Englabörn

3.0 Really tough to rate this one. On the one hand, it is an emotive soundtrack, and I'm sure whatever play it is was in was made a lot better by it's existence. On the other hand, as a stand-alone album that you listen to with no context of the story it's supporting, it's just... missing something? Not enough variety, not enough happening, it just fall short of being a good minimalist album. Going to cop out and score it down the middle.

Album #81 (1001 challenge extended): "Englabörn" by Jóhann Jóhannsson (2002) "Englabörn" is the first full-length album by Icelandic musician and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. Electronic and classical music are the Wiki-listed genres. The music was composed for a play by Hávar Sigurjónsson. The music was played by the Ethos String Quartet, Mattias Henstock on percussion and Jóhannsson (electronics, glockenspiel, harmonium, organ, piano). Jóhannsson was also the arranger, composer and producer for the album. The album had strong critical reviews. The album opens with "Odi Et Amo" ("I Hate and I Love") and an underlying, melancholic hum. A digitalized voice speaking in Latin. The string quartet eventually take over the melody. Slow, dramatic and opera-like. "Sálfræðingur" ("Psychologist") has a galloping percussion, a whirling electronic melody and background strings. A piano is added building musical layers. A sense of mystery. "Bað" ("Bath") is very stark. Piano key strikes with another underlying piano. That's it but effective. "Karen Býr Til Engil" ("Karen Becomes an Angel") opens with glockenspiel strikes. Creepy. Distorted electronics and echoing submarine-like noises. ""Ef Ég Hefði Aldrei..."" ("If I Had Never...") is another example of a good song using only one instrument. Layered strings. More melancholic and builds beautifully. Classical, ambient, electronic and mostly minimal with instrument layering in several songs. Unlike a traditional classical music album with long suites, this album is composed of relatively short (one to four-minute long) songs. Each song is different like acts in a play, conveys different emotions and starts with a different lead instrument. Dramatic, stark and melancholic. Top notch arrangements. This was a really good album and listen. It reminded me of a very good musical score for a movie. So, if you're a classical music or movie score fan, this is something you will very much like. 4 out of 5

I enjoyed this a lot.

Guess it could have been worse.

Tense, anxious, ambient. Strings pulsate nervously, with lines that emerge from the frozen foggy sound gradually and crystallize as melodies - the pulse quickens and a wider range of instruments come in filling it out, but remaining looping, iterative, ominous.

Jóhann’s name is familiar to me, and maybe it’s because he’s scored quite a few movies. I see Arrival and Prisoners on the list of movies he’s scored, so the man clearly knows what he’s doing. I’m not quite sure what to expect from this album, but I’m sure it will be different! Eh, this album wasn’t really for me. I think it’s pretty evident that JJ here knows what he’s doing, but I just didn’t find this album to be all that interesting. The arrangements here were nice, but nothing really commanded my attention. On top of that, I usually expect instrumental music like this to deliver on some dense atmospheres and moods, but I didn’t get any of that here. I did think the album picked up a bit as it went on; “Eg Heyrdi Allt An Pess Ao Hlusta” and “Karen Byr Til Engil” were both really good, but even a stronger second half to this album couldn’t really lift it that much to me. This was a unique submission for the user list, but it’s just not for me.

Interesting choice and quite a relazing album for a sunny afternoon. Didn't mind the length either, there was enough variation to keep in interesting. I quite like a lot of similar music - Nils Frahm, Olagur Arnalds, felt quite at home with this little gem.

Hauntingly beautiful, if sometimes a little slow/boring.

Islannin vedessä on kyllä jotain, kun sieltä tulee poikkeuksellisen paljon kiinnostavaa musiikkia. Tykkäsin tämän kauniin rauhallisesta tunnelmasta.

More of an ambient electro orchestra soundtrack than anything.

Demasiado tranquilo, reposado, flojo en definitiva. Cercano a la música clásica, pero muy lineal. Es cierto que es relajante, pero se apreciaría algo más de variedad.

Tough every song was awesome, as an album it did not feel like a cohesive whole

Great accompaniment to a stroll through the Cleveland Museum of Art

Totally get this being nominated, but it wasn’t easy for me to get through. Can appreciate the vibe, though!

