IceBlah

Iceland Airwaves 2009 + 1 week

Busy week back in "the real world" for the past 7 post-Airwaves days, but back in Iceland someone (and I REALLY can't remember who) set me a little task. A week after the festival I had to write a short post saying what songs were still swimming around my head, which songs and moments really stuck in the memory for 2009's festival, so I've got ten...

• Oh Land - Frostbite
• Reykjavík! - Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
• Sudden Weather Change - St. Peter's Day
• Dikta - Just Getting Started
• Ghostigital - Trouser
• Feldberg - Don't Be A Stranger
• Mammút - Rauðilækur
• Hafdis Huld - Kongulo
• Ólafur Arnalds - Ljósið
• FM Belfast - Killing In The Name Of

Great tracks, I feel an ipod playlist coming on.

I've found just a couple of reviews of Iceland Airwaves 2009 around the internet, but I haven't looked hard (yet). For now, there have been short reviews at Drowned In Sound and (hilariously) in The Daily Telegraph. Judge for yourself.

As ever, The Reykjavik Grapevine is THE place to go to for everything Airwaves related, and download that free album if you haven't already. And they're such nice people too, so I hope they won't mind me reproducing an extract of their review (by an American visitor) of one of Reykjavík!'s shows.

This was Reykjavík! In college, a writing professor taught me to never use an exclamation point unless I really, really meant it. Reykjavik! really, really mean it. While they set up and turned up every mic till it went into the red, there was much shouting and laughing. Someone shrieked “Too much foreplay!” which further confirmed the inkling I had that we were all about to get fucked. Hard.

Minutes later, their singer was jumping off the railing with a thud, taking a circuitous path through the crowd to end up next to the pudgy, drunk and happy guitarist Haukur, who was borrowing a guitar from the previous band Mammút. The vocalist moved on to test the fan for its ability to carry his weight. If I were in Mammút I would never lend a guitar to Reykjavik! They are as abusive as they are loud, as reckless as their witless audience, as damaging as a wildebeest stampede, and no thing or person could escape from their wrath last night.

They treated the stage as a guideline, a home base to return to after seeing how far the mic cables could stretch into their bombed and wobbling crowd. Sure, I was able to identify a few key riffs within the thick mess of sound, but their strength is certainly not in their mastery of melody. Three guys created a flurry of tightly locked drum, guitar and bass jabs which gave guitarist Haukur and singer Bóas the freedom to throw out the rules of tonal harmony and do what any man might do with a stomach full of beer and a soul of black calcified rock: scream. They know the PA will distort and disguise the fact that they don't sing actual notes. Reykjavik!  is like the friend at a party that gets you funneling beers when you'd intended to merely have a few. Being in the room with them meant you had to headbang or get the fuck out. I did the former until even the venue had had enough; Reykjavik!,  a band as vehemently dedicated to the party as the city they're named after, had to move on and get the fuck out.

He captures the feel of one of those shows perfectly, DAMN why are some people so much better with words than me? Full original text is here.

Leave other reviews in the comments below if you can, leave your own top tens (especially if you set me the challenge!). Ta ta for now x

Iceland Airwaves - Saturday Review

Saturday at Airwaves, and as always half of the crowd disappeared off to the blue lagoon for a bit of pampering and relaxation at the hangover party. I haven't been for the last few years but I couldn't resist posting this fabulous photo which totally captures the spirit of the party taken there yesterday by Johan Eckerström. More of his excellent photographs can be found here.

Once I had employed (again) the world's best hangover cure (Icelandic hot sulphur water shower, windows wide open, skyr, expresso, expresso) I ventured out into the steady rain to search for that optimum balance of (a) seeing lots of off-venue shows and (b) keeping dry. Reykjavik! played an 'acoustic' show in the Lost Horse Gallery, which is a room with space for about 20 people in it. Now, however, it had around 50 in it and minds were concentrated on avoiding swinging guitar necks and splintering wood as Boas got 'acquainted' with the chairs. At Skifan, I caught some of Lara's set of pleasingly, head-shaking songs. But the store really filled up soon afterward for yet another show by this year's hardest working band, Mammut. Word clearly had spread around town that this is a young band well worth checking out, and again they delivered a high energy, hook heavy set and no doubt sold a few records too as they headed out to prepare for their next show later in the evening.

