you heard it at Café Mambo. Then roast in the oven for 40 minutes at gas mark Melody. Double it and you have the defining album of this, or possibly any, summer.

10 tracks. One second short of 72 minutes. Chilled to the bone rhythms meet haunting instrumentation and ethereal 'Hopelandish' vocals to produce sheer emotion distilled into crescendo after slowly building crescendo. Pick a fine summer's evening, light a barbie, get some mates round; eat, drink and then watch them all fall apart as your new Sigur Ros cd melts even the hardest of their hearts.

If only one of you buys this album and, in short time, comes to agree with me then the mission that I currently feel I am on will have been satisfied.

"Agaetis Byrjun" apparently translates roughly as "A new beginning". Buy it. Treasure it.

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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant, 3 Aug 2006
Beatiful. Majestic. Awe-inspiring. These are just a few of the words which can be used to describe this LP. This band immerse themselves totally in their surroundings - the beautiful landscapes of Iceland - and use it as their inspiration.

every other review of this album is spot on, so I won't make this any longer than it needs to be. One of the most interesting things that I find when I read other people's reviews is the variation in "favourite" tracks. Svefn-g-englar seems a popular choice, but the beauty of this album is that everyone sees something different in it. I've heard people say that their personal favourites are the title track, Svsfn-g-englar, Olsen Olsen, Ny Batteri... in fact, I've heard different people citing pretty much every track on the album as a highlight (except maybe the intro, for obvious reasons). My personal favourite is Staralfur, with its sweeping strings and haunting acoustic guitar.

In my opinion, the strongest Sigur Ros album - slightly edging out () and Takk...

Incidentally, people who look at my other reviews may notice that there are a great many 4 star ratings but only one 5 star rating - this one. I tend to only review albums that i like, but i try and avoid the two extremes - 1 star or 5 stars. i try to be objective with my reviews, so, believe me, if i think an album is deserving of 5 stars then take it as red that i wholeheartedly think that album is utter brilliance.

Buy it now.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Like Salvation being Dredged up from the Icelandic Deep
Svefn-G-Englar is the most heart-wrenching and monolithically beautiful piece of music to grace my ears. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Odelay In Space

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing like all their music
Listening to this CD or group you discover a musical universe around you. You will not be disappointed!
Published 6 months ago by Jaione Agirre Garcia

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
I had heard of Sigur Ros a number of times over the past couple of years, but never heard their actual music (except the ubiquitous excerpt from BBC's Life on Earth!). Read more
Published 7 months ago by S. Brown

5.0 out of 5 stars spectacular
absolutely breathtaking one of the best albums ever made! emotive, challenging, ethereal, powerful and glowing, gleaming glistening with beauty. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Rafael Lindsay

4.0 out of 5 stars Not sure if I completely get this music?!
I must admit that I don't know if I completely understand this music (yet?). It's kind of like new age Pink Floyd with an Icelandic twist. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Anonymous

5.0 out of 5 stars Genius
Id never heard of this 4 piece band until recently and have since purchased 3 of there albums its so unique
Published 15 months ago by Mr. A. Jaye

5.0 out of 5 stars Human music beamed in from a distant galaxy
Hearing Sigur Ros for the first time , as most of us did when hearing Agaetis byrjun, is akin, i imagine , to not just hearing music beamed down from another planet but hearing... Read more
Published 17 months ago by russell clarke

5.0 out of 5 stars ethereal and dreamy...
After debut album Von appeared domestically, this one was expected to be Sigur Ros' global take over and yes... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Telefunken

5.0 out of 5 stars Best place to start
I cannot add any further to what the previous 70 odd reviewers have already said, but being a big fan of Sigur Ros for some years I can advise anyone wishing to purchase this... Read more
Published 22 months ago by biffbiffin

5.0 out of 5 stars Art
I have been a fan of Sigur Ros from the moment I heard Agaetis Byrjun. I have listened to all of their music on and off for several years now and nothing else on the pop/rock... Read more
Published on 22 Oct 2007 by Gudmundur Hegner Jonsson

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