Go- Jónsi

Jónsi has gone out of his way to be strange as hell on this cd and it works for him quite well. His ridiculously high pitched Falsetto allows him to hit quite a range of notes and the strong beats (many of which feature a flute in the lead) really help keep the tracks hum along.

1. Go Do- This is easily the best song on the CD. The powerful beat gives the song a strong start (especially when the bass kicks in), but when Jónsi himself kicks in, he steals the show. His voice accompanied by the flutes provides an excellent sense of buildup, reaching an eventual crescendo before Jónsi brings the song to its close.

2. Animal Arithmetic- This song starts out with a much more fast passed tempo than Go Do does. Jónsi definitely takes the center stage, though the percussion serves to create a fairly strong background. Jónsi, ditches the drawn out falsetto for a faster tempo which actually helps make the lyrics a bit more coherent. The song hits its climax at around 3:04 before tapering off.

3. Tornado- Tornado is the first track of the album where we begin to dip down into a more emotional driven song, instead of the upbeat blissful introduction tracks. A low rumble of bass and crescendo snare comes together in a track meant to be the calmer, more melancholy face of this album. Dronier vocals towards 3:05 and rise in energy creates one last surge of music before totally drifting off into Jon’s last few lyrics.

4. Boy lilikoi is quite possibly one of my favorite songs on the album, because of the fact that it sounds as if a young child is explaining his perception of life; a calm and innocent song. A strange series of bells, whistles, crashes, booms and “tincks” all over the track do nothing but create an epic forground for Jon’s playful lyrics. This is the climax track in between Tornado and the second third of the album; However, this track (along with almost all others) follow a distinct yet very undertone structure.

5. Sinking Friendships- The layered voices that start the song sound almost like something that would come off of Bromst The piano eventually takes over for the layering and creates a strong backdrop for Jónsi's voice. However, he works fairly well with the piano instead of trying to be the star. The combination of flutes, piano, and who knows what else create the airy feeling which Jónsi has been trying to perpetuate all along. Coming full circle, the layered voices come back in, slipping out one after another until the song falls in upon itself.

6. Kolnidur- A strong background is provided by a piano and what seem to be at least part of an orchestra. Although Jónsi slows his tempo down, he manages to bring his pitch down too. This song has a much more winding feelings to it, creating a sense that at the end, the listener will have reached the end of a very long journey. Jónsi lets the orchestra take the lead here, especially after 2:00, when he starts back up with the airy falsetto.

7. Around Us- Around us is another striving song on the album with a very nice drum background. Perfect layering of instrumentation, layering vocals that fade away into each other, only to be washed away by a clean series of vocals. At about 1:40, Jon whips out the low vocals that create such a contrast, you can’t help but be sucked in when the higher vocals kick back in. Another perfect example of this is towards the end; the beautiful single violin and orchestra gently fading into distant vocals accompanied with lots of tremolo. Beautiful song.

8. Grow Till Tall- Grow till tall could possibly be the last track on the album and make me even happier. The previous works of Sigur Ros are more than apparent in this track. The low vocals accompanied by almost nothing, vibrato, and constant altercations of his angelic voice combine to create a sound we wouldn’t mind seeing more often. And only more and more familiar with Sigur Ros. The constant rise in his vocals gives way to the orchestra in the background, but nothing is ever too empowering; the voice is clear, sharp, yet beautiful; the orchestral instrumentation is done perfectly so that it all drones out into Jon’s vocals. The listener is taken on a journey, only to come to terms with a strangely perfect end, a fuzzed out, horribly altered 30 seconds that leaves the listener wanting more.

9. Hengilбs- This track first begins to sound all too familiar, but the rawer vocals and contrast in, well…language leaves in the listener in a semi dazed state. This is a track to reminis over the rest of the album but a beautiful ending within itself. A strong introduction with gentle rolls in energy. The sort of track you would listen to on the way back home, late afternoon after a tiring day. The fact that this track is clearly also a field recording makes listeners happy im sure. And as the track ends, we are quickly dropped off into the last swipes on the cello.

Go Do- Jónsi

This video is absolutely insane. Lots and lots and lots and lots of birds flying around, not to mention Jónsi. Really excellent song though. When the drumbeat is in sync with him beating the box, it is just incredible. Take a look, it will make your day better. I promise.

Check it out right HERE

Flash Delirium- MGMT

This is the most ridiculous music video I think I have ever seen. Its complete lack of logic is what makes it amazing though. Plus, you can't not love MGMT. As an added bonus you can stream the rest of the album from the same webpage.

Check it out right HERE

Sing Sang Sung- Air

A very laid back and melodic song led by very soft drum beats and an acoustic guitar. The star is the video itself. The whole thing consists of the epic journey of a simple black ball that travels through a series bizarre backgrounds and tessellations.

Check it out right HERE

Khoda- Reza Dolatabadi

This is a seriously intense piece of work. It is made from over 6,000 paintings, each of which serves as a separate frame. The ambient synth-heavy music in the background combined with the intense visuals leaves you physically exhausted. Definitely worth taking a look at.

