photos by tyler craft

setlist

vaka
fyrsta
samskeyti
salka
ný batterí
njósnavélin
svefn-g-englar
mílanó
hafssól
olsen olsen
popplagið

david sanders
without a doubt, this was one of the greatest concerts i have ever been to. every song seemed too perfect, the atmosphere of the venue was a perfect fit for sigur ros, and my view was great. everything seemed to come together for an experience of a lifetime. i thought that no one would ever top the intensity of radiohead live, but sigur ros might have done just that

liberty hall is a very nice old venue in the heart of lawrence that seated about 700 people, with not a bad seat in the house. siggi armann came on stage at 8:30 with just an acoustic guitar. he was huge, looking about 6'5" and 270 or so lbs! he introduced himself and began his dirgeful eight song set singing such classic lines as "life isn't good for the elephant man" and "even big boys cry when their friends die." although his lyrics were quite weak, his music was very nice and he soon won over the whole crowd with his subtle humor and masterful guitar work. kjartan and orri from sigur r s helped him on a few songs. he left the stage to polite applause. before sigur r s came on, i met wayne coyne from the flaming lips who was in lawrence, since he was playing with beck at the lied center the following night. it just made the experience better!

about thirty minutes later, the lights dimmed. incense was lit on stage and a recorded heartbeat began in the background(the end of sfevn-g-englar) as kjartan took the stage and played the opening notes to 'vaka.' the whole band soon came out with jonsi and orri behind two more keyboards and georg pumping deafening bass thuds. the song was played perfectly and i looked on in awe as j nsi closed his eyes and hit unheard of notes that brought the song to a climax that wasn't present on the studio version.

the string section(composed of four young women who call themselves amina) took the forefront for the second song, 'fyrsta', as jonsi slowly played a moog while kjartan plucked some simple guitar notes. one of the most amazing movements of the night came next as the band played 'samskeyti.' all four members stood back to back and side by side as they all played keyboards, besides georg who played the glockenspiel. halfway through the song, j nsi dove to the floor and picked up his e-bow bringing the song to a spectacular finale as he huddled over his guitar rocking back and forth. there was a short break, and the band played a new song called 'salka.' this just might show the new direction of the band, as the song actually had verses and a chorus. the crowd responded surprisingly well to the new material.

my favorite moment of the night came next. j nsi took his cello bow and began a deafening barrage of feedback as he attacked his guitar with the bow. i could actually hear the strings creak and j nsi grunt, and he looked to be on the verge of crying. no recording could capture this briliant moment, and by the first notes of 'ny batteri' his bow was in tatters. 'nj snavÃlin' was played with the help of one of the violinists on keyboards, and received fervant applause. 'svefn-g-englar' was extended from its original version and was absolutely beautiful. j nsi sang the chorus into his guitar creating an amazing echoing effect. 'milano' was the other new song of the night and was also one of the best live. this song has really evolved in the last year, and has changed from a slow and ambient piece to something quite loud and climactic. strings started the song, but jonsi's angellic voice soon took over, and he held a note for an amazing length of time as drums crashed, taking the song to new heights. 'hafssol' has really evolved as well from the ambient, torpid version on von to something that rivals the 'pop song' in intensity. it is now led by a drummed bass line, and j nsi ripped his bow to pieces by the end of the song as he pounded his guitar. 'olsen olsen' brought the show down a notch, and was especially beautiful live. 'pop song' capped off the set. the amps were turned on full blast, and its live intensity made the album version seem ambient in comparison. it was absolutely stunning to say the least and only feedback remained as jonsi threw down his guitar at the end. the band, amina, and siggi came out and bowed twice as 'avalon' was played in the background before the lights came on. it was the perfect ending to the perfect concert.

this experience was beyond words. the power that this band created live swept me off my feet. the band didn't orally communicate with the audience once during their perfomance, which just seemed to make the event more profound. the only thing i could say after the concert was "i don't want to talk about it" for it was truly beyond words. i don't think any event has ever made me feel that way before, and the feeling was good. my friends and i waited around for 45 minutes after the show and met the band. they were really reserved and quiet but seemed very nice, especially jonsi who allowed us to take a picture with him. they all signed my copy of von brigdi, which has now become my most prized possession. kjartan seemed very tired, and i could tell that the touring was really getting to him. the band and siggi went bar hopping after they signed autographs, while kjartan went onto the bus alone.

