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New Faces Of Solstice
The Grapevine‘s picks for up-and-comers you should catch at this year’s Secret Solstice Festival. Aron Can Distinguishing yourself from others in a crowded scene is always hard. But among Reykjavík’s growing roster of hip-hop artists, Aron Can is one of the most exciting—partly…
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Sturla Atlas SEASON2: One year old and fresher than ever
People say Iceland has just two seasons: winter and light winter. However, for about a year now, a third, #sturlaseason, has been shaking the country. Many would say Sigurbjartur Sturla Atlason (Sturla Atlas), a light-skinned, blond 101 boy, is the reason for…
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Magic Happens: Inside the STEiNUNN studio
Like a fresh breeze heralding the change in seasons, a group exhibition entitled ‘The Weather Diaries’ blew into Reykjavík’s Nordic House this spring. Stepping inside its muted, grey-green confines is like entering another world. Spread across four rooms, the show is an…
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The Unraveling Of A Government: The Panama Papers And Iceland
In March, Anna Sigurlaug Pálsdóttir, the wife of (now former) Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson, posted a status update on Facebook that seemed to come out of nowhere. In that post, she went into some detail about a company called Wintris Inc.…
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Witnessing The End Of An Era
Even modest deployments of the vast US military leave a large footprint. In a country the size of Iceland, and a town the size of Keflavík, the economic and cultural impact of their presence is still evident today, ten years after they…
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The Base As A Bridge Built On Good Intentions
In the 1940s, the most common way for a young man to see the world was to join the army. For young women, it was nursing. I mean this from a North American perspective. It’s strange to look at all the young…
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All About That Base
Early in February, news reached Icelanders that American troops were coming back to Iceland after a ten-year absence. While the truth of the matter is not as dramatic, we did not learn about this from our Prime Minister, or any other government…
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Slut-Shaming And State-Sponsored Persecution In “Situation” Era Iceland
Starting in 1940, Iceland’s occupation by Allied forces during WWII was for the most part a peaceful one, at least compared to what went on in the rest of Europe at the time. The period was nonetheless a tumultuous one for the…
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Welcome To The Circle – Meet The Men Behind Iceland’s Thriving Black Metal Scene
Hafsteinn Viðar, the man behind the solo black metal project Wormlust, requested that our interview take place at the Cathedral of Christ the King, preferably in the confessional. If the confessional was unavailable, he said, then we could perhaps walk together in…
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MEET THE NWOIHH!
The holidays are here. Your relatives are annoying. Gifts are expensive. We all need something to kick the edge. Why not try some fresh new Icelandic hip-hop? Yes, the world of Icelandic hip hop is rich and varied. From classics such as…
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Mischief, Mayhem & Hip-Hop With Iceland’s New Yule Lads
The Yule Lads are the thirteen Icelandic Santa Clauses who descend one-by-one on the thirteen days before Christmas to play tricks on Icelandic children. Their mother, Grýla, a mountain Ogress, eats badly-behaved children; her partner-in-crime is Leppalúði, another ogre and Grýla’s third…
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Hacking Politics: An In-Depth Look At Iceland’s Pirate Party
Alþingishúsið, or The Parliament House, is a hulking grey stone building that sits on the edge of the sleepy Austurvöllur square in downtown Reykjavík. It’s the seat of Iceland’s Alþingi, an institution that was famously inaugurated in the year 930 by a…
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Killing Your Darlings With A Lawnmower To The Face: We Visit An Icelandic Horror Set
Despite possessing a desolate landscape, long winters, and prominent bodysnatcher demographic (sorry, Alþingi), Iceland is not really a landmark when it comes to horror movies—even though it certainly seems like the kind of place that should be. Thanks to a burgeoning national…
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HE CAME FROM WITHIN: RIFF’S Guest Of Honour David Cronenberg
The Reykjavík International Film Festival may not unveil the season’s most anticipated premieres, or unfurl its longest, plushest red carpet, but one thing it has on the competition: it is the only film festival that can offer its guest of honour a…
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SPARKS TURN TO FLAMES: A Conversation With Bryndís Björgvinsdóttir
Or: Fucking Around Can Make A Lot Of Difference, And It’s Important To Always Keep Trying And Not Give Up And Avoid Getting Cynical Or Losing Hope, Because Eventually An Unexpected Crack Might Open Up And You Might Then Slip Through That…
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Body Talk: A Dancer And An Actress Converse, Prepare To Shake Things Up
Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir and Erna Ómarsdóttir are performers who, although their reputations precede them, are too busy making quality work to spend much time bathing in the limelight. In fact, they may very well be the kinds of creative forces that a nation…
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PRAISE ME, PLEASE!
Browsing the news this past October, a headline on local newspaper Morgunblaðið’s website caught my eye: “Icelandic Girl In The New York Times.” My interest was stoked. Who was this Icelandic girl, I wondered, and why was she in the New York…
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Run Towards The Light: The Spaced-Out World Of DJ Flugvél Og Geimskip
On a recent Saturday afternoon, amongst the bustling circus of Reykjavík 101’s summer street life, an unusual spectacle grabbed the attention of the throng. Under the blue sky, one of Iceland’s most exciting young musicians, DJ flugvél og geimskip, aka Steinunn Harðardóttir,…
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After Dark: The DJs Of Reykjavík
There’s a certain time of night in Reykjavík’s bars when the atmosphere starts to change. The blinds come down, the lights are dimmed, and the volume of the music creeps up as daytime playlists give way to something more propulsive. The after-work…
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THE GRAPEVINE’S BIG-ASS BAR GUIDE 2015!
Wow, can you believe our bar guide is five years old already? That means, in just 15 years, it will be old enough to go drinking downtown. And it’ll definitely know all the best places when it does. Over the last few…
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The Rock Renaissance
Rock in Iceland has been overshadowed by some of the great things happening in the indie, hip-hop, metal and pop genres over the last decade, but there appears to be a rock renaissance in Reykjavík at the moment. It’s dirty, it’s loud,…
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A Rapper Walks Into A Bar: The Making Of Iceland’s Burgeoning Comedy Scene
I’m doing a gig in Selfoss for 17-20 year-olds? This is going to suck, hard. There’s no booze. There’s no one there when I arrive. What was I thinking? I’m in a basement in Selfoss. That sounds like the beginning of a…
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BJÖRK’S FOLK MUSIC
Björk has a way of messing up our plans. We were all set with a February-feature when she surprise dropped her new album, out of the blue. And, you know, it’s a really goddamn great album. Sure, her albums usually are—even if…