TAKK...

Sigur Ros are happy!!! And that's all the better for us. Many crushingly beautiful gems here- personal favorites are Se Lest, Hoppipolla, Milano, Glosoli. Two mis-steps for me though: Gong (which seems very "American alternative radio- friendly" if you know what i mean) and track 4 (yes, it is a nice, spacey closer to the previous explosive track, but i fail to fully understand the necessity of it). The epic scale is still there. The voice is beyond praise (the alien playfulness and range on Se Lest are just precious). You will get those goosebumps on most songs. Some complained about songs on " ( ) " lacking "release" (untitled 7 and 8, anybody?). Plenty of heart-stopping release here. * * * *

I'm trying to temper my expectation of Takk and have held off any other recent purchases so as to clear my head of any clutter. Since Sigur Ros require attention to detail I can only get an overall impression from this most generous stream. My initial thoughts imagine a world of wonder and wisdom. In light of the dismal circumstances in our real world, I'll take it and run heart and soul to that horizon. I will hold lofty those dreams of other for I have now heard the music of a special place. No need to spin truth into fantasy here. Simply put - this album delivers. To compare past tasks to present deeds could only be a manner of personal proclivity. In a world of instant expert anything Takk has been crafted with loving care and careful consideration of its place in now and the future. Know in your own space and reflection thereof, you can proceed with confidence, grace, and unbridled enthusiasm.

This album has just been released today, and what a relief it is! After the disappointing (), which mostly was a bunch of long jams that bored me to tears (the first four/five tracks were quite good), SR have refocussed and produced an album that at least matches the quality of AB, their breakthrough. The songs can be lengthy still, but they are tightly written and feature less of the stereotypical loud- beginning-to-chaotic-ending structures that plague a lot of spacey bands. Fragments of the melodies stick in my head long after they are gone, something that couldn't be said about (), with the exception of a couple of tracks. The vocals are still the group's greatest strength- there's nothing quite like them that I've heard, still sounding like a demented boys' choir! But the heavy use of strings is back, and even some oom-pah pah horns used to playful effect. The delay-drenched guitars are given lots of room to breathe- in fact, the use of space is wonderful. Ringing notes go on for bars on end, adding to the contemplative atmosphere. There is also a sense of happiness and contentment that was lacking in the band's work before (the title means "thanks"), making this the perfect accompaniment to a sunny fall afternoon. There is no band quite as distinctive as Sigur Ros, who have proved with this release that having a recognizable sound doesn't mean there is no room for development and evolution.

forget these poncey reviews about other worlds and such and such, there is only one word that can describe this album adequately "Perfect". i know this is a bold claim and until today i would never have dared use such a word in relation to any album, even sigur ros' other incredible releases. however, today my restraint and control flew out of the window as a shiver strong enough to remove me from my chair to the floor bolted down my back. i lay there trying to contemplate what i was hearing but i simply couldn't. layer up layer, emotion stacked upon emotion, listening to this album is an experience of a life time. every track holds your interest and there is a real variety as well. instead of the subtle and somewhat bleak landscape that ( ) gets criticised for, Takk delivers immediately with Glósóli, a wonderful track that builds and builds in typical sigur ros style but with a few surprises along the way none the less. there are also tracks that immediately jump from the CD after a few seconds in, like Gong, and never before have sigur ros released an album with such a variety of songs, from long epic build ups, to short sweet pieces, and in your face distorted attacks. drums and bass play a much larger role than they did in ( ) and even Ágætis Byrjun, you feel the band could be performing live just behind your wall, the possibly over-careful studio feel of ( ) is nothing but a distant memory.

quite simply a master piece which will be remembered as one of the crowning achievements of music in the 21st century. the best album ever? well that's obviously going to take some time to decide but you know what, it may just be

Beautiful album. The songs unfold slowly and then evolve into something that you can only feel inside yourself. The music is tight and lush with gorgeous piano melodies.

Compared to "Von" Ágætis Byrjun" and " ()" Takk is probably most like Ágætis byrjun. Takk is a delight from start. Takk Sigur Rós.

Well, standing by for the reunion of the U.S. underground band Don Caballero (I hope that ProgArchives accept them as a Post Rock/Indo heavy art rock band to be inserted into their official band list.), here it is another interesting work from the Icelandic ensemble: for me their approach is less acclaimed by the critics, which prefer a few bands such as Radiohead for example and in the same time don't regard Sigur Ros as a completely successful band. it's strange because the Icelandic ensemble probably isn't able to emulate the same success like that of R.h. all over the world, but they show a major creativity. Of course - it's partially true - S.R. (unlike R.h.) usually prefer the underground circuits, but for me it's better for them to choose the small gigs in order to maintain their artistic impact (nevertheless I remember the Last Summer show at Villa Arconati -Bollate near Milano- in the course of july 2005, in which they appreciated the enthusiastic feedback of the Italian people very much!!...). The track "Milano" -for instance- is right dedicated to my city, in which every intelligent music fan often wants to "buy" a different kind of music and S.R. can satisfy such an important exigency: a great charming mood, a visionary soft music - a bit melancholic - but always intelligent. Their purpose is clear in all the other tracks and as for this reason their album "Takk" is not only for the lovers of the "Borealis" atmosphere from Iceland.to be collected if you're into the best experimental post rock anyway, even thoug actually it should be worth a "3 stars and an half" righter score, in comparison to the best albums of progressive music!!

Well, I'm speechless. This band is absolutely great. Try any of their albums. I first heard them while watching "The life aquatic with Steve Zissou". The word "beatiful" comes to mind. This band's music is just awsome (if you like the gender, that is). At risk of sound naib, or too entusiastic, their style has much more to do with exploration than many of the bands listed here.

Some of you are probably glad that because this is a near-instrumental album, I won't be rambling on quite as much as usual. Anyway, the great news about Takk... is that while there are still a lot of the same noises heard in their unfortunate EP release Ba Ba Ti Ki Di Do, there's much more to hold this together, and a faster beat than ( ) (which seems dead in many places) at most times. This is closer to their masterpiece Agaetis Byrjun in spirit, and more accessible. In fact, some of the instruments that made Agaetis Byrjun so great reappear on Takk, such as the horns on "Hoppípola"/"Með Blóðnasir" and the strings of "Sé Lest". Even though "Sé Lest" also has some of the strange background noises from BBTKDD, SIGUR ROS seems to understand this time that's not enough to have an actual song.

Some of the lyrics are in Icelandic, and others are still in Hopelandic, but there's far, far less of a feeling of obscurity for obscurity's sake. What's also interesting is to look up translations to the lyrics. I was surprised to find that unlike some of their more depressing compositions, "Saeglópur" actually had happy lyrics, which succinctly tells the story of a sailor thought dead being found and rescued. Not all of them are that way, when I looked on websites for the translations, but even one is an unusual thing from SIGUR ROS. Some of the compositions seem to flow together as if they were a single entity, like "Takk"/"Glósóli" and "Hoppípola"/"Með Blóðnasir", so don't let a few short track times fool you--these are fully-developed songs.

SIGUR ROS does break new ground on this album, most particularly on "Saeglópur", "Gong", and some on "Svo Hjlótt", where we get an unheard-of, fast-paced drumming style that avoids letting songs linger like they did on ( ). I'm certainly not talking about metal-style drumming (though on Track 8 of ( ) they got close once), but something a little more like old "Myrkur" on Von--though at much better quality. And even the old reliable SIGUR ROS pieces like "Mílanó" and "Andvari" are up to speed.

