When I first heard Sigur Rós I thought, it's nice to hear a European band singing in their own language. Even if I didn't understand a word, it's not that important when the human voice is used as an instrument. Then I discovered that Sigur Ros had invented their own language, Hopelandic, and even Icelanders didn't understand what they were singing. Oh well!

Barbara Morgenstern sings in German and reclaims it as an intimate language. The result is an album of fragile, shimmering pop. It really grew on me: first 'Ohne Abstand' and 'Kleiner Ausschnitt', then the charms of 'Move' and 'Gute Nacht' and 'Aus Heiterem Himmel' and... everything else, really. 'Move' twines itself around your brain in a seductive way, and 'Ohne Abstand' is a thing of beauty: I like to listen to it before I start the day...

Musically it seems quite simple: drum machine, organ, guitar, synth, piano and B.M.'s informal voice. It's perfect pop, really, and the piano in particular is used to great effect. The instrumental 'We're All Gonna Fucking Die' makes more sense when you see the 'Kleiner Ausschnitt' DVD with B.M. playing air guitar in a black catsuit. (Cool!) There are several instrumental tracks, the best of which is 'Reset', a crisply produced ambient piece which contradicts itself by demanding your attention. It's unlike anything else on the album, but it's compatible and makes an intriguing finish. It'll be very interesting to see where B.M. goes afer this. Even though my German is schlecht, listening to 'Nichts Muss' makes me feel glucklich.

The cover design is very nice too. Recommended.

-Andrew Russell

/nov 1st 2003/