It was all the way back in December that we last heard news of the upcoming solo album from Sigur Rós front-man Jónsi. Back then, a press release had announced that the album was dubbed Go and would feature arrangements by Nico Muhly (Grizzly Bear, Björk, Antony and the Johnsons) and production by Peter Katis (Interpol, the National).
The record isn't due out until April 6, but to tide you over until then, we got in touch with Jónsi to discuss his debut solo album, touring and the future of Sigur Rós following their reported hiatus in January.
"It was exciting to work with so many talented people like Peter Katis, the producer and who recorded the album, and also Nico Muhly, who arranged all the arrangements on the album, and also Samuli the drummer, who played a lot on the album, so... there were so many interesting and exciting people I worked with," Jónsi told Exclaim! of the process behind creating Go.
He added, "I started out doing this really small, intimate, acoustic album, recorded in my living room. Then it just kind of exploded into this different thing. I don't know why, maybe, I guess I was just kind of too restless, it was too quiet."
In support of the album, Jónsi has announced a hefty North American tour, which will swing through much of the U.S., as well as make Canadian stops in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto.
And of course with all this solo activity, it's no wonder he's temporarily stepped away from his day job in Sigur Rós. When asked whether we'd hear anything from the band anytime soon, Jónsi replied, "Yeah, we have some ideas, but we got rid of our rehearsal space in the studio. We're going to put all our gear into the drummer's garage and go back to basics, rehearse in the garage and maybe write some new songs. We have some songs we are working on and of course I'm going to go and meet the guys and see what they're up to. We'll write some new songs and hopefully a new album in 2011. That'd be really cool."
Sigur Rós? A garage band? Intriguing, indeed.
More details about Go can be found here. The first single, "Go Do," can be heard below.
Tour dates:
4/6 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
4/7 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
4/9 Seattle, WA - The ShowBox SoDo
4/10 Seattle, WA - The ShowBox SoDo
4/13 Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
4/15 Berkeley, CA - Zellerbach Auditorium
4/16 San Francisco, CA - Palace of Fine Arts
4/18 Indio, CA - Coachella
4/21 Denver, CO - Paramount Theatre
4/22 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall
4/24 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre
4/25 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre
4/26 Milwaukee, WI - The Pabst Theatre
4/27 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
4/28 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
4/30 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
5/1 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
5/2 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
5/3 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
5/5 Boston, MA - House of Blues
5/6 Boston, MA - House of Blues
5/8 New York, NY - Terminal 5
5/9 New York, NY - Terminal 5
The record isn't due out until April 6, but to tide you over until then, we got in touch with Jónsi to discuss his debut solo album, touring and the future of Sigur Rós following their reported hiatus in January.
"It was exciting to work with so many talented people like Peter Katis, the producer and who recorded the album, and also Nico Muhly, who arranged all the arrangements on the album, and also Samuli the drummer, who played a lot on the album, so... there were so many interesting and exciting people I worked with," Jónsi told Exclaim! of the process behind creating Go.
He added, "I started out doing this really small, intimate, acoustic album, recorded in my living room. Then it just kind of exploded into this different thing. I don't know why, maybe, I guess I was just kind of too restless, it was too quiet."
In support of the album, Jónsi has announced a hefty North American tour, which will swing through much of the U.S., as well as make Canadian stops in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto.
And of course with all this solo activity, it's no wonder he's temporarily stepped away from his day job in Sigur Rós. When asked whether we'd hear anything from the band anytime soon, Jónsi replied, "Yeah, we have some ideas, but we got rid of our rehearsal space in the studio. We're going to put all our gear into the drummer's garage and go back to basics, rehearse in the garage and maybe write some new songs. We have some songs we are working on and of course I'm going to go and meet the guys and see what they're up to. We'll write some new songs and hopefully a new album in 2011. That'd be really cool."
Sigur Rós? A garage band? Intriguing, indeed.
More details about Go can be found here. The first single, "Go Do," can be heard below.
Tour dates:
4/6 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
4/7 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
4/9 Seattle, WA - The ShowBox SoDo
4/10 Seattle, WA - The ShowBox SoDo
4/13 Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
4/15 Berkeley, CA - Zellerbach Auditorium
4/16 San Francisco, CA - Palace of Fine Arts
4/18 Indio, CA - Coachella
4/21 Denver, CO - Paramount Theatre
4/22 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall
4/24 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre
4/25 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre
4/26 Milwaukee, WI - The Pabst Theatre
4/27 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
4/28 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
4/30 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
5/1 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
5/2 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
5/3 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
5/5 Boston, MA - House of Blues
5/6 Boston, MA - House of Blues
5/8 New York, NY - Terminal 5
5/9 New York, NY - Terminal 5