The one drawback to this whole album is the distorted quality to some of the instruments (drums and piano in particular) that makes the production quite a bit less impressive than on Agaetis Byrjun. Also, there are times when I feel like the end to "Andvari" drags a bit, but it depends on my mood. However, the songwriting is up to par--and furthermore, is actually happy for the most part. One wonders if the title (Icelandic for "Thank you") is SIGUR ROS' way of saying, "Thank you for bearing with us" through the doldrums of BBTKDD and ( ). Overall, a 4.5, and if not for the distracting sound-quality issues, this would be the equal of Agaetis Byrjun.

I would've put this album 5 stars, but when this in my opinion only works as nightmusic and backgroundmusic, I won't give it 5.

The music is happy and the chords are almost always majors, so it makes you think of good things and to sink in to fantasy dreamscapes of your making. Magnific!

Their best album to date. Their's no word to describe the intense emotions I feel when I listen to it. If you can watch the video to 'glosoli', you'll see how beautiful yet strange music they can make. They use the full dynamic range a CD can render to build an intense and dramatic climax (Milano). A great thing is that they used real instruments, no samples. All feel very warm, authentic. A true masterpiece!

If I was highly impressed with the previous unnamed album, I must recognize that I am rather disappointed with this one. A superb and lavish, highly luxurious artwork sleeve had more than piqued my curiosity, and everything suggested that this was going to be a masterpiece.

While hardly a bad album, we are in for a repeat album of the previous with its rather difficult singing and incomprehensible lyric (Hopelandic), but with an added irritating twist. If you take away the vocal parts, this album sounds A LOT to GYBE! And this is more than an impression, too. The still slow-paced tracks still have a very melancholic feel (so typical of Northern or Scandinavian Europe) and a eerie beauty, but unfortunately, I feel that there is a certain step backwards with this album, and clearly when the whole group is playing at full volume (this is NOT a metal group, though), these guys sound a lot like the Montrealers and most other groups that are starting to crowd in that now too-used formula of Post-Rock. BTW: if I compare most post-rock groups to GYBE!, it is mainly because the nonet first pioneered this "sound" and influenced all of the others.

Don't get me wrong here, not everything is borrowed (far from it) on this album, and there are plenty of moments where you find the "old" Sigur, in fine form. But as I said above, the surprise and expectation raised after ( ), probably proved too much for this Icelandic trio to live up to. Still a good album, though. But not great!!!

By far my favorite post-rock band, Sigur Ros challenges me to describe their type of music in one sentence. Elegantly blending classical appeal, exquisite vocals, sonorous bursts of instrumentation, and slow-building music, the band clearly fits into the post- rock genre, by my understanding of it.

The music on Takk... is all very breathtaking and ethereal, keeping in line with what limited exposure I've had to their breakthrough album, Agaetis Byrjun. Though, the lyrics on Takk... (and in fact all of Sigur Ros's music) are either derivitive of the Icelandic language or just plain gibberish, they flow and develope into beautiful poetry, reguardless of their meaning. The music has a calming effect and is never scorched with dissonance. Much of the music is built up from a keyboard or organ base progression, but this varies also. Bells, verious percussion, and a brass and string section often back up the basic setup.

Though the band can play the soft, melodic song game very well, Sigur Ros really stand out when they turn up the volume a bit and jam. "Glosoli," "Saeglopur," "Milano," and "Svo Hljott" are beautiful examples. Of the shorter songs, my favorites are the spacy introduction "Takk..." and "Gong," which, taking a diversion from the rest of the album, is fairly up-tempo with a brush-driven drum beat, yet it retains a minor key melody line.

The only reason I can't give Takk... full marks is because sometimes there isn't enough diversion from the well-traveled, slow-building, ethereal chords path. Also, depending on one's taste, the music may seem boring, especially if one goes in expecting a Mars Volta clone. But for an open-minded progger, Takk... has a lot to offer.

I bought this amazing, stunning, romantic, beautiful album today. I listened it and.. well listened it again. This album represents the best moments of todays songwriting and musicianship. I have not heard Agaetis or ( ) but I'm sure I will buy them next. This is the album I play when my girlfriend is here next, this is so damn great! The first eight songs just blows your mind, the best is 'saeglopur', which gives me cold flushes like in every 10 seconds. I highly recommend this MASTERPIECE to everyone interested in post-rock. Also 'Milano', 'Glósóli', 'Gong', 'Hoppipolla' and 'Heysatan' are so beautiful songs that I could hear them all over again. I'm not sure how long this album rolls in my stereos but I'm sure its a looong time. LOVE IT.

I can't believe my luckyness. Last week i went to the cinema, and by the way i entered the cd store. My eyes just fell off by seeing special edition Takk... on the shelves, when here in Argentina you can't even find classic albums such as Mirage, Tubular Bells or Fragile. When i went to ask about it to the seller, he said that only four copies of Takk... were brought to Argentina. That's the story of how i baught best bargain ever for 30 Argentine $ (10 USA dolars aproximatly).

But let's talk about the album. Best features of all Sigur Rós albums: Von's flying-like drums, Ágætis Byrjun's atmospheric keyboards, ()'s bass style, and of course, Sigur Rós' classic violin-like playing with the guitar. All this contibiut to a true and full masterpiece. Surely one of the best (if not the very best) prog album since 1977.

Most of the time when I listen to a new album I like to spend time finding out as much as I can about the band, the stories behind the album and that period of their careers, and to read all of the lyrics carefully to discover as much as possible about the music so I can put it into context. I really know nothing about Sigur Rós though. I only bought this album because I recognized the band's name from reading about them from time to time on Progarchives. Turns out this was a good investment of my limited discretionary income.

The lyrics, what few there are, are mostly unintelligible, either because they are sung in what I assume to be Icelandic, or just because the words are secondary to the music itself. For these guys, this is not a bad thing, as their sound is certainly appealing and actually kind of cheerful. The cover and liner artwork and lettering are exquisite, what I think may be a woodblock and ink painting. There aren't many modern albums around today with such a timeless and mature look to them.

"Takk." is an airy little intro to the rest of the album, and it transitions after just a couple of minutes into "Glósóli", a well-developed, largely instrumental song that reminds me at various points of Godspeed You Black Emperor!, particularly the second half of F#a# Infinity. The song starts slowly and is quite mellow, but builds to a crescendo in the middle that is very much a Godspeed trademark. Also a bit like Set Fire to Flames, but less depressing.

"Hoppípolla" is mostly a piano/strings piece, again with the ethereal and unintelligible vocals that neither add nor detract from it. Apparently the song is about celebrating life by prancing around in the rain, falling down and getting a bloody nose, and then getting back up and does it again. Odd theme, but the music is upbeat.

"Með Blóðnasir" is a short work that features some warm, fat guitar chords, chant/humming, and the ubiquitous bell sounds that permeate the entire album. It transitions into "Sé Lest", a lengthy, bells-and-strings spacey instrumental that again is somewhat reminiscent of bands like Godspeed You Black Emperor!, but in this case quite a bit softer than most of their works.