Honestly, a LOT better and cooler than I had thought it would be. I really liked it. I think it got a little repetitive SLIGHTLY after awhile, but it was beautiful and a wonderful palette cleanser.

Wholly unexpected and almost unable to label or categorize this, but I know that I really really liked it. In no way an all-serving album, it happened to work perfectly for me working today - I like the mysterious ready-to-erupt-yet-never-does aspect of a lot of the work here. I don't know if I would know how to pigeonhole it either but I'm sure Apple Music's algorithms calling this "Downtempo" are ... poor. Really different and I will listen again! 8/10 4 stars IMO: Belonged in the book? No.

I can understand why people like this album. It has the same kind of melancholy that some of Bach's music has, but not the complexity to keep my attention.

Pretty cool classical album

Perfect winter music; it's uncanny on a humid summer's night, though Had to listen to it twice for it to register, but the second time was a really nice experience. You'd think this is a film soundtrack, but it was composed for a stage play, which fascinates me as a theatreman. The Pitchfork of this review mentions the play was "brutally violent"; I don't know how knowing that could help me appreciate this music any better. The short length of the songs make this feel like a soundtrack or a compilation, but the somber mood is anything but disjointed HL: "Odi et amo", "Joi & Karen", "Sálfrædingur", "Karen Býr Til Engil" June 29, 2026

I'm always down for some Icelandic Avant Garde Neo-Classical. This was a pleasant listen, this pulls me in to this type of classical more than the experimental ways of Glass or Richter. 5/5

This isn’t electronica, thankfully. When I got this I was curious. Never heard of him, checked the review page, saw electronica and got bummed. Theres too much on here as it is. Saw he’s Icelandic. Hopes went up some, maybe it will be like Bjork, Sigur Ros, etc. looked at the length, hopes went down, why so long? Short story longer, this was an exceptional entry. Iceland knows what’s up. Definitely not electronic though, maybe some influences. Great submission

Have always enjoys Johannsson...one of the better contemporary classical composers out there. Really enjoyed his recent Reqieum recording. This was solid, but not spectacular. 3.5/5

Pretty at times but not memorable

I didn’t realize I needed this in my life, but I loved it and my blood pressure was lower.

There is a lot of wasted time on this. It's movements, when actually moving, are interesting and match my mood. But there is too much wasted time between them. I think this would be a 5 for me had it been edited.

Very nice

Super mellow and relaxing. Didn't even realize it was over for close to five minutes.

Love his soundtrack work, and this was great to start with, but it did get a bit samey after a while.

So ambient it barely registered. Like a soundtrack to a film that I fell asleep to - comfortable and not unpleasant but a bit annoying that I missed what was going on

Pleasant jangly background music.

I had the Bladerunner soundtrack yesterday. This feels so much colder, not unlike the cover art. I appreciate the length of the songs. I could have done without the voice, the first track nearly put me off entirely. Glad I made it into the cool cello-y tracks.

Lovely and contemplative, this is right up one's alley, though of course it could be read as derivative or Part, Glass, Kernis, etc (though ot course those are right artists to be derivative of). The last piece just as luminous-shimmering as music can be. Belongs maybe to another essential listening project (otherwise why not add Kronos or Danish String Quartet or Max Richter?). But sure flip it out for one of Bjork's lesser offerings (or any heavy metal record of course).

Thoroughly enjoyed this, and I agree with the submitting user that this type of music is underrepresented (actually, it’s really not represented at all) on the main list. However, I also find it somewhat odd to choose an album that you’re not convinced is a 5 star record. If you think minimalism/modern classical is not represented well on the list, why not choose an album that is a cornerstone of the genre, like Steve Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians”? Opinions of the user base be damned - the influence of that piece on modern music, whether on the likes of David Bowie and Brian Eno, Tortoise and Stereolab, or Bjork and a host of electronic music, is pretty profound. I highly recommend it, though it is quite different from the music here on Englabörn. Apologies to the submitting user, I don’t mean to question your motives too much - this was a very good, but somewhat puzzling, choice for the list.

This was nice background music.

Hauntingly beautiful in a minimalistisch setting. Nice discovery!

