SIGUR ROS
London Union Chapel 24th August 2000
SIGUR ROS
London Union Chapel 24th August 2000
They may be the biggest selling band in their home country of Iceland, and current darlings of the UK music press, but tonight, over the space of two long sets, Sigur Ros are very boring.
I suppose I'm just disappointed because they didn't live up to any of the bands that they've been compared to. They have none of the depth and colour of the Cocteau Twins, none of the power of My Bloody Valentine, and they aren't as punk rock as Godspeed. While I'm in the habit of comparisons I've decided that Sigur Ros are nothing more than Radiohead playing Enya. In fact they remind me a lot of the Belfast band Chimera, which annoys me, especially since I quite liked Chimera and they never got anywhere!
The first set starts promisingly enough with solo cello creaking into life, evoking icy landscapes, geysers, whales and other cliches, however when the four-piece join in with the string trio it fails to catch light as it should. Even 'Svefn-G-Englar', the one everyone knows goes on for ages towards the end of the first set, and the singer's supposedly amazing voice (in reality falsetto + reverb) just grates on your nerves especially when he does the oh-so-clever singing into my guitar pick-up stunt.
For the second set they're back to their normal line-up, which is much more coherent and convincing. Although I do nearly nod off at one point, I also begin to see how it is possible for people to love them. I don't fully understand how people can compare to the Cocteau's 'Head Over Heels'or Tim Buckley's 'Starsailor', but Sigur Ros are still very young and there is lots of time for them to develop. The standing ovation at the end, and the presence of the Chemical Brothers and Mogwai in the seats in front of me, indicates that they will have a very bright future in this country. I think I'll have to pass though. Sorry.(4/10)