Grapevine New Music: Sykur, Exos, Róshildur & More

Fall. Autumn. Whatever you want to call it, Reykjavík’s got it hard. With the first snow hitting the capital earlier this week, residents are formally swapping out their summer wardrobe for their winter attire — donning various shades of beige and earthy tones. With the Iceland Airwaves festival just around the corner, Icelandic musicians are also changing their tune, with release after release of excellent new music available every Friday. If you like some of it, consider following our playlist, where we exhibit a curation of new Icelandic music.

Isabelle Lewis — O Solitude
Released October 1

Who is Isabelle Lewis? Well, if you read the news, this mystery persona is the amalgamation of artists Valgeir Sigurðsson, Benjamin Abel Meirhaeghe and Elisabeth Klink. Released by the Reykjavík-based label Bedroom Community — established in part by Valgeir himself — Isabelle serves as the shared musical vessel of this triumvirate. Embodying electronic, classical and pop, “O Solitude” is a haunting opus which will follow you into your dreams. JB

Þórir Georg  — Fjörutíu
Released October 4

Quick, help me draft a list of activities for an upcoming 40th birthday. If one of your suggestions was ‘releasing an album’, that puts you into the same camp as the prolific Þórir Georg. In a logical follow-up to his 2020 album 36, Fjörutíu examines its inverse subject matter. While 36 covered human existence within the online context, Fjörutíu examines life outside of it. Noisy, ambient and industrial at once, Fjörutíu is unapologetically authentic — just like the artist himself. JB

Exos — Ráðabrugg
Released October 8

Active as a DJ since 1997, Arnviður Snorrason aka Exos has become one of Iceland’s most revered and influential of jockeys. His latest single “Ráðabrugg” is a gritty techno mammoth with the power to drown your eardrums and all the hunger of a university student attending their first rave. JB

Róshildur — Öndunaræfingar
Released October 11

For her 2023 release (v2.2), newcomer artist Róshildur got crowned the Reykjavík Grapevine’s “One To Watch” Award. Layering sweet and sultry vocals over electronic loops, Róshildur caught the attention of the 2023 panel. With the release of her first single following that fateful album, it’s quite clear that we are contractually obliged to watch this. Co-written by Sykur’s Halldór Eldjárn, “Öndunaræfingar” exhibits Róshildur’s passionate and spirited take on self-administered psychotherapy. JB

Sykur — Pláneta Y
Released October 11

On the topic of Sykur, the dance/electronica band just released their first new music in five years. For those coming of age during the early 2010s, Sykur is an important phenomenon, always as the backdrop of a great night out. On “Pláneta Y”, Sykur delivers a powerful comeback showcasing their proficiency in writing fantastic, upbeat electronic music. Catch them performing Iðnó on October 12. JB