Sunday, March 9, 2008

video: Sigur Ros Heima


If you've got 90 minutes to kill I highly recommend taking an audio-visual trip to Iceland. Not possible? Well, thanks to the symphonic genius of those guys in Sigur Ros, it is not only possible, but expected that you get up out of your desk chair and leap through the computer screen and experience the wonder that is Sigur Ros in their homeland. Here's what they have to say about Heima:
heima' is sigur rós's first ever film, filmed over two weeks during the summer of 2006 when the band undertook a series of free, unannounced concerts in iceland. they hauled 40-plus people round 15 locations to the furthest flung corners of their homeland for their debut venture into live film, to create something, well, inspirational.

on their way they went to ghost towns, outsider art shrines, national parks, small community halls and the absolute middle-of-nowhere-ness of the highland wilderness, as well as playing the largest gig of their career (and in icelandic history) at their homecoming reykjavik show.

'heima' (icelandic for "at home" or "homeland"), truly, shows sigur rós as never before. whereas seeing the group live is normally a large-scale and sometimes overwhelming experience, making full use of lights and mesmeric visuals, 'heima' was always intended to reveal more of what was actually going on on stage. it does this via long-held close-ups and a rare intimate proximity, without ever once breaking the spell.

loosely based on a documentary format - and including personal reflections from the band - 'heima' also serves as an alternative primer for iceland the country, which is revealed as less stag destination-du-jour and more desolate, magical place where human beings have little right to trespass.
So far Sigur Ros has one American date lined up for the summer, 6/14 at Bonnaroo, hopefully they'll be adding a few more, like maybe one at the Good Shephard Faith Church?? (Pllllease) You can buy the Heima DVD HERE.

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