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Baker's Dozen

Found Songs: Ólafur Arnalds' Favourite Albums
Wyndham Wallace , March 11th, 2013 12:56

The Icelandic neo-classical composer and producer takes a break from producing his cinematic soundscapes to pick out his 13 favourite records, ahead of his set at the Barbican tonight

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Sigur Ros - ( )
There’s some feeling to this record that can’t be recreated, and has not been recreated by anyone: the absolute slowness of it. I think it’s by far their best work. I opened for them after Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust, the poppy one in 2008. I didn’t open for them on a lot of shows, but it was definitely a great opportunity. It has been something that keeps helping me because that’s something that people still mention. It’s like a stamp of approval. I’d known them since their very first record. Their studio is right in the next street to my parents’ house where I grew up. Some of them are from my town: I’m from Mosfellsbær, just outside Rejkyavik, and a couple of them are from there, so they were the town band, in a way, when they were starting out. So I’d known their music since about ‘98 or something. They’re making another record at the moment. I think they will even release it this year, or at least an EP with songs that they’re writing without Kjartan. I heard a couple. They were really heavy!