"Sæglópur" is the Sigur Rós version of "A Perfect Storm" or "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", only with a happier ending. The song starts out with very slow and precise piano, some light bells (synthetic, I expect), and the repetitive verse that is either Icelandic, or just made up. This represents a calm sea upon which a boat is sailing, I think. The song builds into a more driving gale wind of guitars and drums, probably intended to represent an ocean storm upon which the boat is tossed and apparently crashes and sinks, upon which the plodding piano returns, along with the nonsensical lyrics. The man in the boat is lost at sea.. but is somehow rescued and returns home - "Alive, has returned home. A lost seafarer, alive". Finally, the song fades to black.

"Mílanó" is the longest track on the album, clocking in at more than ten minutes, although the first three minutes or so are no more than sporadic piano and those darn bells, slowly building up to the introduction of a slow, plodding drumbeat and faint background guitar. Again, the lyrics make no sense, and I suspect they wouldn't even if I knew Icelandic. By this time I've decided that singer Jónsi Birgission is something of a Scandinavian Neil Young. Again, I know nothing of this band, but somehow I get the impression he wouldn't mind the comparison. If their music is any indication, these guys are probably pretty laid back. After a brief build-up, the song returns to the languid piano wanderings, interrupted by a couple more similar short crescendos before winding to a close. This song actually reminds me a lot of some of those little jewelry music boxes with the little ballerinas that my sister had when she was a kid. Quite pleasant, non-threatening, and mildly functional.

The vocals on "Gong" reinforce my impression that the singer is possibly even attempting to sound like Neil Young, with that high-but-not-feminine lilt that sounds as if the man behind the voice could easily lose touch with reality altogether with very little effort. At times this song is more aggressive and mainstream than anything else on the album. I don't know if bands get the same types of pressures in Iceland to deliver radio-friendly material, but if they do than this song is probably the one that was done to shut label executives up.

The "Andvari" tune is a bit like those sleep-through-hypnosis tapes, very slow, calm, and peaceful. I'm listening to this one right now, and am seriously considering taking a bit of a nap. This song is pleasant, but it seems to take forever to wind its way to a close.

"Svo Hljótt" is also slow, but a bit more brooding than its predecessor. There's also a sustained aggressive bridge between the mild beginning and end that almost seems angry, or at least as angry as these guys are capable of seeming. I'm imagining a long winter afternoon in a very cold place where the lack of sunlight and resulting winter blues are causing the authors to become a bit cabin-fever crazed. All is well by the end of the song though.

The album closes with "Heysátan", which sounds like it has some acoustic guitar in it, or maybe that's just more keyboards. Hard to tell. This is another one that seems to take more than half the song to develop into anything definitive, and even then it never really takes shape. Apparently this one is a tale about a farm kid who's mowing and stacking piles of hay and is not enjoying the task all that much. But here again, everything seems to be okay in the end, and the singer contentedly takes a break and kicks back for a rest.

If everything Sigur Rós does is this laid back, I have to say we could use more guys like this in music. This is a very refreshing departure from some of the angry rap and grunge, mindless pop and boy-band, and tired rock which dominate the business lately. Like I said at the beginning, I don't know too much about these guys, but after listening to this album, I can safely say I'll be buying some more of their albums in the near future. This is a well-produced, beautifully packaged, and soothing work or art. I can't imagine too many people buying it and feeling like they wasted their money. It's fresh, original (despite the similarities to Godspeed), and quite up- beat. As always, timing is everything when assessing art, and the fact that it is early spring right now, the grass is covered with fresh-smelling dew, the harsh winter winds and snows are gone, and there are delicate little buds on my trees and roses in the yard, make this a very positive and uplifting album to be listening to at this particular point in time.

I think Takk would make a very solid addition to any progressive music fan's collection, and by definition that means it rates four stars.

peace

I remember the day when I discovered this band. It was about two months ago when I was talking to Dalezilla on the forum when he mentioned something about listening to "Takk."(which means thank you) I asked who they were and what genre they were in, and after receiving the information I looked up the band and listened to some of the free samples. The first song I listened to was "Saeglopur", I was immediately hooked by this song (and still am hooked) and I rather hastily went onto eBay and bought a copy of "Takk. "This was the first event in a sequence of annoyances. Firstly, after ordering the CD I went down to my local store and looked under alternative and, to my distress found Sigur Rós. The next annoying thing was that "Takk. " was cheaper here than the import. I however brought "()" and I wasn't all that impressed with it.

After being seven days overdue (14 days of waiting) I was told that the CD would be delayed another seven to fourteen days away. So after waiting a grand total twenty days I finally received "Takk." and I was relieved. Soon after listening to the album I forgot about the annoyances and enjoyed this beautiful ambient piece of music. So the combination of Dalezilla and Sigur Rós started an all new phase of music for me, post- rock. I have discovered among this genre one unspoken masterpiece in "The Earth is not a Cold Dead Place" by Explosions in the Sky and another in "F# A#" by Godspeed You Black Emperor. This genre has continued to amaze me and, although most of the music in Post-rock is either non-existent in Australia or is over $30, it is worth it.

Sigur Rós seems to be the most prominent Post-Rock band along with Godspeed You Black Emperor and both have achieved high success, for prog bands. Sigur Rós's "Takk." is by far their most successful and I was very surprised when I found where it charted, #16 UK (Gold Album), #27 US, #1 Iceland, #5 Portugal (Gold Album) #18 AUS. It is clear from these high chart positions that Sigur Rós is a band to watch and they must have a considerable following. I was sad when I found out that Sigur Rós did a tour of Australia less than a month before I discovered their music, I doubt they will return for quite a while.

Takk. has been described by previous reviewers as being ambient and beautiful, I whole-heartedly agree with these labels. Even from the first song there is a strong atmosphere present, and for once the feeling stays throughout the WHOLE album and doesn't drop, even for a minute. The instrument chiefly in charge of these atmospheres is the guitar, which is played with a cello bow while the guitar is on maximum reverb. I being a guitar player was eager to try this out so I grabbed my viola bow and tried it out, it's actually harder than it sounds as it is very awkward to play.

There are too many songs to go through and I really can't be bothered describing them all, but I will go through a couple. My personal favourite song is "Saeglopur", the opening of the song consists of twinkling bells and piano which is then joined by Jonsi's high beautiful voice. After this intro, the storm comes in which the music gets very loud, but this is a good type of loud, if you get my meaning. It dies down again and returns to regular ambient music. The second song on "Takk." "Glósóli", has some very admirable features and the first "section" of it is very lush and mellow, this feeling is soon joined by a strange sound, which reminds me of Roman Soldier's studded sandals impacting on their extremely well make roads. There is another very loud section followed by a soft ambient finish.

"Milanó" is basically focused around a piano melody which is repeated many time through the song, "Milanó" is the longest song and it also has the most time changes. It changes from being mellow and ambient to being loud and full of retribution. I wonder what the meaning of the last song on this album means, "Heysátan." Perhaps it means hello Satan or something. This brings me to another point the fact that all the vocals are either sung in Icelandic or made up makes no bad impression on the music. I'd actually go as far as saying that I couldn't imagine "Takk." with lyrics in any other language. The fact that Sigur Rós is Icelandic sort of makes their music more interesting and they would probably be inclined to incorporate traditional Icelandic elements into their music. Fusion between different types of music usually creates some type of interesting hybrid style of music.

