I am not one to feel as though I have enough knowledge to critiique an artist as magnificent as Jónsi but I will do my best, because I absolutely must write about his performance on Wednesday night. It truly was one of the most artistic, beautiful and thrilling musical experiences I have ever had. I was captivated from start to finish. For those that don’t know (shame on you) Jonsi Birgisson is the frontman of Iceland’s post-rock band, Sigur Ros.
The entire show was a build both sonically and visually. The animation projections (by the stage production company 59 Productions, I later found out) became more and more elaborate as the show continued - water dripping down windows toward an engorging sea, a black and white jungle cat chasing its panicky prey, ghost-faced barn owls swooping toward the audience and disappearing. The music built like a crescendo, starting off soft and light and finishing intensely and thunderous. Near the end of the show (which was only a little over an hour), color began to seep into the visuals, swirling clouds of red, then blue, as the music and the volume climbed toward the insane encore finale - which was basically a tornado and a total deconstruction of his set. The instrumentation was so incredibly intense and complex, but the best “instrument” on the stage was none other than Jónsi’s voice. He has a crazy out of this world falsetto that sounds less like an actual voice, and more like a beautiful flute playing a note in such a perfectly crisp way. One of my favorite moments was at the very end of the show, after the lights had gone up and everyone turned to leave, the band returned a few moments later for a farewell and waved to the crowd and blew everyone kisses. It was a really beautiful moment because it felt personal, intimate and genuine. It also gave it that theatrical feel, like you had really just watched a carefully thought out beautiful performance of art - and not just musicians jamming together through a set list.
The emotional response to his show was incredible to both watch and experience. People left the venue misty-eyed and awestruck, as did I, you just cannot help but get sucked in and succumb to the ethereal nature of the entire spectacle. I feel so lucky to have been able to see him live as he is so rarely in the U.S.
You can stream his entire album “Go” at http://jonsi.com/go - listen while you’re at work. It’ll make your afternoon fly - seriously.
