Miri, our saviours from the East! They are as honest, loving and pure as any band on the Airwaves bill – good old country boys with no agenda but to entertain themselves and their audience, having a good time, making connections, earning friends and playing some great tunes to whomever will listen. Which is of course rock music at its finest: friendly, curious, exciting and loving. The Grapevine sat down with drummer Ívar Pétur Kjartansson and bassist Hjalti Jón Sverrrisson, the rhythm section, making sure this interview runs smoothly and has a steady backbeat.
How many times did you play during the course of the festival?
Ívar: Two times, this year. But it is our third time playing Airwaves. The reception was really great at Organ, a lot of people and a great audience….
Hjalti: The Organ show was so fun; it was exactly what we were aiming for. Insanity and party, people dancing and going nuts. We want people to lose themselves at our shows, and that was accomplished nicely at Organ.
Really, I thought you would rather be aiming for an introspective mood?
Ívar: I don’t think what we’ve been doing over the last year has been introspective; it is rather about getting the feel and mood of the show across from the stage, we want to touch people – to move them and inspire. And of course to have an inspired time ourselves, doing so. That is what we try and put forth.
Hjalti: We want people to experience incredibly beautiful music, music you also dance and rock out to at the same time. Combining the most beautiful song you’ve heard with the most party knockout. And that is a bit challenging. But it is a goal of the band’s.
So, how were you received this Airwaves? Did you accomplish your goal of the beautiful party?
Ívar: We were really well received by the audience and the public; people at our shows were hugging and high-fiving us. The reception was great, but this brings up a topic I want to address. You ask yourself if the critics… well, we of course made this music ourselves and it is a part of who we are, so maybe we’re too involved, but I sometimes ask myself if the reviewers are listening when they’re at the concerts, if they are paying attention to the music. And I don’t mean only with us, it has been the case with a lot of reviews I’ve read, where I was at the same show. I just don’t understand how some of the conclusions the reviewers reach were reached, what brought them on; it’s like they are writing about an alternate reality, like they were at a different show.
Hjalti: Not that we’re complaining, we get great reviews, but it’s sometimes like they’re writing about some other music than our music. I would prefer getting a bad review about our music than a good review about some music I do not recognise making or playing.
Miri are currently finishing their début album, which they plan on releasing in early 2009. Check them out at MySpace, www.myspace.com/mirimusic.
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