I personally love Post-rock and "Takk." is one of the leading albums in the genre. Sigur Rós's style of Post-rock is different to that of say. Godspeed You Black Emperor but both contain the same new in old energy. All Post-rock bands use the old and new to create music and this is what makes the genre is great. I'd say that every one should have a sample of Post-rock, just to try it out and I'd say that "Takk." would be quite high on the list, but the last thing I have to say is that not all Post-rock is the same.

I really believe that "Takk" is one of the best albums in the Post-Rock genre. I have rarely listened to music that pulls at my emotions like this. This is so uplifting and beautiful, it's difficult to put into words, but i'll try. Eight out of the eleven songs I would give 5 out of 5. Nice packaging as well from the boys of Iceland, although no real information is given other then the titles of the songs.

We get started with the title track and it's so uplifting. It builds and builds then just stops. "Glosoli" begins with a bass line, as we hear gentle singing over top.The bass really strengthens until mayhem occurs. Overwhelming ! "Hoppipolla" is a transcendant song due in part to the strings and the acute vocals. "Mea Blotnasir" builds to a bass / drum / vocal melody. Piano joins in as well. Nice. "Se Lest" is another favourite. Piano eventually comes in before vocals and a fuller sound at 1 1/2 minutes.This sounds amazing. It settles right down to piano only around 5 minutes in. Horns a minute later. The first 5 minutes of this song are beyond words, i'm not as impressed with the last part of the track though.

"Saglopur" sounds absolutely incredible when the fuller sound arrives before 2 minutes. "Milano" may be my favourite, and the most uplifting. Yeah, i know, i'm sounding like a broken record. Lots of atmosphere early. It's building 4 minutes in then settles after 4 1/2 minutes before kicking back in around 7 minutes. "Gong" has some violin in it and it's quite mellow until a fuller sound arrives before a minute. Drums come and eventually vocals. Great sound ! "Andvan" is a beautiful but sad tune. Waves of sound end it. "Suo Hljott" is mellow as well once it gets going. Strings in this one too. It builds beautifuly. This is heavenly. "Heysatan" is mellow with piano. Vocals before 1 1/2 minutes.

Uplifting ! Building ! Emotional ! Beautiful ! These are the words that to me describe "Takk". Truly a Post-Rock masterpiece in every sense of the word !

Anybody wanting a beginner's guide to the music of Sigur Rós will likely find this 2005 album the perfect introduction to their unique and haunting sound. It plays like a reaffirmation of the band's career to date, combining the subtle strengths of "Ágætis Byrjun" (my own initiation into the Sigur Rós soundworld) with the deeper melancholy of their anonymous "( )" album, one moment as delicate as an early morning spider's web, and minutes later loud enough to trigger an avalanche.

Put another way: this is music resting comfortably astride that fine line dividing chamber orchestra intimacy and over-amped electronic mayhem. A typical Sigur Rós song gradually moves from nursery rhyme stillness to noisy, cathartic apotheosis, with falsetto Icelandic voices raised in eerie sing-song harmony mantras under a sheer wall of symphonic strings and droning, fuzzed-out guitars. Even with the expected language/cultural barrier there's enough naked emotion here to bring tears of epiphany to your eyes.

And an atypical Sigur Rós song can be just about anything. Bend an ear toward the track "Gong", a Number One hit single in my own private pop-radio charts.

In short, it's a work of rare maturity, from the understated simplicity of the cover art to the autumnal beauty of the music itself. Is it Prog Rock? Maybe not in any traditional sense, but when did truly progressive music ever stick to tradition?

The way I add it up, 50% neo-classical austerity plus 50% Post-Rock power equals a 100% superlative musical experience, very much deserving a privileged spot in the library of any forward thinking Prog Rock aficionado.

Takk... is an absolutely amazing piece of work by the Icelandic post-rock group. It is certainly a step up from (), and, quite possibly, even from Ágætis byrjun. From the wildly adventurous Glósóli, to the woefully dramatic Sæglopúr, to the beautiful, majestic Hoppípolla, this album is a work of art from start to finish. This album delivers what are probably the deepest and most powerful emotions ever from the band, and some of the emotional moments to ever be brought forth on an album. The lyrics, seldom, almost inaudible, and even in an impossible language, are found to be not a flaw, but just one of many mysterious textures that make up this conceptually minimalistic, but sophisticated album. Such an advanced sound is seldom even thought of, and its strange, entrancing layers of sound are always interesting, even after the hundredth listen. Takk... is a true treasure, a diamond in the not-so-rough collection of Sigur Rós.

In Takk Sigur Rós deffinitely found the way of making good albuns again, revitalazing their sound. The band did not quit intelligentely of their celestial expressionist trademark sound, but moving it into other direction. The album transmitts more an idea of an "nostalgic joyfullness" rather than the funereal feeling of their previous releases. In part, that's the reason for the big commercial success worldwide - they had a terrific formula, they just had to put it in a way people would accept it easily.

The album as great tracks, since the crescendo sonic power of "Glosoli" till the intrigant majestic beauty of "Sorglega", perhaps the best, the album is full of great moments. "Saeglopur" is one of those moments, another moment of deep celestial beauty taken into the cosmic radiance. Other highlights, using the same formula, include "Hoppipolla" and the longest "Milano". Piano lines are all over the album and are quite inspired. So as the back sounds which help the album to reach its profoundness.

A great album. The band seems to be, further and further, more confident and solid on what they're doing, as they reach more maturity. Even though, not enough to surpass the revolutionary Agaetis Byrjun.

Of all of Sigur Ros' work, Takk... is the most alive. Whereas other albums carried the feel and energy of a funeral procession, Takk... breaks out of this mold. The melodies are often brighter, even upbeat and sometimes even resembling carnival music. Although, Sigur Ros ensure nothing ever gets too full of rainbows and sunshine by keeping a deep nostalgic feel to the album.

Takk... is Sigur Ros' best work to date. In many ways it's a more post-rock album than its predecessors which carried a more Indie feel than post-rock. The overall brighter mood and additional energy brought by the incorporation of some frantic drum beats establishes a more successful sound that keeps the album from getting monotonous as previous efforts did at parts.

The keyboard tones really make and define the sound of the album. They're very warm, almost imitative of bells, add a fine contrast to the morose orchestration. Jonsi steps out of the spot-light for this one, rarely opening his mouth. The more sparse use of vocals greatly improves the music. However, this is not to detract from Jonsi who is in top form for the album.

Of all the post-rock albums I have heard this is the most balanced and engaging to my ears.

With Takk... it seems Sigur Rós keeps getting more and more happier, something quite rare for it's genre; Post rock. Even more if you think of the influences the band had in their earlier years; I'm talking about the great Radiohead´s and their Icelandic fellow citizen Björk. definitely not happy music (although Björk might not be that sad and depressive either), and the mellow, gloomy yet beautiful previous albums. So, where is Sigur Rós going then? Well, it seems like they have said (is this word correctly used in this word-less music.?) everything they had to say with one style so, in a true progressive act, they changed it, but don't be alarmed old Sigur Rós fans, the change is not abrupt, but gentle and subtle, the band might have said good bye to their blue moody feeling, but a certain melancholy is still present.

The whole album seems also to be very connected from song to song, which makes this (almost) a big piece of music that definitely has to be heard entirely in order to be fully enjoyed.

