The Icelandic neo-classical indie movement is now somewhat established thanks to the deserved success of Sigur Ros, Amiina and Olafur Arnolds amongst others. Jóhann Jóhannsson also fits quite tidily into a group of artists that essential make classical music for sensitive indie kids.Jóhannsson, being his own master and generally regarded as a composer is maybe somewhat more obtuse than these contemporaries and his latest project And In The Endless Pause There I Heard The Sound Of Bees is an accompaniment to Marc Craste's animated film 'Varmints'.The score-like feel of his work until this point has long made Jóhannsson a natural choice to work with visuals and it's safe to say you don't need to have encountered the film to enjoy the soundtrack. Indeed the real strength of Pause is to lie back and let it conjure its own images.Opening gently, these are tracks that don't simply begin - they dawn, as droplets of piano are joined by shimmering yet deadly beautiful strings and you can almost almost see the time lapse imagery of flowers opening and birds wings flapping.Looking at the names of the pieces there seems to be an underlying theme of unacknowledged beauty in our daily lives, see for example the expectant high strings are the backdrop for tortured cello work on 'Entering The City', the dramatic solitude and vengeful choirs on 'City Building' and the tragic sweep of it's sister version.Throughout the record Jóhannsson manages the trick of making astoundingly beautiful music that never descends into schmaltz, cheesiness or sentimentality. This is ambient music that can also be enjoyed in the foreground. 'Rainwater' dazzles with the elemental magnificence of countrymen Sigur Ros and is impressive in it's reluctance to bask overly in its own glory.Indeed the relative briefness of the majority of tracks is welcome, of course you're left wanting more but isn't that the best way to be and is somewhat of a rarity in a genre that is prone to overdoing things.