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Tag Archives: Sigur Ros

The beauty in the everyday

10 Wednesday Feb 2010

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

Nigel over at Under The Counter wrote a wonderful post the other day about ‘things that are ordinarily ecstatic‘, like the minty freshness of just-brushed teeth and a long-forgotten song popping up unexpectedly while listening to an old mix CD.

I loved this post, because there is so much beauty in the everyday, and I think we forget this sometimes. One of the things that I listed in my reponse to his post was about saying good morning to random strangers as I pass them on the footpath during my (semi-regular) morning run. There is also an old man that I see every so often, depending on what time I drag myself out of bed, who will wink and lift his hat to me as I run by.

I started thinking about this further, and I find it really strange how reluctant people are, in general, to even make eye contact with strangers on the street. I really don’t like doing it myself to be honest, I don’t know if it’s shyness or a lack of confidence or if I don’t trust people or if we’ve all just become really insular, but I find it quite difficult to look a stranger in the eye as I pass them by and I have to almost force myself to do it sometimes. I feel bad when I don’t do it though – after all, what’s the worse thing that can happen? They don’t look back at you?

It wasn’t until I went overseas I think that I started doing this more often. I was just so thrilled to be in a foreign place that I couldn’t help but look at everything I passed, including the people, and I relished the conversations that I had with the locals, most of which started with a simple hello and usually developed further when they heard my broad Orrrstralian accent (though it’s nowhere near as twangy as Missy Higgins or as over-the-top as Steve Irwin’s, thankyou very much!) Being overseas and having all these new experiences meant that my mind couldn’t help but become more open and receptive and somehow that lead to me becoming a little less reserved when it came to talking to new people. Being over there by myself didn’t hurt either – I was almost forced by circumstance to meet people.

This all seems quite obvious when I write it down, but as somebody who often finds it quite difficult to interact with new people, the experiences I had meeting people overseas – people who went out of their way to make me feel comfortable and welcome – have made it a little bit easier for me to get up the courage to look strangers in the eye when I pass them on the street here at home.

Now I make sure that I look at people when I pass them because more often than not you’ll get a smile or a hello or at the very least, that strange little grimace that people do when they’re not sure why you’re looking at them, but they’re at least willing to acknowledge your existence. And it really is nice to share that moment with a stranger, a moment where you’re both treading in the same space and sharing the same air, even for the briefest of times.

I now order you to listen to some Sigur Ros.

Because you’re worth it.

Glosoli – Sigur Ros

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/02-glosoli.mp3
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Late night mix

28 Saturday Nov 2009

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Arizona, Born In The Flood, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros, The Weather Station, The Wooden Sky

Tokyo May 2009

Listen to these songs, and then tell me they don’t go together. Listen to them under the influence of a couple of tumblerfuls of gin, and you won’t even notice if they don’t.

To Slowly Be Undone – Born In The Flood

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/05-to-slowly-be-undone1.mp3

Imagining You – Arizona

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/arizona-imagining-you.mp3

Something Hiding For Us In The Night – The Wooden Sky

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/08-something-hiding-for-us-in-the-night.mp3

East – The Weather Station (love this)

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/east.mp3

All Alright – Sigur Ros

https://itallstarted.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/11-all-alright.mp3

Sleeping riceboys and Boy 1904

07 Tuesday Jul 2009

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Jonsi and Alex, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

churchyard

From the opening crackle of ‘Boy 1904’ from the forthcoming Riceboy Sleeps by Jonsi and Alex, I was immediately transported back to a huge Catholic church in Edinburgh where I happened to stumble upon an evening service. There were only a dozen people scattered throughout the pews and the service had already begun as I took a seat.  I let the words of the priest wash over me as I gazed at the arching ceiling and solid stone columns. I felt calm and moved and safe all at once.