I started the evening (my last at Iceland Airwaves 2009) with my annual trip to see Jeff Who? play live. Every year (except last year when they suffered as a result of being in the festival's worst venue, but best hang-out, Hresso) I wonder why they aren't more successful. Their songs are obscenely catchy; guitar riffs and synth chords everywhere, and an audience full of huge grins. They look good too, as I overheard one possibly jealous guy say, "They just found the best looking man in Iceland and put him at the front of a band" - more to them than that, the guy can sing too, I'll leave his looks for others to debate! The show was great, and from my point of view it was nice to hear some songs from their superior first album like "Golden Age" and "Death Before Disco", before recent hit, "She's Got The Touch" brought Nasa to an early evening crescendo.

Out again into the chilliest evening of the festival for some serious venue, and genre, hopping as I attempted to see three excellent but different acts within an hour. First to Batteriid for ghostigital. The venue was running late, bad news, and a caught the very end of BB & Blake's set which didn't seem to have engaged too many, with the exceptional of two particularly keen girls swaying along at the barriers. Ghostigital set up very quickly, considering the amount of electronics which seem to go into their sound. This band is genius, Curver is a superb electronic musician pumping out massive beats and distorting the vocals of the King of Icelandic music, Einar Orn, as he barks about whatever he likes - variously tonight his subjects included trousers and hairy scary things that are "behind you". Einar Orn has the best crazed stare in all of music, and probably beyond. I left before the end of their set, reluctantly, as I knew by know at Idno Olafur Arnalds would be on stage. Olafur returned to Iceland especially for this show having been performing his score for a ballet in London, and I wish he had ben allocated a bigger venue. This guy is becoming an international music star and Idno was very cramped and very very hot - I saw people arrive but turn away immediately when they saw the crush, and felt the wall of humidity (or less politely, sweat). Sometimes, however, all this can be forgiven - the show was incredible. the audience stood in utter silence watching Olafur, in jacket and bow-tie, playing keyboard and laptop and his four piece string quarter deliver half an hour or so of the most stunning modern, electronic classical music. This style is so out of my normal taste, or even interest, but I find his songs irresistible. His "Found Songs" project is one of my most listened to pieces of music of the last 12 months and it's highlight "Ljosid" was also the highlight of this performance. The set ended abruptly, robbing us of one final song, when the technology failed and couldn't be recovered in time to keep the venue on schedule. there was one idiot vocalising frustration, but the rest of the audience drowned him out quickly with rapturous and deserved applause.

Into the streets again, delighted to be cooled down, and ready for a swift move up Laugavegur and into Grand Rokk for Jan Mayen. But hang on, what the hell is that noise - too loud surely to be coming from inside a venue. A passing truck held the answer, Dr Spock's (not that) secret gig was taking place, everywhere on the back of a moving truck! This was truly a piece of theatre; as always there were a few enormous rubber gloves, and the flamboyance we all love from this incredible live rock band as they carried on performing as the side of the truck opened and closed mechanically. They were followed by a lot of spectators, a mobile merchandise store and a long queue of surprisingly patient traffic. Delayed somewhat by the spectacle I arrived for the last few songs of Jan Mayen's only appearance at this year's Airwaves, but it told me all I needed to know. They remain one of Iceland's finest guitar bands, possessing some great, catchy indie tunes which would be at home on any radio station in any country. Let's hope for some new material soon.

Undecided where to head next, I ended up in the Art Museum (no queue!)  and was very glad to catch the end of Oh Land's main set having seen them at the hostel previously, and my timing was perfect as she closed with one my favourite songs of the year, "frostbite". The Cocknbullkid from London was on next, but this is not my cup of tea I'm afraid, so I left again to ensure my spot in Nasa for Reykjavik's finest young bands, Retro Stefson and FM Belfast. Both sets had a very similar vibe to last year, there's an excitement around this pair of bands that they are making sounds which could lead to success outside of the island. They were rapturously received as the home-grown young stars they are. Both sounded as fresh as they did last year, and performance wise, and visually, they had improved as bands. Retro Stefson delivered a familiar set of songs in at least four different languages and then FM Belfast brought my night to a close with fabulous dance music, bringing the house down, as in 2008, with their cover version of Rage Against The Machine's "Killing In The Name Of". A fitting end to my festival, it always seems to end in Nasa with something incredibly and deliriously 'dancy'! Often that has been GusGus who I will be very sad to miss this year, particularly as they have just delivered what just might be the best album of their long career. Don't miss it folks, and enjoy the party. Over and out...

