Hvarf/Heim (Digipak) (CD)

• Category:  Music  »  Rock & Pop  »  General Rock & Pop
• Format: CD
• Release Date: November 6, 2007
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: XL Records
• UPC: 634904030728
• WAPI (Tower ID): 111451241
• Average Customer Review:    (1 customer review)
• Tower.com Sales Rank: #1861 in Music (See Top 100 Music Bestsellers)
• #868 in Rock & Pop (See Top 100 Rock & Pop Bestsellers)
• #534 in General Rock & Pop (See Top 100 General Rock & Pop Bestsellers)

•  [Sigur Ros - Official Websitethis link opens a new window] 
  
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•  [Sigur Ros - MySpace Pagethis link opens a new window] 
  
•  [Sigur Ros - Music at Last.fmthis link opens a new window] 
  
•  [Hvarf/Heim - Review at Comfort Comes.comthis link opens a new window] 
  

Spin (p.125) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "HEIM's unplugged conceit -- which spotlights vocalist Jonsi Birgisson's high, ghostly howls -- showcases the band's eerie pull."
Entertainment Weekly (p.132) - "[T]he Sigur Ros formula works....[A] testament to the band's ability to achieve enormous dynamic range with or without amplifiers." -- Grade: B+
Uncut (p.102) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "'Staralfur' and 'Asetis Byrjun' are plain gorgeous, allowing what are essentially protracted pop melodies to ebb and flow across the acoustic backing."
Alternative Press (p.130) - 4.5 stars out of 5 -- "Nowhere in recent memory has there been a trace of something so breathtaking, epic or even remotely inspiring as portrayed within the sweeping arrangements and frightening fragility of HVARF/HEIM."
The Wire (p.65) - "[T]he stripped down acoustic versions of their earlier material...reveal the group's talent for simple, beautiful melodies and melancholy song..."
Q (Magazine) (p.114) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "'I Gaer' builds from icicle-laden wonder to snarling intensity, and positions Sigur Ros on the same spectrum of proggy nihilism as Radiohead and Pink Floyd."
Q (Magazine) (p.73) - Ranked #46 in Q's "The 50 Best Albums Of 2007" -- "[O]ne of their most approachable offerings....A reminder 'epic' need not be a dirty word."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.98) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Salka pulls off the profoundly Icelandic trick of sounding both despairingly melancholy and utterly life-affirming..."

Released in conjunction with the 2007 Sigur Ros documentary HEIMA, the double-CD HVARF/HEIM set presents the revered Icelandic post-rock ensemble in two different settings. HVARF consists largely of previously unreleased tracks that capture the group's majestic sound, most notably "Hljomalind," which features the quartet building to glorious crescendos in full-blown rocked-out mode, and "I Gaer," a dark, dramatic number that harks back to Sigur Ros's goth-tinged early material. HVARF's companion disc, HEIM, finds the act working in a pared-down acoustic vein, with Jon Por Birgisson's fragile, emotive vocals more prominently showcased in the mix, as on the soaring "Staralfur" (from the lauded AGAETIS BYRJUN album) and the slowly unfurling "Von" (from the band's debut of the same name). While this compilation most readily appeals to diehard Sigur Ros fans, the first disc is dynamic enough to pull in new listeners, and the second radiates an intimate warmth, making the compilation much more than just a rarities collection.

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