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Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust Image
Metascore
81

Universal acclaim - based on 27 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.7

Universal acclaim- based on 106 Ratings

  • Summary: The fifth album for the group was was co-produced by Flood and its first recorded in less than a year.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 27
  2. Negative: 0 out of 27
  1. Med sud I eyrum ... is a beautiful collection that blows Sigur Rós beyond the place they come from, geographically and musically.
  2. Overall though, this is another wondrous album from a band at the height of their considerable powers.
  3. 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.
  4. Q Magazine
    80
    This, though, is accessible without compromise. [July 2008, p.106]
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. Things just go from mad galloping gobbledigook to spongy sentiment.

See all 27 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 32
  2. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. DayneB
    Oct 21, 2008
    10
    Exceptional... where takk, hvarf/heim, () and agaetis had mostly one kind of emotion, this invokes them all; joy, sadness, love, triumph, 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. Collapse
  2. JeremyF
    Jun 28, 2008
    10
    I never give tens. I have heard a few albums from these guys, and while Med Sud might not be their best by their previous standards -- it I never give tens. I have heard a few albums from these guys, and while Med Sud might not be their best by their previous standards -- it lacks a lot of same musicality of earlier works -- it's still amazing. It's easier to listen to. Sire, Agaetis Byrjun and ( ) are incredibly complex, mournful, beautifully orchestrated records. This is not. This is a little more fun, a little more melodic, majestic, and not quite as sad. Opener 'Gobbledigook' is basically an Animal Collective tune, but it's still pretty great. "Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur (Within Me a Lunatic Sings)" and "Við Spilum Endalaust (We Play Endlessly)" are both celebratory bursts of fresh air, while the slower "Festival" and "Ara Bátur (Row Boat)" both grow to satisfying crescendos, the latter with the much-talked-about 90-person recording. The last few songs tame it down a bit, with the gorgeous "Illgresi (Weeds)" all the way to the first English song in their career, "All Alright." The English track is sung so slurred and ethereally that you can't really understand a lot of the English anyway, and it starts to sound like a foreign language if you don't already know it's not. Overall, this is a perfect album. Even though they shifted from cold strings to warmer guitars -- for the most part -- it's a very very satisfying shift. Expand
  3. jonc
    Jul 29, 2009
    10
    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 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. Expand
  4. jay
    Jun 25, 2008
    9
    The music they make is always beautiful and this one more so with a sunnier focus than before. All Allright in english should have been more The music they make is always beautiful and this one more so with a sunnier focus than before. All Allright in english should have been more focussed with that language...seems to shy away from the words where they should be stronger rather than fragile... Expand
  5. KevinJ
    Jul 24, 2009
    9
    Very beautifully made album. Gobbliedook is very nice uppety sound. and as the album continues is decreases in enthusiasm and almost becomes 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. Expand
  6. Jul 9, 2019
    8
    Plenty of breathtaking moments on this from Jonsi and co. I do think the first half of this album is noticably stronger than the second but itPlenty of breathtaking moments on this from Jonsi and co. I do think the first half of this album is noticably stronger than the second but it also demands more attention from the listener. Overall - Sigur Ros deliver on their majestic albeit it established sound. The majority of tracks start slow and build up to a big cresendo, a trick used here more often than on any previous record and possibly a little overused. Generally, this is highly recommended and sounds unlike most stuff you will here. Expand
  7. coling
    Jun 25, 2008
    4
    The songs that aren't repetitive of other tracks on the album are repetitive of their previous releases. Instead of inspiring itself The songs that aren't repetitive of other tracks on the album are repetitive of their previous releases. Instead of inspiring itself into the background, as "Takk" did, it tends to bore its way there, until you begin to wonder what that noise is and turn it off. Sigur Ros have peaked, and this is a clear descent into hack territory, despite the fact that they are only poorly copying themselves. Expand

See all 32 User Reviews