Sigur Rós working on "happy" songs for new 2018 album

The record, the long-awaited follow up to 2013's Kveikur, has been in in production for a pretty long time, with Sigur Rós using recent shows to test out new ideas and material.

Speaking to The List Dýrason revealed: "We've completed a few songs... they're kind of all over the place [in terms of mood]. Kveikur was dark, and these are a little bit more happy, I think... I guess it's just the headspace we're in. We've been writing these songs over a long period of time, almost two years, and the emotions are very different, kind of all over the place. Whereas Kveikur was written in really short bursts, this one has taken a longer time. We'll see what happens when we get together for the next writing session, but maybe the world needs something happy? Maybe we all need some positive things?"

"Most of the time [the change] comes from new equipment and instruments," continues Dýrason. "It's very easy to get stuck in the same place if you only have the same ones all the time, so if you push yourself towards learning new instruments or software, something fresh will come out of that. Like, I recently bought a midi saxophone, so I can connect it to my computer and play choir samples alongside it. I've never played saxophone, I don't know the finger positions, but good music has already come out of it."

As well as the overall sound of their next long-player, Dýrason spoke about working with producer John Congleton (St. Vincent, The War On Drugs) and, as The List report, he also revealed "a final recording session around February might prepare the new record for a release next summer." That's pretty darn exciting.

A new musical release from the threesome would follow last year's ambitious Route One project, standalone single "Óveður", and a fresh mix of "Hoppípolla" for BBC documentary series Planet Earth II.

In other Sigur Rós news, the band revealed the first wave of artists for their Norður Og Niður festival, with Jarvis Cocker, JFDR, My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields, Julianna Barwick, and more.