Sigur Rós: Orchestral Tour
On the Icelandic band's latest Australian tour, they're pairing their ethereal tunes with 41-piece live orchestras.
Overview
Every gig should be its own distinctive experience, even if a band is hitting city after city on a massive national or international tour. But there's unique concerts and then there's Sigur Rós' latest run of shows. While there's nothing quite like seeing the Icelandic band live in general, they'll be doing something different on their next trip to Australia: taking to the stage with live orchestras.
Jónsi Birgisson, Georg Hólm and Kjartan Sveinsson will play with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra when Sigur Rós' current orchestral tour makes its way to the Victorian capital. Across the rest of 2024, fans across the US and Nordic countries can catch the group joining forces with a 41-piece orchestra. Then, come Monday, May 19–Tuesday, May 20 at Hamer Hall, it's Melbourne's turn to witness quite a few new members temporarily join the band.
ÁTTA, their 2023 album, will be in the spotlight, as the last time they toured Down Under was in 2022, before it was released — and it was was recorded with arrangements featuring a 32-piece orchestra.
Fans can expect tracks from their 1997 debut Von onwards, however, spanning tunes from fellow records Ágætis byrjun, ( ), Takk..., Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, Valtari and Kveikur.
That last — and soldout — trip this way was part of the group's first tour in five years, but clearly they haven't left the same gap go by between then and their next tour.
Sigur Rós first started doing the rounds with an orchestra in 2023, playing a limited number of gigs, before expanding the experience further. Next stop: Australia.
Top image: Goatling via Flickr.