Though I’m not religious, I found myself constantly taken aback by the depth of feeling I experienced when visiting cathedrals and churches in the UK. I think it had something to do with the age of the buildings – some of them were over 800 years old and took decades to build and I couldn’t help but marvel at the time and money and effort and sheer perseverance that must’ve gone into them. They’re so solid and steady and the fact that they’re still standing after hundreds of years is pretty amazing – we don’t seem to build anything to last any more. Being inside these places never failed to make me feel calm and peaceful, and  ‘Boy 1904’ with its crackly opening and soaring choral voices has the same effect.

I’ve often described the music of Sigur Ros in this way also, and it makes sense that this track does the same thing, as Riceboy Sleeps is the side project of Sigur Ros’ lead singer Jonsi and his boyfriend Alex. Go here to download ‘Boy 1904’ – all you need to do is enter your email address and you can hear it for yourself. I’ll certainly be interested in checking out the rest of the album when it comes out later this month.

I leave you with this acoustic version of ‘Heysatan’. It’s from last year’s Hvarf-Heim and it’s all kinds of wonderful. But then, crazymad SR lover that I am – I would say that anyway, wouldn’t I?

Heysatan – Sigur Ros

Image: I also get quite a kick out of churchyards. I don’t have a photo of the church I described earlier – the image above is from Greyfriar’s Kirk in Edinburgh.

How can you not love this?

26 Friday Jun 2009

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

Regrets, discoveries and an English lesson

28 Saturday Jun 2008

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Ben Lee, Calico Horse, Hezekiah Jones, Karli Fairbanks, Kendall Payne, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros, The Wombats, Wild Sweet Orange

Mixed buttons

Got a bit of a mixed bag for you today. We’ll start with the regrets.

This isn’t a regret really, more of a I’m-really-pissed-off-that-these-guys-have-picked-the-same-night-to-perform thing I suppose. I was planning on checking out Ben Lee in August but unfortunately he’s playing on the same night as Sigur Ros. When it came down to it, it was really no contest. Sigur Ros, hands down. Though I really think that they all could’ve been a little bit more considerate of my needs!

Into The Dark – Ben Lee

We’re All In This Together – Ben Lee

Sé Lest – Sigur Ros

Festival (Radio Rip) – Sigur Ros

I’m not going to get to see The Wombats either – their shows are midweek and they’re all sold out anyway. Not happy Jan.

School Uniform – The Wombats

Onto the discoveries. I came across this track the other day. It’s called ‘Agnes Of The World’, so naturally, it’s a song that must have been written with my good self in mind. Though I’m unsure about the Polish queen reference – it’s true I am a regal being, but I’m not Polish. I am however a clever genius (one may ask, what other kind is there?) so thanks for spotting that Hezekiah. I am truly humbled.

Agnes Of The World – Hezekiah Jones

Another discovery is brought to you in the form of Karli Fairbanks. She’s a folk singer from Washington, USA and has a beautiful clear voice that actually reminds me a lot of fellow American singer-songwriter Kendall Payne. Listen to the two tracks below and tell me I’m wrong.

Canyons – Karli Fairbanks

Scratch – Kendall Payne

Wild Sweet Orange are a band who I’ve been vaguely aware of for a while now, but I haven’t really listened to any of their stuff until this week. They play an uncomplicated brand of indie rock that’s easy to sing along with. I especially like the “woah oh-oh” ending to ‘I’m Coming Home’.

I’m Coming Home – Wild Sweet Orange

And now, onto the (very quick) English lesson. Ooze. Squish. Crunch. Splash. Chomp. Squeeze. These are just some examples of onomatopoeia. Which incidentally is another word that I should’ve added to this post earlier in the week.

Onomatopoeia are words that sound exactly like what they are – the word itself imitates the sound of the thing it’s describing. The kids I taught last year knew all about onomatopoeia, and we had a huge list hanging in the classroom that they kept adding to throughout the term. In addition to being a bit of an English freak, I also love songs with quirky names, so when I saw this track by Calico Horse, I had to grab it.

Onomatopoeia – Calico Horse

And so concludes this transmission. I am going to continue to enjoy my first day of holidays by stoking up the fire, eating musk sticks and recovering from the nana nap I had earlier. Speaking of which, don’t you hate it when you have a nap in the afternoon, and you wake up feeling worse than you did before you went to sleep? It’s just so silly.

