David Bowie’s Visit To Iceland – VIDEO

David Bowie’s 1996 visit to Iceland made quite an impression on him, as evidenced in this interview with MTV. A programme director for RÚV, who has followed Bowie’s music for decades, remembers him as having “broadened the horizons of many people, in many ways”.

Bowie, who passed away last night after a long battle against cancer, is today remembered and honoured by fans around the world, and Iceland is no exception. The legendary musician was himself very enthusiastic about the country, as can be seen in this interview with MTV in 1996, when he visited Iceland on the occasion of the Reykjavík Arts Festival.

Vísir reports that former Minister of Education and Cultural Affairs Björn Bjarnason was one of the many attendees at Bowie’s concert. He said the concert went like a “well-oiled machine”, although he was not accustomed to the volume levels a Bowie concert brings.

Halldór Ingi Andrésson, a programme director for radio station Rás 2, told RÚV the news of Bowie’s passing came as a “complete shock” to him, having just bought his latest album, Blackstar, which was released two days before his death.

“We spent a whole lifetime living with him,” he told reporters. “I think he never did anything but improve the lives of others. The guy was brilliant, and I think he broadened the horizons of many people, in many ways.”