Yet another band that has been on hiatus has made plans to tour again in support of a new album. Icelandic ethereal rockers Sigur Rós recently confirmed they are in the process of finishing up their sixth studio album, Valtari, which translated into English means “Steamroller”. The album is slated for release on May 29th. This will be their first full-length tour in roughly four years.
In support of Valtari, North American tour dates have been announced, as well as several European festival dates. Interestingly enough, Sigur Rós will be appearing at the Osheaga and Lollapalooza festivals with Bloc Party, another band we recently reported of getting back together and touring.
In a Q & A session at the British Film Institute in London in November of 2011, members of the band described the overall feel of the album as “introverted” and “floaty and minimal”. “An ambient album” was how Orri Pall Dýrason, the band’s drummer, described it to the Wall Street Journal, with “a slow takeoff toward something.” Having four years to let things marinate in their musical minds since their 2008 album Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust (“With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly”), we can expect Valtari to be yet another fantastical adventure into the ambient world of Sigur Rós.
Check out tour dates below, as the band has announced a show at Brooklyn’s Prospect Park Bandshell in July, which is sure to blow minds. Those tickets will definitely go quick, so get on it.
For now, here is the first single off Valtari, “Ekki Múkk”:
Sigur Rós Tour Dates:
7-30 Philadelphia, PA – The Mann (Skyline Stage)
7-31 Brooklyn, NY – Prospect Park
8-01 Toronto, Ontario – Echo Beach
8-03 Montreal, Quebec – Osheaga Festival
8-04-05 Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza
8-08 Seattle, WA – Paramount
8-09 Portland, OR – Edgefield
8-12 Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Forever Cemetery
8-18-19 Tokyo, Japan – Summer Sonic Festival
8-24 Paris, France – Rock En Seine Festival
8-25 Winterthur, Switzerland – Steinberggasse, Winterthur Festival
8-28-29 Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso
8-31 Stradbally, Ireland – Electric Picnic Festival
9-02 Verona, Italy – A Perfect Day Festival
9-04 Vienna, Austria – Arena
9-07 Berlin, Germany- Berlin Festival
9-09 Isle of Wight, England – Bestival
9-16-17 Krakow, Poland – Sacrum Profanum Festival