If you were there, I'd love you to leave a comment below. What were the highlights? What sucked? What did I miss?

Iceland Airwaves - Friday Review

(Firstly, a big emotional thanks to everyone reading this - over 500 of you apparently in the last 24 hours, that's amazing. Thanks for putting with the ramblings, the spelling mistakes and the unprofessional photos. Cheers!)

The lateness of this post will tell you something of Friday night at Iceland Airwaves 2009. It was one of those that went long into the early hours of the next day and involved those funny Opal shots that taste as if they are a vodka/cough medicine cocktail. Which frankly is what they are, I can't think of many things more likely to kill germs. Delicious.

The off venue shows during the daytime were, as ever, an absolute delight. To recap briefly, I started at the hostel downtown to see the Danish former ballerina now known as Oh Land. I have ben completely charmed by her song "Frostbite" ever since I looked her up on Hype Machine and so she was one of the non-Icelanders I was determined to see. Her show was lo-fi, and low-key but delicate and beautiful. Off to Skifan to see Hafdis Huld again, she played the exact same set as the previous night in Nasa but that didn't matter too much as it was just as enjoyable again, including the second viewing of the pink flying V ukulele. She's also a tremendous saleswoman, she plugged her new album and next shows mercilessly and sold and signed quite a number after the show for her admirers. Well Done! There followed a little bit of running around to catch a few songs of Sykur (at kaffistofa), the Hudson Wayne (at 12 Tonar) and then, again in 12 tonar, for the brilliant Eberg who charmed the packed record shop with his one man show. Finally a quick jog to Skifan where I caught the last five minutes of hotly-tipped Canadians, Brasstronaut, who sounded nice!

So, huh, thinking back to the on venue stuff... the evening started at 8pm in the Art Museum with my first view of <3 Svanhvit (photos above, and left). It turns out it was my last look at them too, since this was their last ever show. That's a shame because this a humorous bunch with some good songs, and they brought the party to a fairly empty Art Museum. Firstly they called the audience further and further forward, then made us all stand on the left half, and then the right half - this must have bemused the latecomers. The show was full of youthful energy, as if the band UMTBS had gone from 4 to 8 people and then all learned different instruments. At the end they over-ran and were finally cut short by the organisers so they only managed to play the intro to what was to be their final performance together. A shame, I would have liked to see them again.

Once the over-priced (small) can of beer was drained it was off to set up camp in Sodoma for the entire evening. Thursday and Saturday are running around days, Friday's bill in Sodoma made movement unnecessary for once. For an hour or so it was pretty empty, I guess those who managed to get the limited Kings Of Convenience wristbands were all over at Frikirkjan settling in for their reward, and it seemed like most other festival goers were either in the Art Museum or in an enormous queue outside of it to see the inordinately trendy bands at Moshi Moshi night. Me, I was happy in the low ceilinged (?) rock dive over the road.

First Me, the Slumbering Napoleon and then Bob Justman played to a half empty room but both emerged successful due to their comfort at interacting with the audience, making friends as they went. Napoleon (can I abbreviate?) went about their normal, noisy, 70s rock-tinged with skill and had the audience's attention fixed on them throughout. Bob Justman had a few technical issues it seemed, not least the complete absence of his usual band, but won me over with charm and some above average singer-songwriter sounds.

Towards half past ten, the venue was suddenly rammed, a suitable reward for an excellent line-up. The always popular Dikta were next and after their somewhat lacklustre show the previous evening absolutely nailed it tonight. Every song in their set now seems familiar, and all the locals sure do know every word of the hits and belt them out. This was an absolute triumph of a show, and it is their songs that are still going around my head the best part of 24 hours (and a lot of music) later. Let Go, Breaking The Waves, Just Getting Started were all huge highlights.

