Jónsi Birgisson, frontman of Sigur Rós, has shared Cannibal lifted from his upcoming LP featuring Elizabeth Fraser of the Cocteau Twins. Following hits Swill and Exhale, Cannibal is the third single released ahead of Jónsi’s sophomore record ‘Shiver‘ (out October 2 via Krunk) co-produced by PC Music founder A. G. Cook and Jónsi himself.
The Cannibal video is the vision of both Jónsi and Giovanni Ribisi, who previously directed Exhale. Like that video, Cannibal also places focus on a singular dancer. Jónsi’s vocals are refreshingly openhearted, featured alongside the legendary Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser.
“When Sigur Rós was starting, we were always compared to Cocteau Twins and I really didn’t like that,” Jónsi says. “I hated being compared to anybody. Then I got really into Cocteau Twins like two or three years ago. They’re so good. I understood the comparison then.” Watch the video clip via YouTube below.
‘Shiver’ plumbs the depths of the human experience and our connection to the natural world. It pits the organic and dreamlike qualities of Jónsi against A. G. Cook’s synthetic, sometimes abrasive, and avant-garde experimentalism. On paper, their collaboration is surprising, but ‘Shiver’ only continues Jónsi’s quest to push the boundaries of not just what we consider art, but how we experience it.
In 2019 Jónsi had his first solo art installation at the renowned Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in Los Angeles where his installation work explored the depths of sound. Jónsi has expanded his artistic practice over the past few years in a series of collaborations with visual artists such as Doug Aitken, Olafur Eliasson, Merce Cunningham and most recently the artist and composer Carl Michael von Hausswolf with whom he formed the musical duo Dark Morph.
Jónsi’s interests and talents extend far beyond the reach of a traditional musician, he has always been multidisciplinary. Among his serious pursuits is a years-long study of scent and perfume, an alchemy he has combined with his installation art (each of his artworks at his exhibition had its own scent).
‘Shiver’ track list
1. Exhale
2. Shiver
3. Cannibal (with Liz Fraser)
4. Wildeye
5. Sumarið Sem Aldrei Kom
6. Kórall
7. Salt Licorice (with Robyn)
8. Hold
9. Swill
10. Grenade
11. Beautiful Boy
Pre-order / pre-save ‘Shiver‘ here
