Album of the Week #7: "Takk" by Sigur Rós

John

Well after a few months of listening to Takk I've come to the conclusion that Sigur Rós are at a crossroads. The next album will make or break them for me. Takk just seems like a safe bet as they haven't really progressed from what they were doing on ( ). In fact they seem to have gotten a little boring and predictable. The EP they did for the Merce Cunningham dance troupe was really exciting and then Takk was a disappointment.

Anyone agree or do you think I'm totally off the mark?

damien

Takk was a bit too polished and formulaic and mass-market appealing but the EP was just fiddling and bad fiddling at that.

John

I thought the EP was really good. I wouldn't call it experimental but it certainly was unusual.

radiospan

I seem to be one of the few who think that ( ) was better than ágætis byrjun?

I thought the Ba Ba EP was excellent too.

Crucifix

I liked 'Takk' but it was the first album I heard from them. It's odd to see someone calling Sigur Rós mass market, but I guess I can see where you're coming from.

radiospan

It did reach number 6 in the Irish album charts, and even higher in other countries.

anonymous_joe

First Sigúr Rós I heard. Was well impressive.

bowsie casey

Sorry to go back on a past Album of the Week, but I'm new to this forum and seeing the comments for first time.

I agree with John....Takk was not a step forward for SR, they played it safe (again). For me, Agætis Byrjun was by far their best album, the two subsequent albums do not move on from there and are stale in comparison.

munkeehaven

I think Takk was the soundtrack to a film set in a mental hospital.I quite liked it..

fillmore jive

i'd say it has to be between ágætis byrjun and ().

takk is just, well, boring.

John

Since posting this thread and listening to Takk a bit more I am even more of the opinion of it being a poor album. There's a couple of nice tracks on it but it makes me wonder where Sigur Rós will go from here.

And bowsie, there's no problem with resurrecting the old albums of the week, that's why there's an archive stickied at the top of this forum

Sgt. Politeness

taken on its own its a fine album with some great tracks. I love it, and ive been a longtime sigur ros fan. Put it this way, an 'average' SR album is 10 times better than a 'great' album by lesser bands

fillmore jive

Sgt. Politeness wrote:

taken on its own its a fine album with some great tracks. I love it, and ive been a longtime sigur ros fan. Put it this way, an 'average' SR album is 10 times better than a 'great' album by lesser bands

that's true, but are sigur ros beginning to lose their touch?

John

Sgt. Politeness wrote:

an 'average' SR album is 10 times better than a 'great' album by lesser bands

Hmmm, they're a great band but I can think of many albums that piss all over Takk. The next album will be make or break for me, if they continue to just go through the motions there's no point buying subsequent albums.

Sgt. Politeness

I dont agree really, i mean i just dont think a band should feel they have to reincent themselves or push boundaries with EVERY album. I mean case in point, radiohead. I thought some of thier earlier stuff (bends era) sounded good, but everything since then has sounded bloody awful to me, becuase they're 'pushing boundaries' and 'reinventing' and whatnot.
To put it another way, id rather SR released something that i personally would love, even if it doesnt 'challenge' me musically and may sound like agaetis or (), then have them release and album of electronic beeps and boops that sound like bob hoskins programming a ZX81 in a dustbin just because its different, progressive or god forbid, challenging.

John

I'm not saying that they should go mad and completely rejig the way they work but to me it seems like Takk is nothing more than an album that will sell well because it sounds like a more accessible ( ). They're resting on their laurels. There isn't a huge gap between Agaetis Byrjún and ( ) but they're distinct enough for me to love them both. Most of the songs on Takk sound like tracks that just weren't good enough for ( ) but now that EMI are waving a big cheque in front of them they're good enough to make an album out of.

And as for Radiohead, they've only gotten good since they stopped being just another guitar band

Sgt. Politeness

John wrote:

And as for Radiohead, they've only gotten good since they stopped being just another guitar band

haha, we'll agree to disagrre on this one (personally i thought 90% of radiohead stuff was pretentious **** but thats a discussion for anothher thread)
I love takk, agaetis and ()...so much so i have the angel from agaetis tattoed on my right shoulder! Wether you like takk or not, i think were all in agreement that sigur ros are still an incredible band..seeing them live in 2005 was possibly one of the most incredible experiences of my life

Attractive Nun

I agree with the OP. While I wouldn't be anywhere near the tattoo stage of familiarity with Sigur Ros, I am a big fan of their music - and rate them so highly because they are so unique. Agaetis Byrjún is an amazing album, as is (). Takk isn't as good, but it is of course still a commendable release.

Where I would strongly disagree with the Sergeant is in the point that it doesn't matter that Sigur Ros mightn't be pushing the boundaries. Throughout music history, at different levels, the best and most important bands have been reinventing themselves and pushing music forward. Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan and the Beatles at general level, for example, and the Pixies, Neutral Milk Hotel and, yes, Radiohead at a more "Indie/Alternative" level. In fact, it was Radiohead's evolution from The Bends/OK Computer to Kid A/Amnesiac (of which the latter, I must say, compells me more) that has basically defined the direction that a large proportion of Indie has gone over the past few years. You need bands like that, or the whole scene goes stagnant. I had hoped Sigur Ros could be the next big band to do that, simply because they were so different and, well, so good. If they do indeed decide to just rest on their laurels with the Takk style, of course they'll still be a good band, but they won't be a great band or a compelling band. They'd lose me as a big fan anyway - although I'd probably still see them live.

[/load of crap, probably]

Kold

Sgt. Politeness wrote:

haha, we'll agree to disagrre on this one (personally i thought 90% of radiohead stuff was pretentious **** but thats a discussion for anothher thread)

Argh, I know I shouldn't comment OT but this annoyed me. Radiohead have always done the music that they wanted to make which is what makes every album of theirs exceptional in my eyes. Kid A, Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief are all insanely original and awesome albums. They just really take some actual listening to to appreciate.