what a wonderful experience!
(david sanders)

nathan lofties
by the swarms of college students walking the sidewalks, i gathered that liberty hall must be just up ahead. or just another bar, one of thirty we had seen on the drive from the hotel. my girlfriend, kelly, and i had driven aimlessly in search of a simple grocery store that might supply us cheap fruit for dinner, but failed to find anything in a new town after dark. we would discover the next day all the grocery stores were in the opposite direction, downtown lawrence is dominated by alcohol and art.

it was no matter though. we walked up to the venue and made sure the show wasn't general admission, then feeling secure in my tickets, we visited the tiny coffee shop next door to the hall. we ate danishes and muffins and wondered aloud at what to expect from the show as trendy students walked in an out with uncombed hair, tight pants and big cups of coffee. sigur rós had been a part of my life for almost two years now. i had been through all stages of obsession, including rabid uber-fan, and subtle quiet support. they had taken me through long days and even longer nights, and done what music is supposed to do, enhance your life. so i was reasonably nervous to see how this would hold up when performed for me live. i had surely never heard a poor review of a sigur rós show (discounting nme), but i had already been through a lot emotionally the prior days and wasn't sure if the show was even going to impact me the same. i knew i loved them, but i was going to let them prove to me all over again just why i did. i was just hoping they could.

we found our seats, which ended up being possibly the best in the house, center of the lower balcony, first row, and waited patiently. pretty soon siggi armann was entertaining us with his ridiculously adorable set. i had heard his music and appreciated his minimalist approach to things. and even with a few poorer quality new songs ("even big boys cry" is too much for even me), he managed to win over a crowd that was undoubtedly sprinkled with people there just to be there. that was a pretty stunning feat to me, considering the horror stories i've heard of people laughing at him at other concerts on this tour. but that night, the audience laughed with siggi, as he introduced his songs in an extremely thick accent, introduced members of sigur rós who helped him, and playfully calling attention to his own mistakes. ironically, the biggest mistake of his set was what got him the biggest cheer. after freezing up in a new song, forgetting where to go next, he told the audience "sank you fore yore sipportî elicited massive applause and laughter from everyone. sadly, too many people talked straight through his last song, but most of them were newcomers filling out the seats. when siggi left the stage he got a nice round of applause and cheers. kelly and i both found him remarkably charming.

it was then an excruciating wait for the big event. the lights went up and the college kids went to buy more drinks, and smokers disregarded the no-smoking rule. the clatter was loud and i was worried sigur rós might end up playing to a crowd of rowdy students. i couldn't tell how many were there actually to see my beloved band, how many had been dragged along unwillingly, or how many just felt like getting drunk in liberty hall. the front row of the balcony at least seemed quiet and focused. i myself felt like meditating on the coming storm, but only found myself feeling nauseous. a combination of nervousness and chatter and too many men wearing scarfs indoors, i suppose. we sat quietly and just waited. and like all moments do, the moment came.

the lights went down, and a montage of memorable sounds from agaetis byrjun stretched out to us from the speakers. the band members very quietly made their ways to their instruments. the crowd roared loudly and then even louder as a little scrawny figure walked out on stage. i was a little disappointed that the audience would play favorites with a band like sigur rós, but i can't say that i don't understand why. he moved quickly about the stage to his instruments, singing softly into his keyboard and manipulating the sounds as the warm organ and piano rose from untitled 1. i certainly didn't want to play favorites, but i admit my eyes were locked on jónsi for the entirety of the first song. something inside me wanted proof that the angelic voice i had found solace in for so long could actually come from a human being. and it was even more amazing to see it coming from a man no bigger then i am, who must have gotten teased in school for his weight just like i did. amazing doesn't really convey it though, as i'm sure every soul in liberty hall that night would agree, his voice was god-like. it softly gave up the wordless noise within him, and exploded to new heights in the songs climax. if "olsen olsen" had jónsi's voice in the stratosphere, this new ending to "vaka" planted it somewhere near jupiter. i involuntarily shivered and squeezed kelly's hand. no matter what happened from this point on, sigur rós had delivered.

in perfect imitation of the studio album, the song segued directly into untitled 2. waves of distortion and manipulated vocals rose from the stage with sobering lights. the only difference was in the tempo, which seemed slightly slower then its studio version. one of my favorites from the album, the song actually ended up being overshadowed by its "attachment", untitled 3, which began with orri running across the stage to play the organ that would signal the change. the entire band gathered around kjartan's keyboards, georg played chimes, jónsi sang into his keyboard to add new touches, and kjartan began the steady piano. seeing four musicians standing around and so focused was like peeking in on something private, something rarely seen. two mirror balls dropped from the ceiling and sprinkled the entire hall with snowflakes, which only served to further the sense that we were eavesdropping on some other world. halfway through the song, j nsi broke away and bent over his guitar with an ebow, rocking gently back in forth as if he was cradling a baby. the sound soared above us, and a song that had so far been a least favorite finally made perfect sense. the performance was touching, and the majesty of the sound undeniable.