Although all songs seem to be quite similar at first, it's not really the case; repeatedly listening will show the individuality of each piece that go from the atmospheric "Glsóli", to the incredibly beautiful "Hoppípolla", my personal favorite, to the epics "Sé Lest" and "Milano". The end result is warm, intimist and very personal yet powerful. At first one might wonder what it is that is sounding at certain moments; is that the guitar? Is that the voice? Is that a keyboard? But after a while one stops to wonder about this and just let's the "sound" take one away until it reaches a beautiful calmness with a good chance of falling gently asleep to it.

Definitely not for everybody and for any mood, Metal fans stay away (unless you are open minded), but for those of you that can appreciate the softer, more gentle side of music. well, what are you waiting for?

PS: A piece of advise, do not listen while doing some sort of physical activity, no matter how beautiful it can be sitting down, it can get quite irritating while doing some sport! I know it from personal experience!

"Takk..." is like a going out on a date with a girl who tries to look pretty (and probably is). Things seem to go good for a while until you realize she has absolutely no personality, a hellish bore to talk to with nothing to say about anything. She is in fact so boring that you easily see through all of her superficiality and begin to doze off into sleep mid-conversation (or lack thereof), dreaming of a taxi crashing through the restaurant window and whisking you away to somewhere amazing, like a Rush concert.

It was not a good first impression when I literally fell asleep listening to this album the first time through. Now, I feel slightly bad about giving such a bad rating to an album that really tries to make beautiful music, but not really. Sigur Ros throw in all sorts of tinkling bells, pianos and strings to try to make that emotional-thing legitimate or whatever they're going after. They try this epic crescendo thing a lot, something that Godspeed You! Black Emperor pwns at, and it doesn't work here because it just feels forced. All this niceness and beauty defaults into repetition, making a somewhat good song/melody even worse. Bascially the songs drag on too long with little variation. I will say though, this album more dyanamic and interesting than the previous "( )," but that doesn't make it any better. I've also got beef with Jonsi's vocals- they're just whiny and really detract from the music. If they were gone I might like this album a litle more.

Standout songs: "zzzzzzzz...."

I find Takk... to be a decent post-rock album, but a bit static and unexciting. As always, Sigur are trying to lock us in that emotional space, and do well at it normally, but sometimes come across as synthetic, insincere, and forced. This particular album is more diverse and more pleasurable to hear than some of their others, and though there's no epic climatic moment or memorable chorus, or anything that really struck a chord within me, I still enjoy this album. More elegant, more varied and ultimately, more fulfilling and complete than ( ), Takk... offers more good beautiful melodies. Not necessarily more beautiful melodies, but certainly more good melodies. This has more of an orchestral feel, whereas ( ) was more electronic, I found. The Icelandic heavenly vocals are in healthy supply, but the usual complain I have with Sigur Rós applies: where's the spice? Where's the magic? When Godspeed You! Black Emperor give endless layers of emotional, dark, creative, atmospheric music, Sigur Rós give a rather simple, steady somewhat static, unexciting performance. There is much more lingering, more meaningful, and more stirring music to be found.

this album was my introduction to Sigur Ros, so my review is tainted with the heightened and exaggerated emotional responses which always accompany first encounters. i don't come with expectations and comparisons ready from previous albums. it's just a first blush response.

well i suppose i should start with the obvious for the completely uninitiated. this is mostly instrumental: often singing is used it is more of a voice instrument rather than a bloke giving it up at centre stage singing "with my hands open, my eyes open, i just keep hopin' your heart opens". i don't know why i thought of that. In some bizarre way meth blothnasir reminds me of Snow Patrol. The vocal style is distinctive and will defintitely not be to everyone's taste: it's the Geddy Lee/Jon Anderson conundrum. Often an unusual vocal style takes getting used to, a bit pf perseveracne here will pay considerable dividends. So run Gong several times to acclimatize.

There's a cliched sentimentality about Hoppipolla I liked: piano/strings/nice build up ... reminds me of verve's backstreeet symphony.

the album drifts to a quieter more subdued end (Andvair-Svo Hljott-Heysatan)

First I need to admit myself being huge Sigur Ros fan, so it might act over my objectivity. Anyway, I believe this is fantastic record. Take, for example First track, intro called Takk, it is so icy and so warm in the same time, just like winter sun that shines over snow. First real song, Glosoli is amazing. You need to relax and concentrate on this one, it is slow, but constantly growing toward almost unlistenable noise! Well, they are experimental rock band, so I can forgive them on this noise, and it almost sounds cool to me now. If you like this album, after you eventually listen to it, you should look at the video for this track. It gives deeper sense to it, and made me love this song. Hoppipola is very nice and pleasant symphonic song, almost like from their Agaetis Byrjun album; happy, and sounds like a hymn to life. Next track is continuation of previous one, but it is not so nice, anyway it helps this album to stay connected well. Se Lest is fantastic orchestral track, has beautifull ambient sounds at the beginning, has even many horns, and excellent string quartet performance. Seaglopur is the best track here, it is so rocking, so refreshing, simply beautifull, this bowed guitar makes incredible sound, and singer's voice is like from heaven. Milano is not in my taste, and I do not like it, but it is not weak song, it is mostly built from improvisations, and it is more spontaneous than composed. Gong is track that has excellent vocal melodies, and sweat guitar rif, also fine strings. But here comes one weaker spot: it is distortion of drumms and piano (I think), and Jonsi sings a bit too high and too loud at the climaxe of song, but never mind, I stil like it. Andvari is nice ambient track, similair to those from their ( ) album, but a bit less intense and happier. Svo Hljot is one of the best songs here, I stil can not explain why I like it so much. It is melody that devastates with its beauty, although band still goes too loud in this track. Heysatan is nice ending to this record which is not their best, but his is so shiny and nice album, excellent progressive rock to new millenium. We stil have prog giants alive today.

If I were to rate this on first listening, it would get a 3.5. That's because some of the music is quite dense and possibly samey. But on repeated listenings all becomes clear. This is a very strong album. Obviously Hoppipola is known well thanks to BBC's Planet Earth, but this isn't about one track. Glosoli is a barnstorming wall of sound that puts Coldplay in their place. Saeglopur is Icelandic Radiohead. In fact a lot of the sound is a kind of skewed Radiohead (a la OK Computer era). The Icelandic (and "Hopelandic") vocals do not detract as this is a music-first album. Gong and Andvari could actually be Thom York singing by the way. Svo HlJott is a great slow-builder... actually, it's a trait of this band - lots of songs that start low and slow and just build into a crescendo. Played loud this is a real experience. I've had it about 4 weeks now and I've played it maybe 20 times. 'Nuff said. Five Stars.

What???

I actually do really really like Sigur Ros and intend to do some reviews of their other albums some time - which were truly magnificent (esp Agaetis Byrjun).

But this one - I don't understand why I don't like it so much - I can't get my head around why. There are exceptions - "Glosoli" for example is really really good - the way it builds up is fantastic, although it's really weird.

Maybe it's just that falsetto voice - it sounds like he's straining too hard (you hear gasps of breath) - I mean it works on their previous albums, but here it's gone over the border and is over-the-top.

Milano is good but it lasts too long. Se lest and Saglopur are incredibly boring (too much glockenspiel) and don't build up in the way their older album music did - you end up just switching it off - I simply cannot listen to this all the way through. Background music for adverts, cinemas and supermarkets.

