Album Ratings for 2013

Another year; another list of album’s I either managed to review or ones I intended to, going so far to score them but never getting there. I ran into two albums that ranked a nine (a first!) but album of the year goes to Sigur Rós with Queens of the Stone Age in a close second.

So enjoy this long list of titles and numbers and have an awesome start to 2014.

Sigur Rós - Kveikur Review

A lot has changed over the year since Sigur Rós' comeback album Valtari and their latest offering Kveikur. You can put it down the band losing keyboardist Kjartan Sviensson, maybe Valtari's mixed to positive reception with main criticisms being the sense of over-familarity or maybe, just maybe, after over fifteen years since Von, it's time for a change.

Change that sees a Iceland's most famous musical export...after Björk, produce it's most radically different, yet traditional album yet.

Sigur Rós - Valtari Review

I remember waking up at the very beginning of 2007 on New Years Day, not suffering from a hangover (despite my body being 60% alcohol and 40% Marks and Spencer's Sausage Rolls) and the first video I watched on MTV2, whilst many of my friends were still sleeping was Sigur Rós' single Svefn-g-englar.

Obviously still under the effects of the night before, I was mesmerised by the truly moving music, the hauntingly beautiful vocals and strange but enlightening video, so much so that I immediately bought the album on Amazon, not really knowing what to expect but hoping for something similar to that wonderful video.

Since then, Sigur Rós have remained one of my most favourite bands. Although I only discovered them in 2007, they truly hit the big time with Hoppîpolla (aka the song played during every BBC sports and documentary montage throughout 2004) and have remained the best band to come out of Iceland that specialises in gibberish lyircs and bowed guitar.

Their sixth full length album finally saw release after a fashionable hiatus and, eager as ever, I had the thing ready for pre-order, hoping for some more creative goodness. I wasn't expecting the album to top Ágætis byrjun (for those keeping track, I'd consider that album a 10/10) but hoping for something in that range.