Straumur: Auto-Tuned Teenage Angst

On the first of April we attended a concert at Húrra by kef LAVÍK: the band has a sense of humour for sure, but the music and performance that night was certainly no joke. The Auto-Tuned teenage angst blaring from the stage was palpable and the crowd was so dedicated you could often hear the audience singing along louder than the singer on the stage. The drug-fuelled melodramatic storytelling reached its high points in singalongs like: “You’re such a bad person/and ugly on the inside/it’s good that I’m basically the same.” Although kef LAVÍK have been churning out music for a long time, this was only their second official concert, but if the audience reaction was anything to go by, the demand for more of them is higher than Hallgrímskirkja.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RjTJBR1oCo

With the weather recently teasing us with a fake spring, it got us thinking about the summer ahead and the festivals that it brings. Secret Solstice is the most summery festival in Iceland, and we’ve yet to tell you about some of the less talked-about acts that they’ve announced. The line-up is heavy on 90s nostalgia and modern hip-hop. We’re excited about the hip-hop/funk of anderson.paak and the Beatles-esque psychedelia of Unknown Mortal Orchestra. We look forward to dancing to the old school house of Black Madonna, and no force could stop us from witnessing the fitness of the one and only Roots Manuva.

On the west side of the island, another festival will take place next week could be called Iceland’s most wintery. Aldrei fór ég suður (“I never went south”) has been held during Easter in Ísafjörður since 2004. This year’s program is a diverse mix of artists, including Kött Grá Pje, Soffía Björg, Ham, Valdimar, KK band, Vök, Börn, Mugison, and many more. We highly recommend this festival and also, it’s free!

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