I would recommend Sigur Ros for the lovers of the weird, the slow-moving, somewhat minimalistic.

Personally, I just don't get it - a pity because I love their other albums. A bit over-the-top avant-garde - like the pile of bricks in the Tate gallery - you look at it for a while out of fascination why it's there, but you then move on to paintings and art that please the eye.

My wife said it sounds like a choir - I guess so. I like choral music, but I think I would rather buy some random Christmas Carols album.

Good if you want to lose yourself staring at the ceiling in your bedroom trying to fall asleep - but you won't reach the end.

On the other hand, I was pleased that they did get some measure of fame with this, because they are good - this one's just not for me that's all.

Infectiously uplifting with its soaring. bombastic melodies and subtly elegant in its quite ones, Takk is a much more full and satisfying album than the abstract ( ) featuring well arranged and beautiful songs in the bands usual wide range of timbre and tone. Powerful in its ability to both invigorate and hypnotize into placitude, Takk plays well while in a variety of moods and certainly takes the listener on a musical journey through its dynamics, ending with the sobering and peaceful Heysátan.

While not quite as well conceived or varied as the excellent Agaetis Byrjun, Takk remains an exceptional piece of music in its own right and well more than please lovers of emotional, melodic, intense, and beautiful sounds.

Songwriting: 4 Instrumental Performances: 3 Lyrics/Vocals: 4 Style/Emotion/Replay: 4

It takes a couple of bottles of champagne with a friend and the notion of a good year coming to be able to review this album. There is no surprise in describing Sigur Ros as beautiful. And maybe it is the champagne speaking when I say only women evoke the emotion this album aludes in me.

Beyond the drunken mumbo jumbo, let me say. This is definitely a happy album, yet very emotional. Svo Hljott, my favorite Sigur Ros song. The album flows, constantly changing from hectic into melodic. With songs both in Islandic and Hopelandic, this album seems to be more encompassing than its predecessors.

A masterpice from the quartet that should not go unheard. With a pressence from all Sigur Ros memebers at times, yet focusing on general direction of each track.

5 stars, a masterpice (forgive the redundancy, you'll understand once you listen to it).

It is difficult to review this album as it is Sigur Ros.

I believe strongly they are an acquired taste but once you taste you may fall completely for them. Each track meanders patiently along almost fully instrumental and very soulful Hopelandic lyrics drift in and out almost sending you to sleep. In fact I play this often at night as I drift into rapid eye movement and when I awake I feel refreshed knowing that Sigur Ros has comforted my ears.

The songs are impossible to pronounce and I cannot remember a single one off hand to rave about but they all kind of blend together seamlessly as one orchestrated piece. This is very quiet music with a hint of peace tainted by dark overtones.

Takk was not my preferred CD to obtain from the band but it was the cheapest and most accessible at the time of searching in the CD stores so I tried it out as I had heard so much about this enigmatic band.

I cannot say I was completely overwhelmed by their style but it makes a nice change after a day of thrashing Devin Townsend or Rush.

I can only recommend this CD if you want a very tranquil CD sound that calms the nerves and helps you to unwind. I have no idea what the CD is about but there is an ambience that is unmistakeable and pure Sigur Ros.

Try it and see. You can only be surprised at their originality and it is admirable that they consistently bring such an eclectic sound to the prog table.

"Takk..." is the 4th (excluding remix albums and soundtracks) full-length studio album by Icelandic post rock/experimental rock act Sigur Rós. The album was released through Geffen/EMI Records in September 2005. It´s the successor to "( )" from 2002.

Stylistically the music on the album is a continuation of the melancholic and atmospheric post rock style the band also played on "Ágætis Byrjun (1999)" and "( ) (2002)", so listeners familiar with those two releases won´t be surprised by the musical direction here. The music is generally slow building and repetitive, focusing on creating an emotional melancholic atmosphere with layers of sounds and effects. The deep melancholy is further enchanced by the distinct sounding high pitched vocals by Jónsi Birgission. He has an emotional delivery, which in a beautiful way conveys the darker and more melancholic moments in a person´s life without sounding like a bleak depression. Because there is light here too, it´s just featured in small doses and presented in a subtle manner.

While the tracks aren´t overtly complex, the many layers of sounds and effects and the frequent use of unconventional time signatures, make "Takk..." a relatively challenging listen. It´s not inaccessible music and if you want to listen to it as dreamy background music that´s an option too, but opting to give it a deeper and more thourough listen is incredibly rewarding as the album is loaded with sonic details designed to tickle the emotional centers of your brain. "Takk..." features a warm, dynamic, and organic sound production, which is a perfect fit for the material, and it´s overall a very well sounding release. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

'Takk...' - Sigur Ros (2.5/10)

Well, wasn't this something... I had heard alot of things about Sigur Ros; apparently they were one of the leading post-rock bands of all time, and posessed an immensely beautiful sound. I am a fair fan of the genre (at times being quite enamoured with the musical stylings of God Is An Astronaut and Explosions In The Sky) and alot of what I had heard in the genre had been indeed; quite beautiful in it's orchestration and composition.

What joy it was for me -keeping those high hopes in mind- to come across this little gem, 'Takk.'

I'm blown away... in all the worst ways possible.

Five or so minutes into listening, I became incredibly confused as to why the band's music was so highly rated on this site. What graced my ears was a very confused, noisy, sonic mess, with the occasional agreeable texture popping out of the audio.

With 'Hoppipolla,' I even got a tiny bit hopeful. There was actually a decent piano riff there, although certainly nothing special.

After getting half-way through the album, I was convinced that it wasn't necessarily the instrumentation that bothered me so much (although the noisy mixing would have gotten to me eventually) as much as the gruesome vocals.

Jonsi's vocals are possibly the worst I've ever heard in all of progressive music, no lie. And to all of the obvious lovers of this band, I am quite musically open minded. But listening to what can only be likened to a child having inhaled an overdose of some gaseous substance.

Another thing that irritated me (although this has more to do with the band's style more so than the album in specific) were the nonsensical, Hopelandic vocals. I can understand it's something creative and 'different' (which is what Prog is all about) but having Jonsi chirp out gibberish certainly didn't deter me from thinking I was listening to an infant howl.

The best way I can describe 'Takk...' is if Alvin and the Chipmunks recorded an album and Devin Townsend decided to produce it; it would come out sounding something like this.

I can understand that this isn't for everyone, and I would suggest anyone not initiated into the band should at least give them a try, because apparently I'm a minority in hating them. They are CERTAINLY not for me though. One of the most dissapointing musical journies I've ever taken.

If the change from "Ágætis Byrjun" to "()" was big, the transition from that one to "Takk..." is even bigger, who would guess that after an emotionally violent and melancholic album, they would go happy? "Takk..." is literally a happy record, very pretty, but very happy, very different from its predecessors, which is undoubtedly good, but, it lacks something, it just doesn't feel right, in my opinion.

However, this is as stunning as ever for Sigur Rós, the tracks are richer, more structured and fuller than in the past, there's a much wider range of instruments, giving the songs a very different dynamic, but, enough with comparisons, "Takk..." is wonderful, it reaches glorious moments like the room filling piano in "Sæglópur", the pulsing groove of "Gong", and the perfect melancholy of "Heysatán", not to mention "Hoppípolla", fulfilled with delicious moments and graceful melodies, a true gem.