Check it out right HERE

Lucky- All India Radio

This is just a really fun video. The music in the background is very relaxed and lets the animation be the star. Coincidentally, said animation is done entirely with glow sticks. Awesome.

Check it out right HERE

The Monitor- Titus Andronicus

A revival of all that is beautiful about punk rock. If Bright Eyes exists to allow Connor Oberst to lay out his strongest emotions in every track, then Titus exists for the pure joy of rocking out. Speaking of Connor Oberst, Titus front-man, Patrick Stickles, sounds like a much angrier version of the acclaimed vocalist. Many of the tracks on this CD lean towards rousing choruses while violins and sweeping guitar riffs dance in the background. The lyrics take on a much darker side if you actually take a moment to listen. The more apocalyptic sound of the words are mirrored by the earlier excerpts from some of Lincoln's most famous speeches. The album itself is named after the first US ironclad, and the CD focuses on a very loose civil war theme, thus the Lincoln allusions.

Track List:

1. A More Perfect Union: Possibly my favorite track on the album. It starts off with a very morose speech by Lincoln followed by a strong drumbeat while the guitar builds up in the background. Stickles dives right into his lyrics, describing the loneliness that he sees in the world around him. This is the start of a series of round-robins between singing and free floating guitar solos which give more life to the song. Eventually, all of this feeds into a rousing chorus by Stickles and the drummer, Eric Harms, that sounds almost Arcade Fire-like. Despite the gloominess of the lyrics, you can't help but smile because of the rousing sound of the Stickles, Harms, and three separate guitars wailing in unison. A guitar solo plays the song out and another Lincoln speech fills out the final 30 seconds.

2. Titus Andronicus Forever- Possibly the happiest song on the whole album. "The Enemy is everywhere" states Stickles. He never quite describes who this "enemy" is but that's ok. Despite its lack of substance lyric-wise, the band has fun rocking out for 2 minutes of bliss. Once again, part of a Lincoln speech leads the song towards its close.

3. No Future Part Three: Escape From No Future- This track starts on a slow, mournful note but picks up with a guttural war cry from Stickles. A strong guitar riff backs up the vocals and it leads the song out of the slow melancholy feeling of the first 30 seconds of the song. Stickles really digs deep into himself on this track. He spends the whole time describing the part of him that he lost, this just so happens to be the one thing that makes him unique. His final conclusion is that he will "always be a loser." Dammit, if losers can play like this, then maybe there is some hope for the future of punk rock.

4. Richard II- This track is closer to a revolutionary yelling his protest against a despotic regime than anything else. A slow tidal wave led by the guitar entente leads this song to its energetic take-off at 1:08. "To whatever extent you hate yourself, it isn't enough" screams Stickles. Someone must have pissed the guy off, because he is not letting go of whatever was done to him. What he can't say for himself, he lets the guitars scream out allowing for Richard II to come to a rousing close with a long fadeout.

5. A Pot In Which To Piss- Fittingly this track starts with a quote from Jefferson Davis instead of Lincoln. Likewise, this spells the end of the high intensity of the first 4 tracks. Stickles slows his lyrics down, instead of trying to cram in the last word, he takes a nod from Bon Iver and lets his voice follow the drum beat through each line before trailing off. About 1/3 of the way through, the song picks up and so do the lyrics. Stickles throws out any possibility of surrender saying that, "There's a white flag in my pocket, never to be unfurled." While all this goes on, the piano kicks in, and soon the it joins the guitar in leading the song to its close.

6. Four Score And Seven- By far the most depressing song on the album. The lyrics reflect Stickles loss of hope for humanity and he sings about his loneliness while a Dylan-esque harmonica tune fills the gaps. The now familiar formula of a slow beginning followed by an abrupt pickup jumps in. Instead of a piano, trumpets and tambourines take the lead on this one.

7. Theme From 'Cheers'- The violin takes the lead while a very drunken sounding Stickles belts out his various reasons for getting into his current state. He has decided to drink away all of his problems and live his life without ever having to deal with whats in front of him. The guitar kicks in and the violin follow the lyrics as they weave their way to the climax. The guitar takes over the song and plays an energetic riff which ends the track.

8. To Old Friends And New- The slowest song on the album, and surprisingly one of the strongest. The piano starts off leading the song until Stickles and violinist, Cassie Ramone, start a lyrical back and forth resulting in a duet. The background and drums start in, but stay muted in the background letting the two singers take the spotlight. Eventually the whole band puts down their instruments and join in a finale that evokes Stickles vision of a better future, but only if people actually learn to accept each other.

9. ... And Ever- By far the liveliest song on the album. The CD comes back full circle repeating the words of track 2. This time, the piano and saxophone play a game of pass the baton resulting in an entire sax solo. The final speech by Lincoln is fairly ironic considering the words to the song. "We are not enemies, but friends," the reader states.

10. The Battle of Hampton Roads- This winding epic hits every single high point of all of the songs on the record and towards the end it has a ridiculous bagpipe solo. What more is there to say?