Apple Music is trying to tell me this album came out in 2018 for some reason, which is ridiculous, this sounds like something 50 years older. Oh, it's only 15 years older, that's a shame. This was a fun listen for the first song, but quickly got boring. I get. I appreciate the contribution because it is certainly unlike anything I've ever heard and definitely unlike anything else on this list, but it just ain't that good in my opinion. Songs seem unrealized and unfinished. The instrumentation is mostly fine, but occasionally sloppy. Seems like the inspiration that had for making the album was really all they had going for them. 3/5

Nice background music

This is what happens when you let the balds make music. Absolutely gorgeous arrangements, this is an album to wash away the bad and make your soul lighter. My mouth and asshole were agape once I saw what movie soundtracks this guy has actually composed, very prolific musicians from Iceland once again.

Chilled. Pleasant. Cinematic. Nothing I’ll ever revisit though.

Very interesting inclusion but I dig it. I like the incorporation of electronic instruments into the orchestral arrangement. The vocaloid vocals in particular are super fascinating.

I didn’t quite expect to enjoy this as much as I did. When it opened on Apple Music and I saw the classical symbol, I knew it would be a roll of the dice for me, either being something great or something forgettable. Thankfully, this created such a nice soundtrack while I was working. It is quite sedate and minimalistic, reminding me, surprisingly, of bands like Boards Of Canada. But instead of chill beats, it is chill strings. Quite nice, all in all.

It's nice to get a sound completely absent from the main 1001 list, it really shows the benefits to user submission. Album was very pretty, and I loved the overall theme, it was always satisfying to come back to.

Música clásica y algo de electrónica. Curioso aunque demasiado lento. Ni fu ni fa.

Electronic, classical music. Demasiado lento, pero me ha parecido curioso.

If this list were the 1001 Most Haunting Albums You Must Listen To Before You Die….

I did my morning yoga to this 👍

I need to give it some credit

Some of the songs here could qualify for a Zelda game. Calming and melancholy, but very repetitive.

It took me a bit, but I got into it. Would be great for hiking through a dark forest in winter.

Pretty good neo-classical album. Yet to be honest, I find the fact that the user who submitted it won't even give a 5/5 grade to it a little weird. Besides, when you quote Steve Reich or Philip Glass in your review (if I remember correctly), the least you can do is to give a slot to their iconic albums ignored in Dimery's book. 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 4. 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5 + 3.5) ---- Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 26 Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 38 Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 70 (including this one) --- Émile, j'ai mis ma dernière réponse sous l'album de The 1975 au dessus...

Slow Orchestral's a very nice change of pace from most of the rest of the list.

Interesting in a lo-fi way

Perfect studying music, happy to be in the background with with plenty of depth for proper listening. Icelandic as hell, which is a good thing! Takes the best parts of classical, electronic and acoustic influences, to create a magical blend of sounds and styles. For a tiny country, Iceland really do produce an outsize number of absolute classics, and probably have the best "per capita" representation of any country on this list - and it's not all Björk!

This guy went on to compose film soundtracks, but what this really reminds me of is a video game soundtrack. Not only does it sound like one, it even has the structure of an OST. During every song I was saying something like: "This sounds like a dungeon theme", "This sounds like a song they'd play during an emotional cutscene", "This is the overworld theme". And it opens with that one robotic voice they used for that one fucking terrifying video of the android woman singing "I Feel Fantastic". 4/5.

If I ever want to let someone hear how to NOT play a note and let silence between the notes do heavy emotional lifting, then this is the album I'd put on. It's music that warrants your attention.

I noped out. The point of this album most have whizzed over my head.

That was beautiful!

Jóhann Jóhannsson, forward-thinking in his compositions, is perhaps best known for his film scores. While he had scored for impressive Hollywood films prior to 2016, he made the biggest splash with the monumental soundtrack to Denis Villeneuve's Arrival. But before all that, he was getting his footing composing for local Icelandic plays. Enter Englabörn: a soft, tender expression of melancholy that effectively utilizes space to emphasize atmosphere. This is Holy Minimalism. While Minimalism would find its spot amongst contemporary classical music in its incredible innovation amongst strict limitations, Holy Minimalism would find favor in Europe in order to make simpler and slower approaches that fostered a reflective quality. Jóhannsson goes a step further on Englabörn by occasionally experimenting with some electronic elements, giving the album a haunted feel like there's a ghost in the machine. An unreal experience that also serves as a nice gateway into more modern classical if one is so inclined (might I suggest Ryuichi Sakamoto 1996?), which is a nice way to also expand the ol' horizons. CONTENDER FOR THE LIST: The original 1001 selectively omitted any classical music because it's sort of a separate beast altogether, although modern classical albums such as this sort of bridge the gap. For now I would say it's not really a good fit, but if the scope of the list ever changes then maybe.