This album has, however, low points, songs that don't catch my attention, and that should, contrarily to "()" where that's not absolutely compulsory, this makes you lose the album instead of losing yourself in the album.

This is wonderful Sigur Rós as ever, but it lacks something, very hard to tell what.

This album is perhaps stronger than its predecessor, and if it's not quite the masterpiece that AGAETIS BYRJUN is, it shows the band moving in interesting directions. (Unfortunately, the next album, 2008's "Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust," found the band taking a step backwards, away from experimentation and towards accessibility and, for me, at any rate, mediocrity.)

"Glosoli" is a fantastic way to open up the album, with what sounds like feet marching across a snow-swept landscape before erupting in the kind of guitar noise-fest this band does so well. "Hoppipolla" is one of the poppiest moments on the album, and it's a fantastic song. "Saeglopur" is the masterpiece of the album; after peaking early in a rising crecendo of noise, it continues post-eruption for another 3 minutes in transcendent beauty.

In between many of the sung tunes are instrumentals that might remind some of that other Iclandic band, Mum, particularly their electronic masterpiece YESTERDAY WAS DRAMATIC. I thought this was the direction the band might be moving in, and was excited by the possibilities.

Another very good Post Rock/Math Rock album from Iceland's own. I like the overall feel of the album, a little more upbeat/positive feeling than ( ), though with a lot of quiet space. In my mind, Takk..., ( ), and Ágaetis Byrjun are all pretty equal as overall albums. The first one I heard will probably always be my favorite (it's feel, it's music, was so new and unusual to me). Album highlights: the delicate, "Sé Lest" (8:40) (8/10); the unusually heavy, "Saeglópur" (7:39) (8/10); the beautifully orchestrated and mostly ambient, "Svo Hljótt" (7:25) (9/10); the dirge-like, "Heysátan" (4:10) (8/10), and; one of my favorite Sigur Rós songs, "Milanó" (10:27) (10/10).

"Takk..." has many of the same ethereal elements as the group's much loved "Agaetis Byrjun". The music is often just as ambient and haunting but this release is slightly more accessible than before, especially compared to its predecessor, ( ). I like this very much for its many optimistic touches.

The opener is the lovely title track. This is very atmospheric and one of my favourites. "Hoppípolla" (Hopping Into Puddles) opens with some nice piano. Love this one very much too. It's such a glorious, uplifting tune which also hit the UK charts at the time. It's around four minutes in length which was up to this point quite short for a Sigur Ros track!

The stunning "Sé lest" is just as worthwhile. A very happy, tranquil, elegant piece with strange chirpy vocals and a brass section signing the melody off at the end. "Andvari" is another gem, very warm and slow. The arrangements are pretty and magical. You'll hear some darker pieces on this album too, of which "Gong" is the most touching with its opening haze of heartbreaking strings.

Overall, there are plenty of invigorating, breathtaking and dreamy moments on "Takk...". If you like "Agaetis Byrjun", I don't see any reason not to like this one.

Sigur Ros were quite interesting to listen to when I first heard (); quiet, melancholic until the dynamics changed a bit in the second half. My second try with the group is just as interesting as I went along with TAKK... more so than () on the first spin, but TAKK... still takes a few sit-down listens before one ''gets it''. Post-rock is probably the most finnicky genre I've run across simply because you really have to have the right mindset when you listen and failure to do so will make the album rub you the wrong way.

There are eleven tracks in total, but I almost feel that there should be just seven. For example, Track 4 sounds like an extension of ''Hoppipolla''. The middle three tracks I feel are the strongest, particular the climb/descend feel of ''Milano''; it can be an absolutely riveting experience being swept away by the dynamic changes. ''Se lest'' has a far more playful feel complete with a brass band tooting along. The keyboards are pretty rich in spots, the guitars are beautifully subdued and the drumming (the band's strong point) rarely fails to impress. There also seems to be a whole album feel as opposed to track-by-track structure with somewhat of a bookending feel (first and last tracks sound quite similar).

Tracks like ''Gong'' have almost an indie feel to them with the standard rock pattern with slight over-production, but that particular one segues into a more beautiful ''Andvari''. There is this inner beauty to TAKK... that stands out as one of the better albums of the post-rock genre that I've heard, and the strange inter-connected-ness and Jonsi's near angelic vocals only add to the appeal. If you have any interest in post-rock, sit back and let the music flow.

With another gorgeous and delicate album along the lines of ( ), Sigur Ros' Takk may offer nothing in the way of surprises but the distinctive Sigur Ros style of post-rock hasn't become tiresome yet. The fact is that whilst plenty of post-rock bands take inspiration from Sigur Ros, none of them are quite able to recapture the same textures and atmospheres as the band seem to be able to accomplish with ease, so despite the post-rock field having become decidedly crowded by 2005, Takk still stands out in it. Recommended for anyone into Sigur Ros, and for fans of post-rock in general, though I have to say that I'm not sure how many more albums like Takk Sigur Ros can put out before the schtick becomes tiresome.

I don't know which album is much better musically speaking, ( ) , Agaetis Byrjun or Takk; personally I enjoy a lot Takk. It has wonderful songs that are accompanied with wonderful videoswith a lot of message and mystery that you can discover until the end of the song. The album opens with an intro to the song Glosoli, which is for me, the most powerful song, very close to the principles of post rock. The rest of the songs have fantastic moments of reflexion, sadness, melancholia, happiness... Something I enjoy a lot in Sigur Ros albums is the orchestal arrangements in many of their songs that give another level to the music. After listening to the last album and comparing it to Takk, I assure that the absence of K. Sveinsson in keyboards leaves a tremendous hole in the band, because the piano and keyboard compositions he created were perfect for the songs. Takk, one of my favorite albums!

Listen to Sigur Ros is a bit ' like looking at a photograph of a little ' blurry, which you do not have a complete perception. This feature is sure to become their brand, and is also the reasons why you love or hate, no middle ground .

And even " Takk " is no exception to this rule. In fact, from the very first song " Takk ," a brief introduction to keyboards sound , you understand what will be the mood of the disc. The first track serves as the intro to the second track and single " Glósóli ," undoubtedly the best track on the disc . The song is characterized by a particular ascending climax , in fact begins in a quiet , in perfect Sigur Ros style, and evolves to flare up in the past and exciting final stages, in which the group shows also a rock soul, rarely expressed before . The third song has the funny title of " Hoppipolla " and listening to it , one has the impression of being in front of a commercial pop version of Sigur Ros . There are many notable songs of this disc. Recall "Gong" where you can see the influences of Radiohead and the melancholic " Andvari ."

To conclude we can say that "Takk" is a fabulous cd, like a rose that grows in the middle of modern music production. However, this album is not even a miracle, and maybe from a group like Sigur Ros could you expect a little bit more.

Continuing their dream pop laced post-rock with classically ethereal and spaced out melancholic rock like no other, SIGUR RÓS released their fourth album TAKK? six years after their breakthrough album "Ágætis byrjun" caught the world's attention with their bizarre mix of ambient art rock set out in a classically tinged post-rock world that was as alien as their native Icelandic topography. Well, fourth album if you're not counting the 2003 documentary soundtrack "Hlemmur" which was limited to the world of electronica with sounds solely created to accompany the visuals. TAKK? (means 'thanks' in Icelandic and other Scandinavian languages) continued the success following "( )" and hit the number one spot on Iceland's album charts and was another international success story as well. As with previous albums the lyrics appear in the invented language Hopelandic a great deal but TAKK? has many tracks in Icelandic as well, however they come across as angelic gibberish all the same sounding like a more classically infused version of the Cocteau Twins at times.