kelly and i exchanged happy glances as it ended. i then embarrassed myself by trying to explain to her what an ebow was, when she already knew. i didn't have time to think of what to say to that, as the newest song started up, "salka". i had forced myself not to download any clips of this song, i had wanted to experience all new for the first time. its been called one of sigur rós's more catchy songs, and this is certainly true. a militant melody backed by pounding drums and a spectacular light show. i think it's a testament to the strength of the song that after only hearing it once, i can still recall how it sounds.

* (on a side note, we can now proudly introduce a new phrase from "salka" to the book of hopelandic- that is "sheeshaw")*

after this, jónsi stepped to center stage, taking his bow for the first time of the night. all lights went down, and he began to ravage his guitar, playing out a single note with such ferocity that the bow disintegrated and long strands of it fluttered in the air as he scraped it with increasing speed across the guitar. red lights illuminated his small frame, making him appear demonic, and a small smile seemed to creep onto his face. it was obvious this one of his favorite parts of the show.

this was the beginning of "ný batterí", a fan favorite if there ever was one. cheers erupted as georg finally joined in with his precision bass line. the song suffered nothing from the lack of its horn section. kjartan's organs filled in with warm tones, and when orri hit his kick drum and the cymbals crashed, it felt like the end of the world. "ný batterí" absolutely exploded out into the audience, completely overwhelming everyone in swirling feedback. when it ended, the crowd cheered wildly and i had the biggest, stupidest grin on my face.

untitled 4 followed, opening with the buzzing alarm that's almost inaudible on the album. it was the only song of the night where i wondered if the sound levels were right. it seemed to me as if the bass was too overpowering, but by the end of the song, it had either been fixed or i had stopped caring. jónsi improvised more gleeful vocals as the song faded to a close, left with him singing all by himself.

after this jónsi quickly walked off the stage to retrieve a new bow, as kjartan released a sonar ping into the hall, which immediately resulted in ecstatic cheering. it was no doubt the song that many had come to hear, and was the song that had first entranced me. it took its time starting up, but soon jónsi was back and scraping his bow across his strings to send warm, familiar tones out to us. i have to admit i have overplayed this one, and rarely listen to it in my own time anymore. but at a slower pace, the song becomes even more hypnotic then before. jónsi picked up and sang into his guitar like in all the accounts i had read, but i was distracted and amused by orri knocking over his cymbal. i wondered if he would get it back up in time for the explosion that was set to come, and apparently the same thing was on georg's mind. but with relaxed ease he got up, set it up straight, and sat down in time to rip the song apart in his thunderous pounding. the song resulted in happy cheers from all of us. many were obviously in heaven after hearing their favorite song.

"mílanó" came next, a new one i'm unfamiliar with. it started slowly, bathed in blue light, and reached climax with a memorable bass line, and jónsi mashing his little keyboard and singing his heart out. though i have to say that at this point i had only one thing in mind, " hafssól", which would be next in line. the first time i heard a poor quality mp3 of the reworked song from von, i knew i had to see it live. and i knew they had been playing it live on this tour, and i was getting antsy. i had described it to kelly and wanted to see her reaction. in all honesty, i was waiting to see my own reaction.

just let me say now to anyone who has yet to see sigur rós live- there is nothing, nothing that can prepare you for this song. i had grown to love its original form on von as an exercise in minimal beauty, stretching out a single note for 13 minutes. it's was a song that demanded my full attention and patience. its live counterpart, however, is the exact opposite. it doesn't demand your attention, it steals it from you. "hafssol" is insanely captivating, brimming with hope and joy that rivals the almost-overkill of "olsen olsen". its execution in lawrence was flawless, as jónsi toyed with his guitar while the song built, bringing waves of echoing tones while orri taps his cymbals and slowly builds up his drumming, hitting the kick drum like a heartbeat. jónsi nailed the vocals, rising to one of his finest moments as a vocalist to date. as beautiful as the first part is, the explosion at the end is sheer brilliance. watching jónsi bending over his guitar, shredding his bow and banging it on the strings, while georg hammers his bass with a drumstick is unforgettable. we were an audience of wide eyes, and i could only imagine all the people who had never heard it and what they must be thinking. kelly, who had up to this point been sitting quite still, broke away from me and bounced her legs along to the speeding locomotive drums. the crescendo was deafening, and when it reached the absolute pinnacle of rushing sound, it all dropped out to leave kjartan playing a flute and amina playing strings as if they were stuck in fast-forward. the experience was overwhelming, and i was left recuperating from it well into the next song, which was signaled by the playing of jónsi's church-reverb drenched vocals from the studio version of "olsen olsen" over the speakers.