Beautiful modern classical with some ambient touches. Short pieces that I feel should be developed into longer tracks. You can see how soundtracks was his future.

No point

Is Iceland just the land of haunting beautiful music? It's so weird that so much great stuff came out of that island in the 90s and 00s. This album is stunning, just powerful and ethereal the whole way through. Definitely one that I want to hear again, perhaps while strolling through one of Iceland's many haunted forests with my gnome friend that I met while removing the curse from a pair of socks in an enchanted steam 5/5

Not the usual fare in the 1001 but I do love Avant Garde and Minimalist so i'll listen to this all day every day. There's a lot of orchestral/choral in this too. Loved it.

This was pretty cool and it was nice to hear something very different. Contemporary classical with an electronic twist, combining sparse and somber strings and piano motifs often with some subtle delay or other manipulation (though the opening track is less sparing and just vocoders itself to hell - in an effective way). There were quite a lot of short pieces that seemed a bit too similar to each other and didn’t really develop enough for any one in particular to stand out (besides the very distinct opener as already mentioned). Pretty enjoyable on the whole though. Also the guy scored three Denis Villeneuve films so mad respect

A little more than a week into the user generated list and I think I am enjoying this as much as the main list. I loved the sound on this. I listened on my phone speakers based on when I was able to get time to listen to it. I need to come back to this with my main system one day.

In the right mood and the right setting Englabörn & Variations is a delightful listen, I'm sure. Even working along to it right now is nice and comforting, it's just a bit minimalist and there's not much of substance for me to really value greatly. A solid 3/5 because it's really beautifully composed in places, fine in others, but not really very lasting overall.

I thought I never heard of that artist before, then I realized he scored some movies I saw. Which made me apprehensive about this record, since I feel that most of the time, movie OST rarely stand greatly on their own. This was also a score apparently, but for a play. Unfortunately, it ended up having the same issues I have with most movie OST. As in, you can hear that it was meant to support a visual medium. It is too slow, too "in the background". It is not a bad score, but to me, listening to this is the equivalent of watching an actor reenact lines from a movie they appear in. The main reason I won't rate this highly has not much to do with its qualities as a score, but as an ALBUM I needed to hear before I die. I would rather watch the play, with the music accompanying it. 5/10

This was a beautiful and chill ambient album

Interesting take on modern classical music. Very nice background music but beyond that, rather run of the mill. My personal rating: 3/5 My rating relative to the list: 4/5 Should this have been included on the original list? No.

I'd say this is absolutely, 100% unique in the list - it's the only real dance (using the term lightly) with classical I've come across so far and although I've still got 150 or so user-submitted albums to go, I get the feeling I won't be hearing another like this. Definitely worth including, and I thank the person who suggested it for thinking a bit different when it comes to the type of music expected of the list.

This debut album of Jóhann Jóhannsson contains modern classical music mixed with electronic elements. He has also a history of creating soundtracks for films. I get why that works as his music is slow and inoffensive. It's taking a step back, creating an atmosphere and does not demand attention. That is a quality, but also a weak spot.

Blips and bloops

It's nice, but I feel like this sparse, eerie music works better in his film work. Arrival is beautiful

I can see how this guy went on to do movie soundtracks. Decent

Is this what Icelandic people are listening to? How depressing...

Felt very good in the mood I was in

yeah this guy writes film soundtracks alright

Enjoyed this, but just a bit long and repetitive for me to add to my frequent rotation.

RIP to a legend. Glad he got a place on this list.