Reykjavik! (photos, right) were up next, a change of pace, and for the most part it seemed a change of audience. At the front now were the kids who knew what was coming, who didn't mind the risk of a shoe in the head when Boas, inevitably, was being passed across above them. A few early technical issues were overcome with some traditional Icelandic singalongs or nursery rhymes (I'm guessing) and then for the foreigners, a rendition of Happy Birthday. The show was awesome, the atmosphere was electric. I spoke to them after the show and they felt it wasn't their best. I suspect they knew about some sort of technical flaws but these go totally unnoticed when the audience is pretty much there to shout, scream and party. There is nothing not to love about a Reykjavik! live show, they are irresistible as the force of their will to have a good time takes over everyone within touching distance. The photographers clearly know there are fun shots to be had, there were hundreds of them (OK, 10 or 12) waiting for that inevitable photo of one, two or even three (at one point) members of the band being in the audience. I must have seen this band something like 15 times now, and for me this was the best performance of all. Don't worry about the technical stuff guys, that's for the studio - play like that and everyone goes away grinning, and/or bleeding. Once again, I'll steal from the grapevine review (professionals!) who put it perfectly, "Few bands can make pretty much anybody and their bitter aunt crave being in the band and the audience at the same time for that matter. Reykjavik! accomplish this, like it is second nature. Their gig was like a carnival or a parade down a narrow street. It pulls you in, even if you are trying to hide from it"

After this I had to retire for some air to the 'roof terrace', in actual fact a smoking area - seriously I think this must be the most heavily polluted area in all of Iceland, no need for a fog machine. I was still catching my breath, and sinking cold goodness for much of the following set by American band Crystal Antlers but it slowly dawned upon me through conversations outside that this was another fabulous band. Similar in style to Reykjavik! they also put on a great show (and stayed on the stage at all times) of fuzzy punk rock that made me think of Iggy Pop at times, they're a band to keep an eye on.

Normally you wouldn't fancy the chances of a bunch of school kids following three such triumphant sets, but this was Sudden Weather Change (left). SWC have the confidence of a much more mature band, with one of the albums of the year already behind them they rose to the challenge of keeping the crowd up with ease. They often look like a bunch of kids playing at pretending to be rock stars, they have all the moves and throw the right shapes, but they actually deliver on the noise as well and they deserve all the credit for that. They had the boys in the front topless and throwing themselves around, and they had the girls leaning across the barriers to get closer. Like Reykjavik! they have an energy that you can't hide from.

Having said that, the end of their set coincided with my complete energy failure, I left the venue at the mercy of closers Aela and headed for sustenance. Exhausted.

Iceland Airwaves - Thursday Review

Airwaves Thursday was a good one. I seem to have posted on twitter when I got home that it was full of "random goodness and good randomness". Several hours later, I'll stick by that description. Looking at the line-up this looked like the weakest day of the festival and I thought that I would probably end up wandering around seeing where I arrived by chance.

Before the evening events however, I took in a couple of wonderful off-venue shows which always provide some of the most truly magical moments of every year here in Reykjavik. Firstly at the Iceland Music Export party at kaffistofan where a small gathering was treated to a blistering set, one of the best I've ever seen at Airwaves, by Mammut (photos to the right) who get better and more assured every year - they look great (if you like woolen 'snake' necklaces), sound great and have more than a couple of outstandingly catchy guitar songs, in particular "Rauðilækur" which is currently available as a free download as part of the Grapevine's Airwaves 2K9 compilation. But don't stop there, go out (in that rain) and get the album. They are one of those bands that make me genuinely excited every time and think they could break out in other markets.

I emerged, ears ringing from that living room style concert (with no volume sacrificed) and headed directly to 12 Tonar to see most of Rokkurro's set of cello-led gentle pop songs. They were soothing as ever and held those in attendance enthralled and then delighted (me especially) when they threw in the odd moment of rocking out, it's a style that really suits them. Amusingly, as they played their last note, and said their thank-yous the audience was silent for about 10 or 15 seconds, as if nobody wanted to be the first to break the moment. Eventually everybody got the courage, mostly to say "did you know they are on again in an hour at the art museum?". A triumph then!

Not much time then to turn around and get out for the evening which was due to start at 19:30 with Fjallabræður at Nasa, where I first saw them a year ago. I made the mistake of turning on the TV in the flat briefly and was therefore late for the start as I couldn't help staying glued to the balloon without a small boy inside it story. What a waste of time. I got there 10 minutes late in the end and was really delighted to see how many people had made the effort to make the early start to see this truly unique and special band. Around 30 fishermen in suits singing/chanting along backed by drums, lead guitar and a violin - they make the most inspiring noise and as the grapevine review this morning says, "Fuck, man. These guys are sure to have even the worst choir hater loving them. Fjallabræður really are incomparable with anything else on the Icelandic music scene." I don't see how they can translate the majesty of these live performances onto CD, but I look forward to hearing what they come up with.

So early in the night and no firm plan of where to go next. I headed for the Art Museum and the folk-tinged rock of Lights On The Highway, followed by the bigger, more sweeping sounds of Dikta. Dikta sound like a band that would be at home in a larger arena, they certainly filled the art museum with their commercial sounding radio rock songs.

