Von

 

 

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This was an interesting cd to listen to as i heard all their albums in reverse order, as in got Takk... first then the other two, and bought this one a few days ago.
It is really weird and different, particularly track one (which terrifies me!) because, particularly that track is all ambient noise and is very experimental but you can hear their emerging sounds. If you're a Sigur Ros fan then i'd definitely recommend getting it. I love it and i've only listened to it twice. Hope you found this useful

Before Sigur Rós became the alternative music darlings of the new millennium with their justly revered breakout album, Ágætis byrjun, their local reputation in Iceland was primarily presented in the form of this, their debut album Von, pressed and released under the Bad Taste label formed in the `80s by some of Iceland's more prolific punk music tearaways. The album's reputation amongst fans and the band themselves has since become a dubious one, what with the band's line-up having changed significantly since (Ágætis saw Kjartan Sveinsson enter the fray on keyboards and Orri Pall Dyarsson replacing original drummer Agust after it's release) and the band going on record with saying how disappointed they were with the end result in interviews. Further evidence of the band's efforts to forget Von can be surmised by the title of their second album, which translates as "an alright start". And whilst Von isn't a criminally ignored gem (for the most part, the band's reservations frequently ring true), there are still shafts of light present that suggest that this beleaguered four-piece at the very least had some potential in their midst.

The most striking sentiment that can be afforded to Von (that's "Hope" for us Englanders) is how much it distances itself in mood and production from the rest of Sigur Rós's future catalogue. In essence, it could play much better as a soundtrack to a lost zombie apocalypse film circa Romero or Argento, all discordant ambient noise peppered with a couple of recognisably dated goth-pop songs. The band's eponymous track comes as a shock first of all with its starting quietly with sweet percussion before descending into unpleasant screaming, an overtly sinister piece one wouldn't think of emerging from a band whose music has since become so beatifically poignant. The instrumental pieces tend to meander without much direction or force, unlike the arrangements to come in (), and the songs appear rigidly confined to their structures rather unlike the thinking aloud found in Ágætis and Takk.... Also, it's all being produced and mixed by the band in its infancy means there is a lot of room for improvement; vocals are often distant leaving the melodies hard to make out and artistic license is stretched to breaking point on a handful of tracks (key offenders being "18 Sekúndur Fyrir Sólarupprás" and the opening six minutes of "Rukrym").

That being said, whilst it never comes close to anything as beautiful the band have written since, the foundation blocks of what was to inform their later work are clearly in evidence. Their use of choirs here can be seen as a precursor for how frontman Jonsi would later use his elfin trill, which makes their work sound more organic than a simple melody with a backing arrangement, exemplified by the haunting opening of "Dögun" and the album's most conventional song, "Hún Jorð". The band's obsession with musical reversals and palindromes also finds room on the LP, the most obvious example being "Mykrur's" reversal into "Rukrym". If someone were to listen to this album without any prior knowledge of Sigur Rós and their music since, they would be distinctly unimpressed save for a couple of tracks if they were being kind (title track "Von" actually sounds like a good song even with its dodgy production). However, for the Sigur Rós fan listening with hindsight, one can admire the CD as a band trying to find their sound safe in the knowledge that they will finally get there. For completists and the easily sympathetic only.

Just bought this after having had the other three albums for a number of years, and I have to say it's my favourite. Strongly reminiscent of Hawkwind & early Pink Floyd, especially Saucer Full of Secrets

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5.0 out of 5 stars Tingles down the spine...
You know those songs that send a shiver down your spine? In a good way. Well, 'Von' does this very well. Read more

Published 19 months ago by Blue Dragon

4.0 out of 5 stars Potential
I think the band themselves have said that they don't think this album is that great, however they're probably doing themselves a disservice as by anyone else's standards it's an... Read more

Published on 18 Jun 2009 by A. Noyed

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting...
Erm, not sure what to say about this album...

I'm a completist, I've got all the other albums by sigur ros, so I wanted this one too. Read more

Published on 4 Feb 2009 by Mr. A. A. Cavanagh

5.0 out of 5 stars Re-releason on DMM vinyl!
one of the most exciting bands and one of the best releases ever!
i have the CD that i really really enjoy and now i pre-ordered the heavy-vinyl on DMM format (better sound... Read more

Published on 28 Jan 2009 by Christos Simotas

3.0 out of 5 stars Reminiscent of Sid Barrett
If someone had told me this album were some lost Sid Barrett Pink Floyd tapes from 1970 I would have believed them. Read more

Published on 2 Feb 2008 by biffbiffin

5.0 out of 5 stars Raw sigur ros
I may be sticking my neck out here but this is my favourite Sigur Ros album. The songs on the album are all good and the ambient filler tracks are all perfectly decent (i like... Read more

Published on 11 July 2007 by Oliver G. White

4.0 out of 5 stars really not that bad
i was very nervous about buying this album after reading the other reviews on this page, but after finding the courage to go and buy this album, i was pleasantly surprised at how... Read more

Published on 6 Aug 2006 by nick

2.0 out of 5 stars Meagre and disappointing
I hate giving bad reviews but I don't like lying either- I was bored by this album. I became interested in Sigur Ros after reading alot about them and hearing that they are doing... Read more

Published on 11 July 2005 by vigology

3.0 out of 5 stars the album before they got REALLY good
this is the first sigur ros album and was released( i think) originally in 1997. first of all, it doesn't contain as much downright prettiness as say, Ba ba ti ki di do, or... Read more

Published on 4 Mar 2005 by Mr. P. A. Rushforth

3.0 out of 5 stars destined for greater things.
It's nice to see this early release from Sigur Ros make it over here, originally i had to import mine from Iceland. Read more

Published on 10 Jan 2005 by Paul Jetten

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