My ears, they buzz already

02 Monday Jun 2008

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Amiina, buzzing ears, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

Sigur Ros

My voodoo bad vibes must have worked…my internet connection appears to be cooperating (for now anyway), meaning that I am now able to upload songs again, with a processing time of 8 or 9 minutes (which is still bollocks), as opposed to 8 or 9 weeks, which was the crapola I seemed to be stuck with last week. Thank you to those who joined me in sending your negative energy towards the powers that be. I couldn’t have done it without you.

Here’s the post that would’ve appeared last Wednesday, had the Telstra demons not been against me. It’s old news now, but I’ve kept it as is.  

I know I’ve been a little heavy on the Sigur Ros talk over the last few days, but this post is both timely and justified.

Their new album is Með Suð Í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust (With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly) and is set to drop June 23 (though you can preorder it from June 2 on their website). You can check out a couple of vids at their website, but you can grab the first track from the new LP below. It’s called Gobbledigook (nope, not making that up) and is not at all what I expected. I’ve also included my favourite track from Icelandic string quartet Amiina, who are frequent collaborators with Sigur Ros, and also feature on their new album.

In addition to the top downloads provided below, I’ve taken the liberty of providing you with a track listing. As you can see, it includes an English track as well. It will be interesting to hear them singing in a language that I can understand, but I kind of like not knowing what the hell they’re singing about, and I wonder whether being able to would take away some of the mystery.

1. gobbledigook
2. inní mér syngur vitleysingur
3. góðan daginn
4. við spilum endalaust
5. festival
6. suð í eyrum
7. ára bátur
8. illgresi
9. fljótavík
10. straumnes
11. all alright

Gobbledigook – Sigur Ros

Rugla – Amiina

 

Be Still My Beating Heart

24 Saturday May 2008

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

gigs, Leftovers, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

Sigur Ros

Last night I dragged myself down to Melbourne to watch my beloved Maggies thrash the pants off the Cats. It was a great game – strong tackling, solid defence and pinpoint accuracy. And it’s always nice to knock off the top team.

I was on a high before I even arrived at the ground though, due to the giant poster I passed on the way to the G that advertised Sigur Ros playing at Festival Hall in August. I had resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn’t be able to check them out at the Splendour In The Grass festival in Byron Bay (too much dosh and too far away), so you can imagine my delight when I saw that they were set to play in Melbourne. I was with my parents, and they were a little nonplussed to see me stop dead in my tracks, hit the poster on the wall with glee and actually do a little dance of joy. However they were very happy for me when I explained the significance of the poster and what it would mean for my general health and wellbeing.

After quick phone calls to a few interested parties today, tickets were snagged and anticipation is mounting already. Though Sigur Ros are only a recent discovery of mine, they have quickly become a standard on my Ipod and it’s rare for a day to pass without me immersing myself in their ambient goodness. It’s safe to say that I’m more than a little bit excited! The only disappointing thing is that under 18s aren’t allowed in. My brother is one pissed off 16 year old.

A quick check of their website tonight let me know that I’d missed the presale tickets (explains why the seats we have are not ideal) and also drew my attention to a note encouraging everyone to visit them on Tuesday for a special announcement. Some are talking new single/album cover art, but I’ve got no clue. See what you think. And in the meantime, enjoy what I am hoping to hear live in person myself on Friday August 1. Only 68 days to go!

Heysatan (Live) – Sigur Ros

Staralfur (Live) – Sigur Ros

Brought To You By The Letter M

09 Friday May 2008

Posted by Agnes in Brought To You By

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Amy Winehouse, Band of Horses, Brought To You By, Counting Crows, Kate Nash, mp3, Music, Prince, Sigur Ros, The Cotton Jones Basket Ride, The Muppets

Letter MIt’s a simple idea, where I post songs that all have one thing in common – the letter that they begin with. Original? Not at all. Pointless? Probably.

Having said that though, every song is highly recommended and should be checked out by your good self immediately!

Some MAGNIFICENT tracks today..