Then, back over to Nasa as I had decided to see Hafdis Huld despite her being UK based these days, and therefore not hard to see back home. I've just read the fairly unfriendly review in grapevine, and although I see where it comes from, I always find Hafdis a delight to watch with her set of catchy (and unavoidably cute) pop-songs delivered with an (unavoidably cute) personality. Highlights included "Diamonds In my Belly" and the spiderman song, "Kongulo". The set also included one of the greatest instruments I've ever seen (and there are a few at Airwaves) - if you remember those ald fashioned V-shaped guitars that old school metallers used to use, well this was a ukelele version. The guy playing it got the joke, and the audience loved his "foot on the speaker stack" solo (below, right). Awesome!

Back out into the night, which by the way was absolutely beautiful - a clear, pitch black sky dotted with stars, and I headed to Sodoma to see Mammut for the second time in a few hours. However, there was a huge queue (good for them) and despite the press pass I decided (a) it will be packed inside and (b) I saw them play an awesome set hours ago so I moved back and went to Idno where I saw, wait for it... a non-Icelandic act. Nina Kinert has had some success outside of her native Sweden and I had downloaded and liked a few of her songs beforehand so it wasn't completely unknown. The audience in Idno was strange, in that it must have been 90% female, and actually very quiet - I couldn't tell whether they were silent in awe-struck appreciation, or slightly sleepy. I gave it 4 or 5 pleasant enough songs (about killing lovers and the like) and made my way back outside to wander further, stopping just breifly to gaze at Frikirkjan by the lake where Hjaltalin were playing a set with a chamber orchestra which I'll bet was pretty special.

Thursday night, like the night before, was meant to end with Hoffman who are back at the festival after a year or two off but once again they had to cancel, swine flu I believe. Instead, more running around, finishing the night with 4 bands. Danish band Alaska In Winter left me uninspired in nasa, they (well, he) makes good records that I've been ipoding quite a lot in the run-up to Airwaves but I can't quite handle a live act that is one person on stage, playing one instrument, while a backing track does the rest. I can't argue however with the atmosphere in the club, he had the place jumping for sure. Next stop was Batteriid for the first time this year to take in some of Sykur's set, a member of the thriving electronica scene in Reykjavik. The audience was young, nearly all locals, determined to have a good time and the place was hot, oh so hot! With their debut album just in stores now, this was Sykur's chance to impress and they didn't fail it.

Last stop for the night was Sodoma (it really is called that, must mean something else here) which had emptied out after Mammut's show so it was easy to get in, get a beer, and get near the stage for American rockers Kidcrash who played that familiar college hardcore stuff, and did it pretty well. Finally it was left to Who Knew, rather than Hoffman, to finish the night with a set of bouncy, catchy rock perfect for the uniformly very drunk clientele left in the place. Moshtastic.

Iceland Airwaves - Wednesday review

Wow - so the first night is behind us already, it was a bit of a blur. the main thing that strikes me is how firendly this place is. I lost count of the number of familiar faces from previous years I have bumped into already, everybody wants to chat, to compare plans and suggestions, and to share beer.

I started the night in Sodoma to see Bummer, the new project of the always awesome Þórir who also appears as My Summer As A Salvation Soldier (quiet, acoustic) and in the band Gavin Portland (loud, hardcore). This new band sit in a happy middle ground, easy to tell that they made a good impression - the area front of stage was deserted when they started and pretty full when they left, a very well deserved success - I can't wait to hear some recorded stuff from this trio (+ drum machine!).

From then on it was Nasa all the way, which meant I had to miss out on Hoffman and particularly Retro Stefson, but I'll get to them later in the week!

I caught around 30 seconds of Retron's set, so I can't really say much. It was certainly loud and the crowd was fairly sweaty as they emerged towards the bars after they stopped. I suspect some fun was had! Mordingjarnir were up next, and the crowd was never still for a moment. Essentially this is old fashioned rabble-rousing punk-rock, with some exceptionally catchy moments. Their song "Afram Island" ticks every single box in the catchy punk sing-a-long checklist. Their new CD sits happily in my goody bag awaiting a listen, and now I'm looking forward to it even more.

