Words by

The Reykjavík Grapevine

@rvkgrapevine

Photo by

Bobby Sands

This Is Bobby Sands’ World, You’re Just In It

A self-contained story of a late-night show by the impeccable Bobby Sands, The Bobby Sands Showtime Special is a wild ride from beginning to end. With references to ‘70s cop films, high-adrenaline 8-bit racing video games, and smooth disco, it puts the “fun” in “funky”.

INTRODUCING THE BOBBY SANDS SHOWTIME SPECIAL

The opening track of the album mimics a late night show, hosted by the smooth talkin’ Raspberry Randy (Einar Lúðvík Ólafsson). He introduces the band and guest acts that pop in and out throughout the album. This track is a straight-up free-funk-jazz jam in the spirit of funk artists like Parliament-Funkadelic and Bootsy Collins. It features improvised solos from the organ player, Jackson Pollock Jr. (Sigurhjörtur Pálmason), joined by guitar, synths and — of course — our dear friend Raspberry Randy, who keeps the listener company on this smooth ride.

SHOWTIME

This is the one where Bobby goes all in — the show has officially started! It has a slap-heavy bass riff with some celestial synthesisers. This track might remind the listener of a vintage race car video game soundtrack or some adrenaline-fueled saloon party set in space.

HEAT

“Heat” was one of the first tracks Bobby wrote for this album. It’s a smooth ride. It should be blasted on a car stereo on a smooth drive through the city and into the sunset. It features laid-back keyboard parts by Bobby’s good friend Jackson Pollock Jr. as well as a drunk guitar solo by Bobby.

VOLVO 850

This track might be, in Bobby’s personal opinion, the funkiest jam on the album. It’s an homage to Bobby’s Volvo 850 1997 model — check out the album cover for reference. The track is heavily inspired by soundtracks of ‘70s cop films and blaxploitation movies from the U.S.

STACY

A more disco-oriented song featuring the spiciest girls in the business, Stacy and Stacy No. 2 tells a story where Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, and Pablo Picasso all die just before arriving at Stacy’s venue to perform. So Stacy calls up Bobby and asks him to come save the show. It includes a stark raving mad guitar solo by the Cocopuff-man (Kjartan Árni Kolbeinsson).

JIMMY TWO-TIMES IS BACK IN TOWN

This track draws an image in the listener’s mind of a smoke-filled room lit up in red with good-looking women and mysterious men hanging around a table playing dominoes. Jimmy arrives in town with a guilty conscience but his heart is in the right place.

HIGH STAKES LOW RIDER

Bobby wrote this high-tempo track back in 2020 but it didn’t sound right until the electro virtuoso, Alfreð Drexler, put a spin on it. The video says all there is to say about this one. Check it out on YouTube!

EASTBOUND SOLITUDE

This is the closing track of the album. In a different mindset and coming down from the show’s high, Bobby reminisces about his quiet childhood with his brother in the countryside.