Mahna Mahna – The Muppets Because my almost-three nephew thinks it’s hilarious

Mariella – Kate Nash Because she’s got a cool accent

Midnight Monday – The Cotton Jones Basket Ride Because their band name is awesome

Milano – Sigur Ros Because it’s Sigur Ros

Monsters – Band Of Horses Because I love them twangin’ banjos

My Tears Dry On Their Own – Amy Winehouse Because the girl can sing

Mr. Jones – Counting Crows Because I love the conversational lyrics

Musicology – Prince Because I can

Check out the rest of the alphabet here.`

Another One From The Chosen Ones

03 Thursday Apr 2008

Posted by Agnes in Leftovers

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Tags

Band of Horses, Chosen Ones, George, Irene, Kate Nash, mp3, Murder Mystery, Music, Okkervil River, Powderfinger, Sigur Ros, The National

twilight-of-the-gods.jpgChosen Ones: Some of my favourite bands/artists. I’m only covering some of them in this post, however most of them have been discussed at some stage here at It All Started, and I find myself adding more as I continue to explore the wonderful world of the music blog. I’m not going to go on about how awesome they all are – if you already know them, then you are aware of their brilliance. If you don’t know them already, take a punt, download their tunes and maybe one day they’ll become your Chosen Ones as well. Enjoy!

Is There A Ghost – Band Of Horses

Release – George

Little Lovin’ – Irene

Navy Taxi – Kate Nash

Who Doesn’t Wanna Give Me Love – Murder Mystery

Start A War – The National

The President’s Dead – Okkervil River

Passenger – Powderfinger

Heysatan – Sigur Ros

Fave Find – Sigur Ros

23 Sunday Mar 2008

Posted by Agnes in Fave Find

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Fave Find, mp3, Music, Sigur Ros

sigur_ros.jpg

Wanna feel inadequate? Try describing the music of Sigur Ros.

I only came across these guys a few days ago. Over at Largehearted Boy, they do a series called Book Notes, in which authors talk about the music that they listened to while writing their novel. Lauren Groff, author of The Monsters Of Templeton, talked about Sigur Ros’ track ‘Glosoli’, saying there’s this wonderful half-marching beat and water background, and the singer’s eerily gorgeous voice floats and feels ancient and powerful. Even after thousands of listens, it still makes me want to weep.

That was more than enough for me to track down some of their stuff, and I’ve been thanking Lauren from afar ever since. Incidentally, I’ve never read any of her stuff, but I think I’m going to have to now – she also talks about Jeff Buckley and Regina Spektor, so the woman’s clearly got taste.

Back to Sigur Ros. Bear with me while I fumble along here and try to describe their awesomeness. A couple of facts about the band first. They’re from Iceland and formed in 1994. They’re named after lead singer Jonsi Birgisson’s little sister Sigurros, which in English means ‘Victory Rose’ (which is also a great name for a band). Keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson is the only band member with any musical training and it’s ridiculous to think that a band with so little formal training could be capable of such a majestic sound.

Wikipedia states their 2002 album ( ) – not a typo, that’s what it’s called – employed the use of Vonlenska, also known as Hopelandic, a constructed language of nonsense syllables which resembles the phonology of the Icelandic language. It has also been said that the listener is supposed to interpret their own meanings of the lyrics which can then be written in the blank pages in the album booklet. They’re a little eccentric too, which is always welcome in my book.

Now the music itself. I’m usually quite lyrics-driven, which doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the odd pop tune, but I guess songs that employ a good turn of phrase are often more attractive to me. The fact that I haven’t got a clue as to what Sigur Ros are saying means that I’m not distracted by words, with the vocals instead becoming a musical element of communication and not an intellectual one. 

And now I find myself forced to use adjectives only as I can’t seem to construct a proper sentence that I feel does them justice. So, here’s the best I can do. Epic. Ambient. Ethereal. Other-worldly. Vaporous. Celestial. Ancient. Uplifting.

Why are you still reading?

Check them out below:

Glosoli – Sigur Ros

Saeglopur – Sigur Ros

Staralfur – Sigur Ros

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