Reykjavik! (picture above and right)came up next. They are a fabulous band, they deliver time after time at Airwaves, and no doubt throughout the year as well. Airwaves just wouldn't be the same without seeing these guys a few times. I can't remember where I read the quote (I wish I could credit it) but the article had gone through a few bands, labelling them awesome, and got to Reykjavik! and called them, "the band makes awesome an understatement". This is so true. I suspect they are an even better event in a smaller room but they whipped up a frenzy last night with awesome versions of "The Blood", "Kate Bush", "Repticon" and others. I can't wait to see them at Sodoma on Friday, with these guys the smaller the venue is, the more intense and magnified the performance gets. Get there early.

They were followed, oddly, by Swedish dance act Juvelen. I thought they were fabulous for 5 minutes, good for 15 minutes but soon became a bit repetitive. I relinquished my spot at the front of the stage to search out friendly faces, beer and cooler air towards the back of Nasa.

I woke up again for Kimono who followed after a very lengthy changeover. Often labelled experimental, but I'm not sure I agree - their stuff is interesting but essentially a guitar led three piece. The songs were accessible, despite half of them being new to me. The crowd was (inexplicably) thinner once Juvelen had finished up, but Kimono got the atmosphere up again and went down really well. This set everything up nicely for the evening's headliners - Sudden Weather Change. These guys have incredible energy, their good time attitude is infectious and gets right through the room beyond the fan cub they seem to have at the front of every show. A great set, all based around their fabulous debut album which I urge everyone to get hold of.

An excellent opening night, involving all the reasons why this festival is so addictive. And, typically, I emerged from a hot sweaty venue into a howling wind and rain... and headed directly to the hot-dogs. The weather has to get a lot worse to deny me that end of night pleasure!

(apologies for the photo quality, I don't think the camera is best designed for fast moving indoor gigs!)

Iceland Airwaves: Recipe For A Good Time

So, I said I would give a top ten bands to see, but I can't get it that low. Here's a very rough plan (my plan) of the main places to be this week. These are all main festival shows, but keep an eye on the off-venue stuff too (Eberg at 12 Tonar on Friday afternoon should be a huge treat for example). And if there's a queue somewhere, go somewhere else - the best magic is the unexpected stuff...

And yes, some of these shows clash. You can't win them all! Most acts are playing more than once so study the schedule hard!

WEDNESDAY

SODOMA:     20:00 Bummer
NASA:         21:40 Reykjavik!
NASA:         23:30 Kimono
NASA:         00:20 Sudden Weather Change

THURSDAY

NASA:         19:30 Fjallabraedur
ART MUSEUM:     21:10 Dikta
GRAND ROKK:    21:40 Vicky
NASA:        22:00 Hafdis Huld
SODOMA:        22:30 Mammut
GRAND ROKK:    00:10 Hoffman

FRIDAY

ART MUSEUM:    20:00 <3 Svanhvit
SODOMA:        20:00 Barujarn
SODOMA:        22:30 Dikta
SODOMA:     23:20 Reykjavik!
SODOMA:        01:10 Sudden Weather Change
GRAND ROKK:    01:20 Foreign Monkeys

SATURDAY

NASA:        20:50 Jeff Who?
BATTERIID:    21:40 Ghostigital
IDNO:        22:00 Olafur Arnalds
ART MUSEUM:    22:30 Oh Land
GRAND ROKK:    22:50 Jan Mayen
ART MUSEUM:     00:20 Pall Oskar & Hjaltalin
NASA:        00:20 Retro Stefson
NASA:        01:10 FM Belfast

SUNDAY

SODOMA:        21:40 Esja
NASA:         23:40 GusGus

Iceland Airwaves Preview #4 - The slightly late edition

The final part of my Iceland Airwaves preview is a little bit last minute, I'm writing this on the plane (Iceland Express, very good!) ready to post as soon as I can get a connection at the hotel. Then later on I'll post up my ideas for 10 events not to miss at Iceland Airwaves 2009.

First up is Petur Ben, sadly not performing at the festival this year - but if you want to buy or gift an Icelandic CD that will meet with universal approval I strongly suggest you pick his album up, it will be in all the music stores. He also plays on Mugison's stunning album, Mugiboogie. Petur Ben is a top man! He's currently working on new music for a soundtrack and felt too out of touch to talk about the international acts, so I let him talk about more than five Icelandic ones instead...

 Klink, This is a band that oozes danger. Legendary hardcore outfit that features Aggi from Lights on the highway. Never got to see them in their golden years...now's your chance.

