() by Sigur Rós

January 7th 2021. Things are not looking good. In decreasing order of importance: More than 1000 people died yesterday in the U.K. having previously tested positive with COVID. Trump supporters stormed The Capitol Building in Washington attempting to stop the counting of electoral college votes to confirm Joe Biden as the next President. Daylight hours are still at a bare minimum and the temperature hasn’t got over 5 degrees for the past two weeks. I have stopped going in to the Samaritans’ office for fear of the catching the virus. Brighton haven’t won a match for months and I ate too much ice cream on Tuesday.

It’s time we all took a deep breath. It’s time for a majestic work of calm and beauty. It’s time for Sigur Rós.

The website “Counselheal” offers four reasons why listening to calm beautiful music is physically good for us all. 1) A study in the “Frontiers Of Psychology” journal found that people who suffer from fibromyalgia experienced less pain when they listened to calm music. 2) A research article from the Stanford University School of Medicine in 2007 stated that music led to brain changes that boosted attention and memory. 3) A 2011 study published in “Nature Neuroscience” found that calm music can trigger the brain to release dopamine, which improves mood and can make you feel happier. 4) A study published in “Ergonomics” in 2013 found that listening to mellow music can reduce road rage.

There are 8 untitled tracks on this album although there are unofficial names which the band refer to. The first four tracks last for 28 minutes are positive, warm and welcoming. The remaining four tracks last 43 minutes are more bleak. The two brackets that form the album’s title refer to the two halves of the album.

All of the lyrics on ( ) are sung in Vonlenska, a name made up by the band to referto the sounds that their lead singer, Jonsi makes when singing. The album comes with a booklet of blank pages which the listener can use to write in their own interpretations of the sounds. I bet The Moody Blues wish they’d thought of that.