Nice choice! The list proper seriously lacked classical music, and obviously this is more modern, but still. Really inspired production choices, great melodies combined with unorthodox sounds and ways of getting there. Some tracks on here sounded familiar - have they been used in movies or anything? I'll have to do some digging. Johann became quite a titan in the contemporary field, and it was truly deserved. I either didn't realize or somehow forgot that he passed away in 2018 - what an unbelievable loss that is, of a relatively new and incredible voice in his space. Think I may have had him confused with Ludwig Goransson, but what makes Johann memorable to me is "Forces of Attraction," a song on the Theory of Everything score. Unforgettable. Anyway, great choice here, and if I could add some classical picks as well, I'd throw in Peer Gynt and Stravinsky's Rite of Spring. Favorite tracks: Odi Et Amo, Englaborn, Salfraedinger Deyr, Bad (I know these aren't d's but I have to make do), Eg Heyrdi Allt An, Eg Atti Graa Aesku. Album art: Blue. That's it. I mean, it's an ocean, but it's not sharp enough to see details. The little seal in the bottom corner is a good classical touch. 4/5

An interesting one. Very film score (hey, this guy did "Mandy", neat), little doom-ish. Frigid. It's pretty but it does get pulled to the background a little bit. I love the electronic flourishes. Feels very Mike Oldfield or Philip Glass. Solid. Call it a 3.5. Favorite tracks: "Sálfræðingur", ""Ég Heyrði Allt Án Þess Að Hlusta""

I would not have thought that 90 minutes of ambient music is what I needed after the election, but here we are.

Música clásica y algo de electrónica. Curioso aunque demasiado lento. Ni fu ni fa.

Music to vibe with

A perfect ambient classical evocation of the Icelandic landscape. Rating: 3.5 Playlist track: Ég Heyrði Allt Án Þess Að Hlusta Date listened: 16/10/24

Nice. Good listening

It’s ambient atmospheric electronic… not what I ever want to listen to. Can appreciate and respect the work, but even the person who chose it says it’s not a 5 star record. This just seems a wasted entry.

It's modern and interpretative. Moody, windy, keying on emotions. I can feel the fibers of the music playing back into the room.

Enjoyed a modern take on classical that felt like it was a bit of a mood journey and travel experience. Nice discovery and definitely under-represented in the original list.

This was beautiful and something well worth listening to. I would have been happy to give up a couple of Neil Young albums to hear more contemporary classical music in the project. This really caused me to feel some emotions while listening (although I couldn't exactly tell you what they were).

A nice and unique addition to the project.

This was very nice. Distinct from the others. I'll admit that I didn't pay much attention after the first 45 minutes or so but I certainly enjoyed it.

Nice and very different fare from the rest of the albums on this list. One should hear modern classical music before one dies, although I have little experience here so cannot say whether this is THE album or not. Regardless, I enjoyed the mood.

This is more of a movie soundtrack than an album but then again the artist literally makes movie scores so that makes sense. Guess everyone has their own flavor but this one is not one I seek out. Not saying it’s bad, it’s just not for me. 4.5/10

I appreciate the explanation of why the user chose this album because it made me rethink what I was expecting from the user albums. I've been getting mad at these boring bruce springsteen live albums and 80s shitposts but my personal enjoyment of my user pick heavily influenced my choice. I was kinda thinking about danny elfman being left off the list but there's no shortage of new wave and I just really liked it. After listening to 1089 albums I think we've earned the right to pick whatever we want to add to the list and if foetal wheel or whatever is their pick then so be it and it's just something I'll have to endure until i get to something like the decemberists again. Either way, I agree that modern classical is underrepresented on the list and this is definitely a good example of that even if I found it somewhat boring. His scores are better but I appreciate someone trying to fill a gap in the list with something even they aren't a massive fan of.

Absolutely gorgeous, full album of this a bit much but hugely enjoyed

Bootiful, as they say in South South East Iceland

I really enjoyed this. I would have enjoyed more electronic elements like the first track had, but it was still a great album. The original list should have had some Phillip Glass or Steve Reich to add some contemporary classical.

Really beautiful. Rich, yet minimalist sound. Thanks so much for sharing. Fave Songs: Sálfræðingur, Ég Sleppi Þér Aldrei, Jói & Karen, Englabörn, Odi Et Amo

Nice to hear some classical on the list, though I wish there had been a stronger melodic throughline or some more leitmotifs to glue the whole thing together. The modern production techniques added some new layers to the classical repertoire, but without an iconic melody or unifying theme, this felt more like a collection of tracks rather than the grand journey the best symphonies represent.

Neo classical soundtrack music. Good strings.