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World Narcosis: World Narcosis 7″
When people historicise musical genres they always look for flashpoints and influences that ‘caused’ a band or something to happen. Punk, for instance, wouldn’t have happened were it not for the woeful state of the world at the time, apparently. Can’t have…
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FUN IN THE FAROESE
The hills are alive with the sound of music in Gøta, the small town in the Faroe Islands, which is the setting for the Faroe’s annual and legendary G! Festival. Here I am, somewhere around half way in between Scotland and…
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Lights & Music, Indeed
Outside the concert venue, face flushed pink to match his undersized varsity jacket, Berndsen looked exultant. Honestly, it was probably all the jumping—a pigmentary euphoria triggered by his onstage synthpop-hop and ensuing gulps of oxygen. I mean here the awkward, overstated stage…
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Afrocubism Harping at Harpa
Afrocubism graced the stage at Harpa on June 28 to a packed theatre, and musically did not disappoint. Unfortunately, when it comes to concerts, the music is only part of the battle. To the audience’s dismay, the show started half an hour…
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FIGHT THE POWER
Where have all the protest songs gone? Music, politics, ideas. You don’t really hear much about that nowadays do you? Right now I’m reading two books about politics in music, ‘Girls To The Front’ by Sara Marcus, about the Riot Grrrl feminist…
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Glen Hansard Comes To Reykjavík!
Didn’t make it to Bræðslan? Thought you missed your chance to see Glen Hansard in Iceland? Good news! You haven’t! Upon returning to Reykjavík from the Borgafjörður-based festival, Glen Hansard will be playing an additional show on July 26 at Café Rosenberg.…
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Evil Madness : Super Great Love
Iceland’s electronic Travelling Wilburys are back as BJ Nilsen, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Pétur Eyvindsson, Stilluppsteypa and DJ Musician take a break from creating ambient drones. Their fourth album is a more focused, beat driven affair with a ‘80s hard electro/proto techno sound. There…
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Learning To Löve Björk
I have always admired Björk. That’s never been the problem. Björk has constantly caught my admiration, but somehow adoration—even enjoyment—has been out of grasp. It’s with some trepidation, then, that I find myself at a world premiere of her new Biophilia show,…
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TRACK OF THE ISSUE – SNORRI HELGASON: MOCKINGBIRD
Singer/songwriter Snorri Helgason first made his name with everyone’s favourite band of 2007, Sprengjuhöllin, who with a ‘difficult second album’ managed to fade into semi-obscurity before going on indefinite hiatus. Both of their releases are worth seeking out though, even though the…
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A Look Through the Zonoscope
Crossing over seasons, time zones, language barriers, and maybe even dimensions, Cut/Copy continue to pursue their tour of the world, which has now brought them all the way to Iceland. Nicknamed “The Cutters,” this Australian electro pop group are currently promoting their…
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Bjartmar og Bergrisarnir: Skrýtin Veröld
The ‘80s were, perhaps surprisingly, something of a golden age for Icelandic pop lyrics. Socially conscious, verbally biting artists competed in defining their society with the aid of the Icelandic language, usually accompanied by rather straightforward rock instrumentation or the synthesisers that…
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Secret House Music And Eventual Rapture
Since moving to Reykjavík from California, I have been feeling starved of awesome shows. Whereas where I come from, regardless of which direction your tastes lie, a weekend means having to pick and choose between shows to go to; here in Iceland…
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Guðmundur Steinn Gunnarsson: Horpma
The latest composition from S.L.Á.T.U.R member Guðmundur Steinn Gunnarsson is a strange, almost impenetrable beast with avant-garde plasma running through its veins. Everything about this composition is unorthodox, from the use of numerous stringed instruments and unconventional tunings to create an imaginary…
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Jóhann Jóhannsson: The Miners’ Hymns
While Jóhann Jóhannsson’s status as a musician and producer in Iceland is assured, his soundtrack albums in the past, while sounding “nice”, suffered from a lack of depth and emotional resonance that can leave you cold. However with his latest work, ‘The…
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TRACK OF THE ISSUE – OJBA RASTA: JOLLY GOOD
Summer has finally threatened to show itself, somewhat, and if you like reggae, Ojba Rasta’s new single Jolly Good is the perfect track to put on for a nice garden BBQ party. Climbing the charts in Iceland, this feel good song has…
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“IT’S MY FESTIVAL AND I’LL BOOK WHO I WANT!”
It’s a story that has passed into Icelandic music legend. Of how a young drummer named Stefán ‘Stebbi’ Magnússon, having moved to the Eastfjords village of Neskaupstaður, invited several of his musician friends to come and play and have a party out…
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AURAL ECSTASY ATTACK
A lot of bitching and griping has gone on in the metal and hardcore scene as of late regarding the inclusion of For a Minor Reflection on tonight’s bill, and for good reason. While not as abysmally offensive to the inner ear…
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It Takes Five To Tango. Ehrm
Most people’s idea of tango music evokes a night-time display of poise and passion in a small cafe in the backstreets of Buenos Aires. But what you may not know is that through travelling musicians, the dance and its music reached Finland…
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Stealing Mountains
For three months, Mike Lindsey has lived alone in a cottage in northeast Iceland. Having gained some notoriety as a founding member of British alt-folk gang Tunng, he decided last March that what he really wanted to do was to go to…
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Grapevine Grassroots #29
Singing, dancing, poetry, instrumental music, movies, paintings…come see all or some of the above at the 29th Grapevine Grassroots. While performance art will be the main theme of this grassroot event, there will still be the opportunity to see some of the…
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The Noise Revival Orchestra: Songs of Forgiveness EP
The Noise Revival Orchestra seem to have moved away from their experimental orchestral work in the EP ‘Songs Of Forgiveness’. Perhaps, in an attempt to gain a more mainstream fan base, the band has progressed towards a more pop inspired place, with…
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A Dream Realised By Accident
Afrocubism is a project that began as a dream thirteen years ago. Nick Gold’s idea was to fuse the sounds of Malian and Cuban music for an album. But along the way, the Malian half of this collaboration either lost their passports,…
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FM Belfast: Don´t Want To Sleep
The album lead-in is a raging ‘90s keyboard loop with promises of a record best experienced while wearing overalls and watching some ebony mercenary on ‘Top of the Pops’ grind in front of two nerds from Coventry. That turns out to be…