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Dormah
Youngsters Muck were already in full swing by the time I arrived at the tiny room on the second level of Bar 11, which somebody had sadly mistaken as a suitable venue for a live rock show. Although I only caught two…
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Mike Monday
Everybody makes mistakes and I guess that really applies to everyone, even the Icelandic music-moguls of Jón Jónsson. But what was it that made this concert so gut-wrenchingly, heart-turningly, face-smashingly horrible? The DJ’s were good, the venue looked alright so, what went…
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Super Mama Djombo
A week prior to the concert I received the Super Mama Djombo CD Ar Puro, and as soon as the notes hit my ear drums I was hooked. The positive vibe, the beautiful vocals and instruments and the way the album seems…
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Your Guide to This Summer’s Releases
This year’s highlight is obviously Sigur Rós’ announced release of their first studio album since 2005’s Takk. But wait, that’s not all. 2007 was a very fruitful year indeed for the Icelandic music. Many albums saw the light of day, and some…
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The Story of Grandmother’s Records
OK. So you figure the name’s supposed to invoke irony. I mean, the five releases that so far make up Grandmother’s Records catalogue don’t sound like anything any grandmothers I know would approve of. Noisy, skronky blasts of puerile satisfaction do not…
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Morðingjarnir
So, your second album is out, and it has received glowing reviews from every critic. Haukur: Well, I’m not going to tell you that it received better reviews that what we expected. We expected it to receive very good reviews. But it…
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Summer Celebration
I was sure the editor of Grapevine was busting my chops when he asked me to cover The Reykjavik Grapevine’s Sólarsamba Concert at Organ. Reasons being the following: my own band was playing, I was partaking in the planning the event and…
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Sólstafir
Organ was packed good, at least considering that it was a Tuesday night. Most people were obviously there to see Sólstafir so the interest in newcomers Polymental, who started the night, was politely disinterested. Their set, frankly, didn’t do much to change…
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The Faroese Islands
At the same time local celebrities toasted their victories at the Icelandic Music Awards, Faroese musicians invaded Organ with a set much more energetic than any awards-party could ever be. Eivör Pálsdóttir, the blonde queen from the small village of Gøta, was…
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Agent Fresco – Dr. Spock
The concert started considerably later than I expected. The first band, Agent Fresco, recently won the Icelandic version of The Battle of the Bands so I was excited to see what they had to offer. Many have tried and failed at what…
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Misery Index
By the time I arrived at Organ, Celesine had already fired up the heavy machinery and set out on their path of destruction. It was a somewhat misguided journey. As awesome as this post-metal band sounds on record, they face a problem…
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The Icelandic Music Awards
Everyone who’s anyone who was up for an award was at the 14th annual Icelandic Music Awards on March 18. The President, the Mayor of Reykjavík, and anyone who may have had a chance to carry home a trophy were sure to…
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Músíktilraunir 2008
The top of the youthful crop was crowned this March 15 at the final round of Iceland’s 27th annual Battle of the Bands, Músíktilraunir, in the Hafnarhús Reykjavík Art Museum. 49 bands competed in semi-finals the preceding week with 10 finalists advancing.…
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Hjaltalín
Dressed in their Sunday best, which in this case included top hats and tails, Hjaltalín took to the purple-lit stage at NASA in front of a dead silent crowd. With the dance floor occupied by chairs and the bordering wings crammed even…
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Ólafur Arnalds
As Ólafur Arnalds and his four-piece ensemble trickled onto the stage of The Water Rats in London, something very rare happened – the entire audience risked a beer-soaked backside and got off their feet to sit down in some sort of act…
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Björk
Did she just say what I thought she said? That was the question on the lips of my fellow revellers as we filed out of a Shanghai auditorium after Björk’s March 2nd concert. During her finale, the stomping mad anthem “Declare Independence,”…
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Högni Egilsson
So, you’re nominated as songwriter andsinger of the year at the IMAs. Hjaltalín, yourband, was also nominated for song and recordof the year, as well as the Brightest Hopeaward. But how do you respond to the nominationspersonally? Do you hold one awardin…
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Bergur Ebbi Benediktsson
I’ll start by congratulating you on your nomination to the Icelandic Music Awards. Yes, thanks. I was very pleased to hear of it, and, you know, I was a bit surprised. Were you? Well yeah, don’t you have to say that? To…
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When the Garage Doors Open
Since 1982 Iceland’s very own garage band music competition, Battle of the Bands (Icel. Músiktilraunir), has taken place annually. The competition has allowed young artists to gain more attention in the Icelandic music scene than they otherwise could have hoped for, as…
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Psychedelic Normalcy
Bathed in a purplish glow, the Benny Crespo’s Gang foursome opened up the first seated rock concert in recent memory, with a series of bleeps and blurps. It was the epitome of BCG’s appeal in the form of an overture; a basic…
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Jesus Christ Rockstar
Excitement filled the air inside The Reykjavík City Theatre minutes before the premiere of Jesus Christ Superstar. There is no mystery to the plot in Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s famous rockopera but Vesturport’s take on the classic has made many…
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When Reykjavík Visits Rotterdam
It is cold, but serenely clear tonight. The atmosphere feels transparent, as if Rotterdam is opening up its sores to be assuaged by the healing music invading for the weekend for the Reykjavík 2 Rotterdam festival. It is also quiet, very quiet…
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Icelanders Don’t Care About Satan
Stulli and Gauti sit opposite me and sip their coffee. Black coffee. Stulli is in the midst of outlining the philosophy behind his band, Svartidauði (Black Death), one of Iceland’s more accomplished Black Metal bands of today. They are wearing all black.…