Sigur Ros: 'Meo Suo I Eyrum Vio Spilum Endalaust'

Once again, Sigur Ros have effortlessly crafted a resonant, cavernous long player that pitches and swells with expansive, sonorous beauty.

'Meo Suo I Eyrum Vio Spilum Endalaust' ("with a buzz in our we ears we play endlessly", if you were wondering) conjures images of snow lined firs, rolling, looming mountain ranges, capturing the beauty of the icy flora and fauna; from the delicate intricacies of the snow flake to the blinding white glare of an endless panoramic expanse.

Although the band’s first album to be recorded outside of their native Iceland - part recorded in Cuba, New York, London - it’s lost none of its glacial splendour. For all its beguiling beauty, ‘Meo Suo…’ is tinged with wistful mortality; a soundtrack to shimmering blankets of snowfall or an earnest eulogy of an Arctic explorer’s last breaths.

Thor Birgisson’s empyreal vocal continues to lend Sigur Ros an otherworldly appeal; a haunting siren call that transcends mortals, one that can only truly be appreciated by the gods. Okay, so sometimes you expect him to lapse into ‘I’m Walking In The Air', but put to a backdrop of indulgent, wintry desolation, tracks like the patient, resigned ‘Straumnes’ and melancholic string lament of ‘Illgresi’ ensure that ‘Meo Suo…’ will be considered a worthy latest instalment of the grandiose Sigur Ros catalogue. Another sparkling, celestial masterpiece.

Released on 23rd June 2008 by EMI.

Written by Reef Younis.