Words by

Jóhannes Bjarkason

Photo by

Supplied by Georg Óskar

Georg Óskar explores the murkiness of the everyday

Scandinavian Rapture is the moniker of multi-disciplinary artist Georg Óskar. Focusing on painting and visual art, Georg’s album  Worst Wait of Our Life sees him return to his musical endeavours. As he does in his visual work, Georg’s music explores the everyday while adding charismatic gloom through the use of goth and industrial-inspired soundscapes. He walked us through the offering track by track.

The day I die

I composed the lyrics of this song when I was staying with friends in Paris in 2022 and I was strumming a ukulele that was there while singing these lyrics aloud. I began the song with “The day I die I will do something great, Like running around in Parisian rain,” and of course, it was pouring outside when I was writing it. The title of the song seemed amusing to me and then the idea came to me that one must end something to start new. So, this song is about beginnings, despite its title. It started as a calm guitar piece and then transformed into a more epic dance piece.

I am Dead

I have decided to keep myself on a positive note and continue to talk about death. The opposite of the first song on the album, this song directly addresses being dead and arriving at one’s final resting place. I had Prodigy in mind when working on it and I wanted it to have an energetic feel – with a marching band, perhaps – taking on the challenging task of making death exciting.

My Name is Superstar

“Hello, my name is superstar, 

I am going to get very far…”

This song is one of my favourites from the album. It portrays a character who perceives themselves as a superstar and exceptionally remarkable. He has a strong urge to go around and let people know how fabulous he is and how far he will go in life. Additionally, he is obsessed with a girl whom he claims to love deeply, but it’s also something that only exists in his imagination.

I have no choice because it’s mine

Not many years ago, I barely sang for myself, mainly because I couldn’t stand listening to my own voice; I simply found it terrible. As the title of this song suggests, I have no choice because this is me, my life, my appearance, and so on. It’s about embracing one’s imperfections and not letting them hold you back, or at least not beating yourself. What one might consider a flaw in their life could be their strongest asset if they accept it and perhaps make it work. That’s it, maybe I need to do this. I express this sentiment in the song and later on the character starts drowning their sorrows, ending up in a ditch and sailing down to the next bar to drink some more. Accepting oneself comes with risk.

Love is pain

Just as the title suggests, this song explores how painful love can be. We all know the feeling.

Stuck in this Limbo

I started working on this song at the beginning of COVID when I lived in Berlin. During that time, lockdowns were in effect and almost the only place my wife and I could go for fresh air and some relaxation was the cemetery.

Late night good night

This song is about discovering a diamond in the rough that brings comfort, especially when you realise that the world is on the brink of ending, and you find your true self and embrace it for the first and last time.