orri kicked in the slow beat as the recording played, and jónsi got down on his knees and hunched over his guitar. he and georg had abused their guitars so badly that they needed to be retuned, so they both spent time twiddling the knobs. it took so long that the recording actually ran out before they started the song. whether by mistake or on purpose, in the second verse jónsi seemed suddenly reluctant to go into the chorus, and sang another verse. mistake or not, the band didn't miss a beat, and they effortlessly adapted to the change before playing the chorus, and launching into the joyous end. as great as it was, i couldn't help but miss the 'la la la's of the studio version. its one of the reasons i was so quick to embrace ( ) as a much rawer, stripped down album. but it'd be a damn lie to call "olsen olsen" a disappointment, even if i would have rather heard "von" or "the death song". its simple bass carried the joy brought by "hafssol" all the way into the ending, "untitled 8". perhaps because many of us knew this was the end, it seemed like we collectively sat up to pay attention. kjartan walked back and almost seemed to hang off stage as he played the main guitar line, while jónsi bowed his guitar and the bass and drums kicked in to bring the song into full swing. let me just say now that orri is my new god, and he should be yours too. what he's brought to sigur rós is a vitality and energy that explodes out into you. for much of the song, the lights seemed to focus on him, especially in the end, as if to say the band fully acknowledges that this is orri's shining moment, this is orri's song. when jónsi sang the last of the hopeful notes, he threw his bow down and stepped back as the lights went darker. a red spotlight shined on us in the balcony from behind orri, and his silhouette was left crashing down on his drums with amazing ferocity. the mood became menacing, and red lights shined on jónsi to recall the demonic image from "ný batterí". the lights began to flicker, and the song went off like an atomic bomb. it was at this point that kelly remembered she had brought a small camera, and she handed it to me and i began snapping photo after photo as the band destroyed us all. the highlight came as j nsi fell away from the microphone and a searing guitar burned up the rest of the song. and finally, all the collective fury and might of the song was spent, and it was done, and they layed down their guitars, still humming with feedback, and walked off stage. we all stood up and cheered as much as we could. we all wanted them back. and they came back, all of them, amina, the band, even siggi, and they held hands and bowed as they projected their thanks on the screen behind them. and they looked happy.

we would cheer again, and they would come out to bow again, but that would be it. i snapped as many pictures as i could, but it was over. they were gone and people began to dismantle the stage as the recording of "avalon" wrapped up and fans fought over who got the setlist. kelly and i hugged and made our way up with the crowd out of the balcony. as we walked out, i overheard two men. they were speechless, with beaming smiles, and one eventually said "i'm glad we came, that wasbanymore. none of us really could. it made me all the more happy to know i was not alone, that others felt as shaky and warm as i did.

kelly and i made our way to the street, and walked by the busses. it seemed a lot of people were gathering to wait, and we were both getting cold, so we made our way to our car and back to the hotel. i didn't want to mob them. it was ok, i wouldn't have known what to say anyway. all you can say really is thank you, and we had all done that together by applauding for ten minutes. applauding a group that started in iceland, and probably never imagined they'd someday find themselves in kansas on a cold night with hundreds of americans cheering their creations. i guess applause feels like its not enough, and its not. applause is a cheap repayment for a night of entertainment that will stay in my mind, along with many others, for the rest of my life. it's like trading broken glass for diamonds. but i cant shake the feeling the band don't need repayment, because they chose to do this for us. its not like these are arena concerts raking in money for them. they do this because they love it, and right now i like thinking they loved the show as much as we did, even if they have to do it every night.

now i listen to ( ) and remember, and i look forward, and i remember the weekend, and it's all become the soundtrack to my life. maybe i'm moving dangerously close to the 'obsessive fan' status again, but after friday night, i can't imagine anyone in that room who wouldn't be an obsessive fan when it was all over. they worked magic for us. in america, too often the soundtrack to our lives is the incessant ringing of cell phones and the horns of suv's. for a small group of us, it no longer has to be like that.

i speak for kelly, chatty college students in tight jeans and rainbow socks, and pretty much anyone in liberty hall that night, (and of course myself) when i say: thank you sigur rós!
(nathan lofties)

 

 

 

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