Foreign Monkeys, with new release this year. Haven't heard them in a while but last time I looked they knocked me on heavens door.

Sudden Weather Change, Another band I haven't seen except on TV. Killer songs, cool kids on the block, stick your pants in your socks get on the buzzzz.

Lights on the highway, also with a new release this year. Just a volcanic band that makes ear-worms that will eat your brains out.

Dr Spock, this is a band that you have to see if you come to Iceland. Craziest rock'n roll act on the planet.
 
Leaves, also with a new release. I missed their release concert. They always surprise you with their majestic beauty. Really good songs sung by a Lion.

Langi Seli og skuggarnir, They're a rockabilly band that's been around for 20 or so years and their recent grenade is an album with DJ Magic (Gisli Galdur).  Just gotta see this.

Kimono, I haven't heard this fantastic band in years. They are band of really uncanny individuals that make an incredible whole.
 
Hjaltalin, Excellent band that has a new album on the way.

Eberg/Feldberg - two of ebergs projects. Very catchy electro tunes that surprise you with humour, attractive kinky-ness and love.


Stuart Rogers is one of those foreign (non-Icelanders) who has become charmed, seduced and ultimately fallen in love with the Icelandic music scene - trust me, I recognise the symptoms. Stuart is a New York City based Australian DJ/film-maker/lots of other talents too. He regularly features Icelandic music on his NY radio show, and you can check out an amazing website of his work here.

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Sorry mate, I'm greedy. Here's 6 in no particular order -

Agent Fresco
FM Belfast
Hafdis Huld
Mammut
Retro Stefson
Reykjavik!

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Micachu & The Shapes


 Fjallabræður were the revelation of Iceland Airwaves 2009 for me. One of those bands you see by  accident, a real right place at the right time moment. They are a rock band (there are drums and a guitar) but with about 30 singers, all fishermen and all wearing tuxedos. Never the same line-up twice, some of them are always out fishing! And they make the most incredible, magical noise, you must see them. When I interviewed them after their amazing show last year, they told me their show had clearly gone very well since "quite a few of us got laid". They are first up (19:30) in Nasa on Thursday, please try to see them!

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Agent Fresco 
Elín Ey
For a minor reflection
Lára
Vicky

Which international acts are you excited to see?

We are very excited to see Eivor Pálsdóttir from the Faroe Islands.  Don't miss her, she is magical!


Finally, a band I'll be seeing in a few hours from now. The talents of Sudden Weather Change are well documented on this blog, most recently in the interview here. As trendy young things of the Icelandic scwnw, who do they suggest we check out at Iceland Airwaves 2009?...

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Me, The slumbering Napoleon
Reykjavík!
MIRI
Swords of Chaos
Skelkur í Bringu

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Crystal Antlers... thats pretty much it for us compared to all the great local acts.


So that's it for the previews, apart from mine which will follow on later today - for now I must save and switch off, the nice Iceland Express lady might start to get impatient...

Iceland Airwaves Preview #3 - The 'nearly there' edition...

Just back in the UK after a little, but wonderful, jaunt to Philadelphia (sport rather than music related). Enough time to unpack, and then pack again as I'll be hopping on with those adorable Iceland Express people tomorrow and landing in Reykjavik in time for the first evening's entertainment for Iceland Airwaves 2009. And, excitement upon excitement - the detailed schedule for the festival has been released so I suspect I'll spend most of the flight plotting a route through the carnage and beauty of the next 5 days. You can see the schedule booklet in all its glory right here.

On with the expert previews though - 4 today, and then I hope the last 4 will be posted tomorrow in time for 'kick-off'. Keep your fingers crossed. For today, wehave representatives from some of the finest bands Airwaves 2009 will have to offer for your pleasure. Enjoy,

Dikta are a band with heart and soul, enormous vocals and sweeping sounds. Last year they filled The Art Museum with a noise that headiners Vampire Weekend and CSS struggled to match when they followed onto the stage. They're a band on top of their game right now. Here's what Skúli from the band had to tell me (and I LOVE his second answer!),

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Agent Fresco, Mammút, Ourlives, Cliff Clavin, Jeff Who?

Which international acts are you excited to see?

There are international acts? Sorry, but the international acts suck. They get their asses handed to them every year by prettier and superior Icelandic bands. I just hope they spend some of their euros and dollars here.

Next up, Gylfi from the band Kimono. Their performance at this year's festival is much anticipated. Their outings are rare but always special and we're looking forward to hearing some new tunes from them. I've only seen them once before, and I'm hoping to catch them this time around. Over to Gylfi...

