Whatever They’re Saying, It’s Enthralling

It’s from Iceland. Its music is mostly languid, ethereal, drawn-out soundscapes that have virtually no chance for mainstream radio airplay in the U.S. Its lyrics are half in Icelandic and half in Hopelandish, a language the group made up. The members do very little in the way of press and state on their Web site that they “do not intend to become superstars or millionaires.”

And yet the band Sigur Ros is among the most-coveted acts by U.S. record labels at this time.

In recent months, its music has become a touchstone for hipster cred. Radiohead’s Thom Yorke has mentioned the group prominently as an influence on his band’s Grammy-nominated “Kid A” and booked the quartet to open nine European concerts.

In Los Angeles, several songs have been recent mainstays on the playlist of KCRW-FM (89.9) music director and “Morning Becomes Eclectic” host Nic Harcourt. Import copies of Sigur Ros recordings released in Iceland and England have been snapped up by clued-in U.S. fans to the point that suppliers can’t meet the demand.

“It’s completely enthralling, transcendently beautiful, mystical music that defies categorization,” says Steve Ralbovsky, senior vice president of A&R; for RCA Records and one of the label executives who’s pursued the band.

But it’s not the kind of thing that usually stirs a big-label frenzy--at least not in a pop music climate defined by Britney Spears and Eminem.

So why so much major-label interest?

“You could say everything from today’s avant-garde is tomorrow’s mainstream to some artists deserve to be signed just by virtue of the fact that they are doing something so powerful and important that you need to be in business with them--for the right price tag,” Ralbovsky says.

The price tag is not known yet, but proposals are expected to be sent to labels soon. At this point, Atlantic, Capitol, Interscope and Arista are the leading candidates, according to several business sources.

What the right price is may depend on labels’ perception of the value of the band, and that’s not measured entirely in sales. For some there’s the--no Iceland pun intended--cool factor of having such an act on the roster, which in turn can help bring in other coveted artists.

“Radiohead does that for Capitol,” says Tom DeSavia, A&R; executive at Elektra Records, who’s been a fan of Sigur Ros since his friend Michael Ward, guitarist for the Wallflowers, introduced him to the music a year ago. “Sonic Youth attracted both Nirvana and Beck to Geffen. At Elektra we have Bjork.”

In the meantime, arrangements are being made for the band’s most recent album, 1999’s “Agaetis Byrjun,” to be released in the U.S. on the New York independent label See Thru Broadcasting, which has an association with Fat Cat, the label that signed the band in England.

“I think this is a one-in-a-million thing here as far as being a big hit,” says Kevin Wordis, who runs See Thru. “I don’t know how much commercial potential there is in this. But it’s just that good.”

DEALS EN ESPANOL: Cafe Tacuba, the Mexico City-based band being fought over by U.S. labels, has apparently settled on Maverick Records, which recently opened a Latin-music division. Jill Berliner, the band’s Los Angeles attorney, says that no deal has been signed, but sources at other labels that had been in the running report they’ve been informed that Maverick’s offer has been accepted.

But if the losers are still in the market for a top rock en espanol act, Fabulosos Cadillacs has just arranged a release from its contract with BMG Latin and has begun shopping for a deal that, as with Tacuba’s proposals, will raise its profile in the U.S.

“It’s a good time for us to be a free agent,” says band manager Tomas Cookman. “More so than even a couple of years ago, people are understanding that there are more openings to promote a band like this [than have been taken advantage of].”

Cookman notes that like Tacuba, the Cadillacs have been a consistently successful concert attraction in the U.S.--with a strong following of Spanish-speaking and non-Spanish-speaking fans. But record sales here have not kept pace, with the band’s albums generally selling just 20,000 to 30,000 each, according to SoundScan. Cookman believes that the Latin-oriented labels have largely failed to reach out to the full audience here.

“The Cadillacs can play 20 to 30 cities in the U.S. with sold-out shows, and I’m selling more T-shirts than records,” he says. “Why? Because the records haven’t been in the stores. . . . Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe there is no market for this here. But the census says there is.”