While stylistically TAKK? doesn't deviate significantly from the established overall sound that SIGUR RÓS had latched onto on "Ágætis byrjun" and carried on with "( )," the music has actually become significantly more complex with more extensive uses of time signature changes and complex polyrhythms. And also while previous albums were limited to the four main musicians with four guest musicians appearing on "( )," the band clearly had a larger budget to play with on TAKK? which finds an astonishing sixteen guests providing cellos, violins, violas, trumpets, trombones and additional vocals (even a choir) and percussion. The results of which allow a substantially more lush and full effect sound that allows the many musicians to sound like a complex symphony rather than a more mortal post-rock band from Reykjavík.

TAKK? is yet another tranquil journey into an ethereal sonic journey that incorporates lush ambient passages, placid childlike vocals portraying a possible worldview of innocence and peacefulness along with a sophisticated string and brass section that master the art of note slides and subtle leapfrogging effects. While the music slinks by on simmer for the majority of the album's hour plus run, there are outbursts of climactic rock crescendos that unleash the normally tamped down electric guitars however they don't last long so do not expect the emphasis on TAKK? to be in the rock department. In fact this is much more of an art pop creation that just happens to have rock elements casually strewn about.

In all regards, TAKK? perfectly evolves the band to the next level without sacrificing any of the elements that cast them in a global gaze of admiration however to their credit they took the sound and expanded it in the most logical manner? that being an expansion of the musicians to broaden the sound, a more sophisticated approach in constructing the compositions and utilizing even more catchy pop sensibilities on tinkly piano melodies and polyrhythms. To the untrained ear TAKK? may sound simply like more of the same but for those who have engaged in even a casual classical music appreciation course will be able to pinpoint the differences. TAKK? may not win over any converts who don't have the ear for this most bizarre of sounds but it is certainly a worthy follow-up to a string of exciting albums.

'Takk'', the fourth album by Sigur Ros is the 3rd album in their amazing run of 5 star albums. This time, most of the albums lyrics are in Icelandic, except for 3 tracks which are entirely in Hopelandic; 'Andvan', 'Gong' and 'Milano'. The songs on the album have some very tricky meters which can change several times within a single track.

The album starts with 'Takk'' (Thanks') which acts as a drone-like introduction to the album, setting the mood for the band's signature sound. 'Glosoli' (Glowing Sun) was the first single released as a download only release on iTunes. The video for this song is one of the band's most memorable, the migration of children to a cliffs edge where they jump off and swim through the air, taking inspiration from the JD Salinger classic 'Catcher in the Rye'. The music has levels of synths and light percussion with the signature vocals. The music grows increasingly intense until it get to the end where it creates a thick wall of sound of guitars, keys and percussion which suddenly drops off leaving soft synths and chimes.

'Hoppipolia' (Hopping Into Puddles) was the 2nd single from the album and was nicknamed 'The Money Song' because the band considered it a commercially successful song. It is quite a bit more standard sounding, but has the lush sounds with a heavily orchestrated sound with strings and brass. The melody and the instruments utilizing lovely melodies making the sound quite victorious sounding and dynamic. 'Meo Bloonasir' With a Nosebleed) acts as a coda of sorts to 'Hoppipolia' and continues with a variation to the melody from that track, with more standard instruments instead of the orchestra.

'Se Lest' (I See a Train) begins with tonal percussion and Jon's falsetto swirling around wordlessly with layered vocals below that. Strings come in developing the sound somewhat and then growing softer again as more vocals continue and soon the strings swell again. This is one of those tracks where his vocals sound more like an instrument then a voice, very beautiful and angelic. Towards the middle, things quiet down to nothing but chimes and vibes, sounding very childlike and innocent, and Jon's voice eventually comes back in softly with the same high falsetto. The brass starts to come in now and starts to swell as the other sounds fade off. There is a slightly carnival type feel as the music slips into a valse tempo, then fades back to the minimal sounds again.

'Saeglopur' (Lost at Sea) is another single from the album and is, again, another recognizable track. This is one of my favorites from the band, and is also accompanied by another excellent video depicting a young child drowning and being rescued, but very artfully done. This track has been used for several movies and TV shows like 'Life of Pi' and 'Aquaman'. The music is very soft and relaxing at first, but halfway through becomes more frantic and intense, the melody becoming more front and center making it easy to recognize. After the long climax, the music softens to a droning guitars and piano with the angelic vocals continuing. The layers ebb and flow in intensity until the end.

'Milano' (named after the Italian city Milan) is the longest track at over 10 minutes. It was written together with the band and the string quartet 'Amina'. It is based around a lovely music box style melody that repeats itself as the music develops around it. The strings become slowly louder as they create a lush layer of sound under the keys and bass. A moderate tempo becomes more apparent as the song continues with Jon's signature vocals bringing in an increase in volume and intensity. This softens again at about the midway point bringing back the main music box theme. The track develops around this melody as other instruments and layers join in and it suddenly reaches another apex after 7 minutes. It quiets down and slowly fades.

'Gong' fades in with a guitar arpeggio and it quickly becomes more upbeat and less minimal, but still peaceful yet more like a standard song. The lyrical quality of the vocals drives this song more than the preceding tracks, as they are less of an instrument on the track and thus standout more as on traditionally constructed songs and building towards the heavier middle then settling down to chiming guitars and strings. 'Andvari' (Zephyr) is another tricky song with changing meters and a pattern of time signature changes that is heard in the 27 bar melody. The accents on different beats translates into a complex pattern while playing against 18 bar phrases in a background of 3/8 time. Quite complicated, yet very progressive. That strange pattern still produces a beautiful and quiet track that stays lush and pensive throughout.

'Svo Hijott' (So Quietly) begins with softly ringing synths that bring in a theme with a soft electric piano and vocals. Once again, Jon's voice becomes a beautiful instrument alternating between falsetto and stronger vocals. The music swells, bringing in strings and a strange haziness. The unique e-bow sound comes in more apparent on this track as it intensifies and it all turns into another thick wall of sound, and then backs off a bit leaving a steadier rhythm before building again. 'Heysatan' (Haystack) is the last track and, except for the intro track, the shortest track at just over 4 minutes. It stars with a slow chord progression done by the guitar and a sustained synth underneath it. After a minute, pensive vocals come in as this one remains quite minimal as an epilogue to the album. Yet it is still lovely.

I continue to love Sigur Ros unique sound and beauty. Even when the sound is the thickest, it is still beautiful. This album is more pensive and seems to have a theme of childhood and innocence and the effect that bad experiences can have on innocence. While the previous two albums had more dissonance and heavier sections at times, this one stays on the softer side, yet it still can conjure up some unsettling sections. Where '()', the untitled 3rd album from the band seemed to be based upon each song building upon the last to create a heavy climactic ending to the overall album, this one has apexes at different times, yet still stays more pensive than the untitled album and 'Agaetis Byrjun' before that. The latter album experiments more with dynamics, where this one takes its time to develop, but does so in shorter bursts and less often. All 3 albums are masterpieces, however, and I consider them all easily worth 5 stars for their ingenuity and unique, yet lovely sound.