Sigur Rós has always been a spellbinding experience. Add the enchantment of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and you have one of the greatest MSO collaborations ever. It was simply beautiful.
Together Sigur Rós and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, conducted by British conductor and composer Robert Ames, create a seamless amalgamation. The Icelandic trio Jónsi Birgisson (vocals, guitar), Georg Holm (bass) and Kjartan Sveinsson (keyboards) were one with the 41-piece Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. While this collaboration looked easy, I’ve seen the occasional disaster over the years where the orchestra (not this one) and the band (definitely not this one) seemed to head in two different directions.
The 18 track setlist has been carefully curated with selections from the first album ‘Von’ in 1997 through to the most recent ‘Átta’ from 2023. There is no sense of era throughout the show. Sigur Rós has a timeless style with a consistency across the catalogue that has never dated.
‘Blóðberg’ from ‘Átta’ opens the performance but this show is not a new music showcase. Five songs in and we are 27 years in the past with the title track of the first album ‘Von’. The albums ‘Átta’, ‘Valtari’ and ‘( )’ form the foundation of the show making up 10 of the 18 pieces in the set.
The Sigur Rós performance, like their music, is all about the experience. The three principals of the band may go unnoticed on the street, there are no hit songs attached to radio.
This wraithlike introspective is an astral musical experience. The audience is taken to an euphoric destination over the two-act performance. This is not a band to take for granted. It is not a band or a show you can compare to any other. Sigur Rós with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra was a beautiful experience, a work or aural art, a seduction of sound.
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is considered one of the world’s top ensembles. Their recent collaborations include Kate Ceberano, Birds of Tokyo, Dan Sultan and The Whitlams while over the years the MSO has collaborated with Elton John, Stevie Nick, KISS and Meat Loaf.
Uniting the potency of pop with the constancy of the classics often creates dazzling results but the combination of the MSO and Sigur Rós took this to another level.
Sigur Rós at Hamer Hall Melbourne photo by Laura Manariti
Sigur Rós and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
10 May, 2025, Hamer Hall, Melbourne
Set 1:
Blóðberg (from Átta, 2023)
Ekki múkk (from Valtari, 2012)
Fljótavík (From Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, 2008)
8 (from Átta, 2023)
Von (from Von, 1997)
Andvari (from Takk…, 2005)
Starálfur (From Ágætis byrjun, 1999)
Dauðalogn (from Valtari, 2012)
Varðeldur (from Valtari, 2012)
Set 2:
Untitled #1 – Vaka (from ( ), 2002)
Untitled #3 – Samskeyti Vaka (from ( ), 2002)
Ylur (from Átta, 2023)
Skel (from Átta, 2023)
All Alright (From Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, 2008)
Untitled #5 – Álafoss Vaka (from ( ), 2002)
Sé lest (from Takk…, 2005)
Hoppípolla (from Takk…, 2005)
Avalon (From Ágætis byrjun, 1999)
Wed 21 May – Palais Theatre, Melbourne [NEW SHOW]
Fri 23 May – Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Sat 24 May – Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Sun 25 May – Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Tue 27 May – QPAC Concert Hall, Brisbane [SOLD OUT]
Wed 28 May – QPAC Concert Hall, Brisbane*
Sigur Rós will tour Europe with a Symphony Orchestra in September and October.
Sep 03 & 04, Prague, Czechia, KCP
Sep 06 & 07, Vienna, Austria, Wiener Konzerthaus
Sep 09 & 10, Milan, Italy, Teatro Arcimboldi
Sep 12 & 13, Rome, Italy, Sala Santa Cecilia
Sep 16, Wroclaw, Poland, Hala Stulecia
Sep 19 & 20, Tallinn, Estonia, Alexela Kontserdimaja
Sep 23 & 24, Brussels, Belgium, Bozar
Sep 26 & 27 & 28, Paris, France, Salle Pleyel
Sep 30 & Oct 01 & 02 & 03, London, UK, Royal Albert Hall
Oct 05 & 06 & 07, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Carré
Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here
Be the first to see NOISE11.com’s newest interviews and special features on YOUTUBE and updated regularly. See things first SUBSCRIBE here: Noise11 on YouTube SUBSCRIBE
Follow us at https://bsky.app/profile/noise11.bsky.social
Comment on the news of the day, join Noise11 on Facebook
