Jón Þór Birgisson, Jónsi, is best known as the lead singer of the dreamy, bombastic, (adjective) post-punk band Sigur Rós, out of Iceland. This album isn’t really a tremendous deviation, simply because, even though it’s so much more, Sigur Rós’s sound is inextricably linked to this man’s voice. I mean, DAMN. It is beautiful. Here, he’s aided by composer du-jure Nico Muhly and it’s a great fit here. The orchestrations only enhance the joy coming from Jónsi, here singing in English. But the star, of course, is that voice.


You really ought to play all.
Track 1 is like the peak of a great Sigur Rós song, sustained for 4 minutes. Track 2 – would be fitting in a happy montage, if it weren’t already joyously tripping over itself at such a wonderful speed.
3 – gorgeous, building. 4 – “the world goes in flutter-by;” sparkling. 5 – great. 6 – nice build, triumphant. 7 – spinning, lovely. long orchestral outro, though. 8 – like one of the ballads from the last SR album but actually going somewhere. 9 – gorgeous, slow