Great music is defined by its ability to make an emotional connect with the listener. It must say something of substance about people and the world they inhabit. It must be, above all, an emotional journey carried along by melody and performance. Sigur Rós, despite singing in a different language, create music that reflects a mood and place with a strong and accessible emotional pull. Over this 2CD recording the band illustrate just why it is so admired the world over by people who take their music seriously. HEIM (HOME) is essentially a re-worked acoustic/unplugged recording of some of the band’s most popular studio recordings. It is beautiful and opens with what sounds like an introduction to the CD. ‘Samskeyti’ gently wanders in with repeated piano refrain in the foreground and I think a harmonium treading water in the background. There’s a key change about two-thirds through before it reverts back to finally disappear in a whisper. It’s a wondrous start. The pace quickens with ‘Starálfur’ and a fragile vocal is introduced along with sweeping string accompaniment. The pace quickens and slows to a glacial pace throughout in a song that is simple and performed to perfection. ‘Vaka’ opens with Hammond notes and sounds like church music. The six songs here are beautifully produced to reflect the purity and simplicity of the band’s music, while providing the singer and instruments individual space to be heard with total clarity. This is more than just background music, it’s an emotional journey. The only thing missing is a set of sleeve notes with translated lyrics.

The second CD is entitled HVARF (DISAPPEARED) and consists of electronic studio recordings of previously unreleased songs. Opener ‘Salka’ is an epic composition with an echoed vocal that hits impossibly high octaves – it’s almost as though it’s being performed on top of a high glacier in the far distance. ‘I Gaer’ is the highlight of this five-song recording, with its twinkling percussive intro that suddenly explodes, signalled by a single, powerful drum beat. The vocal then arrives backed by a steady bass rhythm and humming Hammond. There are occasional orchestral flourishes before that starting-gun of a drum beat signals another sonic explosion to re-introduce the high-octave, echoed vocal. It’s an incredible song and the most complex over both recordings. ‘Von’ is a darker tune lightened only by the gentle choir-boy vocal. For me, this double CD collection of acoustic and electronic songs goes to the heart of the band’s music, and raison d’etre. It therefore represents the ideal start-point for those wanting to sample the band’s music for the first time. Essential.

4.5/5