All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Observer Music Monthly

Med sud I eyrum ... is a beautiful collection that blows Sigur Rós beyond the place they come from, geographically and musically.

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100

The Onion (A.V. Club)

It's a gorgeous descent for an inimitable group that knows better than most how to deliver its highs high and its lows low.

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Lost At Sea

The album is a classic from start to finish, and only adds to the already monumentally impressive discography the band has produced in the past decade.

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Delusions of Adequacy

Whether it is the new production, the new sounds, the new language or maybe just the unique cover, everything works for Sigur Rós; on Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust is something exceptional.

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musicOMH.com

Overall though, this is another wondrous album from a band at the height of their considerable powers.

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NOW Magazine

While there are still plenty of swooshing sounds and heady instrumentation, it’s refreshing to see that Sigur Rós can do more than create aural landscapes.

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Rolling Stone

The band achieves a new unity in variety here, winding from near-glam romp and fireside-folk warmth to slow-climb grandeur with an attention to the repeated payoff in a sturdy hook and hum-along chorus.

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Mojo

There's still some beautifully glacial music....but now, occasionally, the Arctic exploration party becomes simply a party. [Aug 2008, p.103]

Hot Press

Icelandic eccentrics grasp for greatness.

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The Guardian

An English-language debut, 'All Alright' proves as unintelligible as past forays into nonsensical Hopelandish, but 'Ara Batur,' featuring both the London Oratory Boys' Choir and the London Sinfonietta, is Sigur Rós' most satisfying epic yet--commercial, credible and glistening with glacial cool.

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Paste Magazine

Its expertise at majestic drone remains, but the group colors outside of well-established lines this time around, pounding on tribal drums during 'Gobbledigook,' smearing swaths of mellotron across 'Fljótavík' and 'Straumnes,' and pulling back on its patented reverb in favor of crisp, clean lines.

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Boston Globe

With Med sud, the band proves its indie-pop potential while remaining rooted in its unique brand of spaced-out alt-rock.

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Sputnikmusic

In this transformation, Sigur Rós have yet again set themselves apart from the rest of the music world, bridging genre gaps and inspiring many others to do the same.

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Q Magazine

This, though, is accessible without compromise. [July 2008, p.106]

All Music Guide

On Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust you can really hear the human hearts behind the wall of sound, and while the emotional impact is on a smaller scale, somehow it is even more affecting.

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Pitchfork

Ultimately, there are too many wonderful moments here to deem it anything less than a beautiful record, but armchair producers might find themselves similarly wishing for less fat.

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The Phoenix

Here, as on 2005’s "Takk," Sigur Ros have chosen to distill their rapture epics into shorter, more accessible bursts of swelling beauty. Yet this album still offers all the signature touchstones that make the band so deliciously unlike their post-rock contemporaries.

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PopMatters

From day one, Sigur Rós have demonstrated that affecting compositions are not the exclusive domain of the virtuoso, by layering simple melodies to create songs that are more moving than the sum of their parts. While that statement still rings true, on Med Sud í Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust the band finally sounds fully confident.

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Sputnikmusic

So Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust is just another Sigur Ros album, but if I can be the first to say it, our "first vital band of the 21st century" is starting to feel old hat.

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Drowned In Sound

Once, this band were making music to stare skywards to, to contemplate the vastness of the universe we’re such a tiny part of; now they’ve discovered a hidden reserve of human spirit, sucked it in and produced a record that will reconnect their wealth of talents to listeners fearing they’d forgotten how they’d ever reached such a lofty pedestal. It’s great to have them back.

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Slant Magazine

Med Sud is less polished than the band's previous outings; it's still lush and finely tuned, but creaky acoustic guitars lend tracks like "Góðan Daginn" and "Illgresi" an intimate quality previously unheard.

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No Ripcord

Overall, it’s an improvement over the yawnfest of "Takk," but not nearly as consistent as one would like.

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cokemachineglow

For just over seven minutes, Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust may be the most wonderful, jubilant listen you’ve had yet this year, and, within those two songs, Sigur Rós’s fifth proper album plants the most exciting, empirical stipe of artistic direction the band has forged in over six years or so. The elation doesn’t last.

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Almost Cool

I'll give them some credit for trying some new things, I only wish they would have taken things a step further.

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Uncut

Sadly the album’s latter stages revert to type, as Jónsi Birgisson’s quavering choirboy falsetto illuminates glacially paced piano and strings. All achingly lovely in a Coldplay-meets-Clannad way, of course, but Sigur Ros play too safe when they clearly have much more to offer than misty-eyed Celtic abstraction.

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New Musical Express

There’s no suppressing the fact that, ironically, in loosening up and stretching their wings they’ve become a little more earthbound. Where once they conjured up the sound of, um, glaciers drifting across the surface of the moon, occasionally here it lapses into the sound of a wheelie bin being dragged across HMV’s backyard.

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Tiny Mix Tapes

Things just go from mad galloping gobbledigook to spongy sentiment.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 54 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

jon c gave it a10:
This album is beautiful and even the worst song (the 1st one) is still likable. def a step up to experiment with new sounds but also managed to keep what makes sigur ros so great. dont listen to some music critics who are full of themselves when they diss on great musical acts for making more catchy tunes. i can see that sigur ros is done with 8 minutes long songs and theyre trying to keep the songs short n powerful this time.

Kevin J gave it a9:
Very beautifully made album. Gobbliedook is very nice uppety sound. and as the album continues is decreases in enthusiasm and almost becomes boring. but nonetheless, it's very nice to listen to.

Dayne B gave it a10:
Exceptional... where takk, hvarf/heim, () and agaetis had mostly one kind of emotion, this invokes them all; joy, sadness, love, triumph, beauty, reflection, solitude... Sigur Ros sound like they are finally having fun while doing what they do best. And the results speak for themselves. There are "4minute pop-songs" (those who find this as a negative need to get over yourselves), epic soundscapes (see festival and ara batur) and plenty of moments that reveal themselves as precious with each additional listen. This album sounds the most unique since Von, is both spontaneous and focused which has been missing in their oeuvre so far.

Jyotirmaya D gave it a7:
I happened upon this album by surprise. I accepted it as a trade for some used CDs I no longer wanted. There was not enough time to browse around as I was on a lunch break. When I brought it home, I was immediately satisfied with it. I have been avoiding these guys for years because they came off as too Radiohead-ish. But it is different in so many ways. I even like the big "production number" song in the middle.

Matt A. gave it a9:
This album is gorgeous. A departure for sure, but it works. I agree with coke machine glow that the first two songs are the best, but I disagree that the album goes south after that. Not as strong as their classic Agaetis, but I would rate it over both Takk and.

Peach Med gave it a4:
The first 2 songs are great, but then the album becomes a boring and meaningless parodie of themselves. sad to say, but this is lp is kust a big disappointment.

Guy H gave it a7:
I agree with Pitchfork that the album starts well with two songs that sound fresh and lively before normal service is resumed with mixed results. I wish they'd continued with the sunnier upbeat vibe and made this their summer album (I already see 'Agaetis' as their wet behind the ears Spring album and '( )' their chilly winter disc). Overall when compared to the previous three albums this is the weakest but it is still an enjoyable listen.

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