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The Brotherhood of the Negative
Iceland’s favourite sons of rock n’ roll, collectively known as Mínus, are back at it. After being hailed as the saviours of metal by several esteemed rock publications following their third studio release – Halldór Laxness in 2003 – this April will…
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Æla’s Anarchy in the Uk
Æla’s first gig in London was at the Buffalo Bar, situated in the well-to-do North London suburb of Islington. It is a dark pit of a place, typical of the capital’s atmospheric live music venues, with a tiny stage and an interesting…
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A Celebration of All Things Good
Let us not beat around any bush: Mugison is a golden god, and he is a shining path. So is his father, Muggi, and so, in fact, are all of the magnificent people who have toiled for the past months to make…
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Ampop – Sail To The Moon
Grandiose and epic in scale, Sail To The Moon is still hardly more than a tired rehash of songs we’ve been listening to on indie radio stations for ten years, only more pretentious and self-involved, with some very unwelcome showtunes and blues…
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Good Show, Unfortunate Venue
There was an unusually subdued and quiet atmosphere at NASA for Lisa Ekdahl’s concert. This was her third show in Iceland in two years and, much like on previous occasions, she had sold out the venue. This particular venue, however, proved to…
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Saint Simon
Emilie Simone is perhaps most famous for being the descendant of famous French philosopher Saint Simon. No, that’s a lie. Emilie Simone is most famous for the beautiful soundtrack to “The March of the Penguins.” But I’d like to think there is…
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Uninspired
Through the years, I have been quite vocal about my admiration for Incubus and, despite my left-field tendencies and preferences, I have been able to enjoy the music of these well-dressed Californians for many years. Musically and lyrically the band has shown…
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Aldrei fór ég suður: Now More Than Ever
The 1974th Annual Easter-festivities will soon be upon us, as will the fourth annual ‘Aldrei Fór Ég Suður’ (I Never Went South). Both are excellent reasons to celebrate with friends. Every Easter since 2003, and this year will be no exception; the…
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Esja, a New Peak in the Musical Landscape
In many ways, this is an unlikely union. The coalition of former GusGus frontman and now a successful solo artist, Daníel Ágúst, known for his enchanting and delicate melodies and experimental pop-electronica; and the prince of Icelandic metal, the rough and rugged…
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GusGus – Forever
“THERE IS A LIGHT THAT NEVER GOES OUT. SHINING, ILLUMINANT, GLORIOUS GUSGUS.” …or so proclaim the opening words on the promotional package for this, GusGus’ fifth studio album, and they might just be right. Bastard spawn of a long-dead movement, GusGus have…
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Hafdís Huld – Dirty Paper Cup
Although its cuteness occasionally sinks to unforgivable stupidity, Dirty Paper Cup is a triumph as far as original songwriting goes, and brilliantly showcases the fact that no matter how much fashionable gimmickry is strewn over a song, it doesn’t count for shit…
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SIC – Pandemonium
Faroese fivesome SIC never stray far away from their nu-metal/post-trash roots on debut album Pandemonium. Although they are not exactly breaking new ground for originality, it is hard to fault them, for what they do, they do well and what they lack…
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Envy of Nona – Two Years Birth
There’s some fair songcraft on this very adolescent debut release from the Reykjavík fivesome, but boy, does it drag on forever. Still, despite being cliché-ridden and unoriginal to say the very least, it doesn’t try to be anything other than what it…
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Petter & The Pix – Easily Tricked
This album is kind of like eating roast mutton off plastic tupperware. The ingredients are all there, you know it’s good stuff and it certainly tastes expensive, but something’s just not quite right; something is flat, sterile and too watered down, too…
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Those Crazy Kids, What Will They Think of Next?
No matter what anyone tells you, the 101 Reykjavík nightlife scene is druggy, and it is a cousin of both tears and regrets. People who frequent clubs and bars during the weekend are most likely found in the city’s movie theatres on…
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Skúli Sverrisson – Sería
Skúli Sverrisson is a world renowned bass player. Over here he’s probably best known for his work with the New York group Blonde Redhead. It is mostly an instrumental album, except for 3 tracks where Ólöf Arnalds sings. This is a tough…
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Forgotten Lores – Frá heimsenda
15 tracks of Icelandic rap. Forgotten Lores arrive with a much anticipated follow up to their debut, Týndi hlekkurinn. Their live shows are always fun. At the recent Airwaves festival their performance was one of the highlights. Rap is about words and…
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194 Young People Who Just Wanted to Rock
The main concept of tourism for young people in Brazil is the search for cheap places that are completely different from the typical national identity. This New Year’s holiday I thought it would be perfect to fly to Buenos Aires, a city…
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Jónas Sigurðsson – Þar sem malbikið svífur mun ég dansa
Jónas Sigurðsson has been making music for a long time. He was a drummer in Trassarnir and the singer in Sólstrandargæjarnir. Ask any Icelander no older than 40 to sing “Rangur maður” by the Sólstrandargæjar and you will be treated to a…
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Garage Days Revisited?
Tónlistarþróunarmiðstöðin, a rehearsal space and concert venue, hosts fifty bands that operate in the Reykjavík area. It has been a haven for fledgling musicians for close to four years now. Due to a lack of funding, it will likely close down for…
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Canora – Kelvinator
Metal can be great. We all know that. Almost any kind of metal is great, with the exception of black-metal, which is not great. It is bad. The cover of Canora’s first album hinted at black-metal. Therefore I was moderately pleased when…
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Lisa Ekdahl Interviews a Grapevine Journalist
Swedish sensation, Jazz diva, and pop idol Lisa Ekdahl is on tour yet again, having played in Norway and Demark recently, she is on her way to play in Iceland for the third time in two years, playing dates in Reykjavík, Akureyri…
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Shadow Parade – Dubious Intentions
Melancholic and dark. Shadow Parade follows bands like Coldplay or Radiohead. In fact, the singer’s voice is almost a carbon-copy of Thom Yorke on some tracks. This isn’t necessarily bad and in this case it isn’t… most of the time. This is…