Kveikur (pronounced [ˈkveikʏr], fuse or candlewick) is the seventh studio album from Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós. It was released 12 June 2013 in Japan, on 17 June internationally, and on 18 June in the United States through XL Recordings. It is the first album to be fully released through XL after the band departed EMI and Parlophone during the label's acquisition by Universal Music Group in 2012. It is the first album since their debut, Von, not to feature Kjartan Sveinsson, following his departure in 2012, and the last to feature drummer Orri Páll Dýrason before his departure in 2018. The cover is a photo by the Brazilian artist Lygia Clark. Kveikur sees a new direction taken by Sigur Rós, both musically and thematically. The band has described the album's sound as "more aggressive" than any of their previous works. All tracks are sung in Icelandic, although Yfirborð contains some reversed words at the start, which can be considered Hopelandic.

Hin helga kvöl (The Holy Suffering) is a profound exploration of raw emotion and stark beauty, deeply inspired by Sólstafir’s cultural heritage and Iceland's breathtaking landscapes.
Sólstafir, meaning "crepuscular rays" in Icelandic, refers to sunlight piercing through dark clouds at dusk, capturing the essence of Hin helga kvöl, a beacon of hope shining through the heaviest of times. Sólstafir confronts inner demons and transcends rock and roll decadence, creating music that resonates with the universal struggle and triumph over hardship.
Recorded at Flóki Studios in the remote Skagafjörður, Iceland, the change of scenery has profoundly influenced the album's atmosphere. Hin helga kvöl features eight tracks blending Sólstafir's signature melancholic sound with elements from their past, merging black metal roots with tuneful, anthemic rock.

Trúbrot was the first supergroup ever founded in Iceland. It was created in May 1969 when leading members of ‘Hljómar’ (Sounds) and ‘Flowers’ set out to create the finest Icelandic rock group of all time. Guitarist and composer Gunnar Thórgarson, bass player and singer Rúnar Júlíusson and lead vocalist Shady Owens of Hljómar had been plotting this for some months, along with organist Karl Sighvatsson and drummer Gunnar Jökull Hákonarson of Flowers, before the band’s genesis was announced publicly. These were troubled times and Trúbrot had countless hurdles to overcome before the band eventually fell apart early in 1973. After the debut album was released in December 1969 by EMI. After this album vocalist Shady Owens announced that she was quitting…

Nattura from Iceland played the typical cross-styled Psychedelic Rock many acts in the country at the time loved to play, they added some complex instrumental tricks, poppy sensibilities and a few harder edges and eventually came up with an interesting sound, which was fairly rooted in a typical guitar/organ-driven model, yet bursts some mood for personal ideas and more emphatic arrangements.You can hear influences from Deep Purple, Curved Air and Czar in the process, that means electrified riffs, lots of organ instrumentals, psychedelic tunes and superb female vocals are all present in a tasteful music full of solos and light jams, starting from sharp and energetic rhythms and pyrotechnics and ending up in more harmonic or soft textures…

Equal parts retrospective, autobiography, and objet d'art, Björk's Family Tree gives fans a very special glimpse at the creative processes behind her work, collecting two decades' worth of her music and words in a unique, lavishly packaged set. A white paper sleeve embossed with work by Icelandic artist Gabriela Fridriksdottir holds a translucent, petal-pink plastic case containing five 3" discs of "Roots," "Beats," and "Strings"; a collection of Björk's favorite songs from her albums; "Words," a booklet of selected lyrics; and an essay by Björk explaining the genesis of this set, which manages to use phrases like "taxonomic structure" and "a new Icelandic modern musical language" without sounding too ambitiously academic…

Viktor’s Deutsche Grammophon debut album Poems is conceived and co-written with soprano and visual artist Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir. The album’s ten exquisite tracks draw on the pair’s shared cultural heritage, setting poems by Icelandic poets past and present, as well as lyrics by Árnason and Guðmundsdóttir themselves.

Following it’s surprise digital release, Sigur Rós’ first new studio album in ten years, ÁTTA, is their most intimate and emotionally direct record to date.

It's hard to accuse Björk of making music influenced by commercial or critical expectations at any point in her career, but her post-Homogenic work is even more focused on following her bliss, whether that means acting and singing in Lars Von Trier's grim musical Dancer in the Dark; crafting tiptoeing laptop lullabies on Vespertine; or, in the case of Medúlla, sculpting an album out of almost nothing but singing and vocal samples. The album's title and concept refer to the purest essence of something, and Medúlla explores both the ritual power of the human voice and some of the most essential themes of Björk's music in a way that's both primal and elaborate. It took a large cast of characters to make the album's seemingly organic sound, including vocalists ranging from Icelandic and British choirs to Inuit singers to Mike Patton and Robert Wyatt…

Sólstafir music penetrates the mind, body, and soul. One does not need to speak their Icelandic tongue to understand the spectrum of raw emotion evoked by every song. "Endless Twilight of Codependent Love" further solidifies the Icelandic rock giants’ place as masters of their craft, delivering their signature elegance and unbridled passion upon which they've built their career. While a clear evolution, Sólstafir also pays homage to their metallic roots. Much like the vast expanse of their homeland, the band once again embodies the ever-turning wheel of the four seasons with their shifting light and darkness.