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Me, The Slumbering Napoleon, Ólafur Arnalds, Swords Of Chaos, Who Knew, Bárujárn ....just to name a few of the ones i'm excited about.

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Acutally, none. For me this festival is all about the Icelandic bands and the energy that they reflect. Rarely does an international band make a big impact on me at Airwaves, with the exception of Plants and Animals or Brazilian Girls when they played.

I think I've watched Mammut (right) at least once for the last 5 festivals. No doubt I will see them again this year. Good looking youngsters, making melodic and memorable guitar songs - everyone will be charmed. They are high on my must-see list, but what do they think...

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Agent Fresco, Dikta, Who Knew, Cliff Clavin and <3 Svanhvít.

Which international acts are you excited to see?

I really want to see Casiokids, Kings of Conveinience and Black Cherry.

Finally for today, another band for the must-see list. Please don't go through the festival without catching FM Belfast. You will have a ball, you will smile insanely, and you wont worry becasue everyone will be doing the same. If you like great electronic dance music, a cast of thousands on stage, balloons, confetti, people dressed as bears and the like, you're in for a treat. Their Rage Against The Machine cover (Killing In The Name Of) mgiht well be the unofficial anthem of Airwaves. Unmissable.

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Pedro Pilatus, Retro Stefson, Reykjavík!, Miri, Sudden Weather Change.

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Micachu and the Shapes
Alaska in Winter
Casiokids

Iceland Airwaves Preview #2 - The ROCK! edition

Part two is devoted to the noisy stuff, the loud stuff and the sweaty stuff - and three bands that would grace any rock scene anywhere in the world.

Starting with Dr. Spock - awesome name, and one of Iceland's favourite live acts, they always get a big and appreciative audience at the festival. If you like your rock with humour, with balaclavas, and with rubber gloves - then these are the boys for you. Highly rated by Kerrang magazine in their review of last year - if you like that sort of thing! Here's what they had to say,

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Cynic Guru, Agent Fresco, Lights On The Highway, Gus Gus, Cliff Clavin.

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Kings Of Convenience

What are your Airwaves plans this year?

Playing material from our last album Falcon Christ with new songs in the mix and surprise elements not to be disclosed.

Next up is Vicky, (it's five people, not just one despite the name and the photo I picked!) formerly known as Vicky Pollard after the "hilarious" British comedy character. Even the band email address is yeahbutno@..... - nice touch. This is a loud and exciting live band, bizzarely once bigged up by British tabloid bogroll, The Sun. They look great and sound great and are well worth a visit - highly recommended!

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

We made god, Gordon riots, Agent Fresco, Cliff Clavin and Fjallabræður of course!

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Cancer bats..... definitely fucking Cancer bats!!!

What are your Airwaves plans this year?

We'll be playing Airwaves on Thursday night at Grand rock and then off venue shows TBA all over town around the festival playing some brand new songs!!! -and you'll definitely find us shitfaced downtown all weekend.. and when you do, buy us a drink and we'll give you something special. And also check out our new video online!!

And last but not least we have a young man named Haukur. Haukur is essentially the KING OF ICELAND. Not only the guitarist, and lead mentalist as alter ego TheEdge (hasn't that been used?), in the very probably best band Iceland has to offer, Reykjavik! but he's also got a sensible day job as editor of the fabulous English language newspaper Grapevine (whose daily Airwaves editions have fallen victim to economic problems and will be hugely missed this year). Not enough? He's also a leading light of the wonderful icelandmusic.is (where this very blog is so kindly featured!). Take a look at that face ---> it will be everywhere, you should say hi to it. And you MUST NOT miss the chance to see Reykjavik! live. People who remain unaffected by their live performace are as rare as they are wrong. Lord, people who remain literally untouched by roaming frontman Boas are also very, very rare indeed. He knows his shit this boy, so Haukur...

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

My own band Reykjavík!, Bárujárn, Swords of Chaos, The Drums (not Icelandic my friend!), Sudden Weather Change

Which international acts are you excited to see?

Micachu, Kings of Convenience

What are your Airwaves plans this year?

Playing songs, drinking beers x

Iceland Airwaves Preview #1

It's only a week (and a bit) until Iceland Airwaves 2009 starts, people should be getting excited. And I should be blogging more.

So, I've had a load of people, mainly Airwaves virgins getting in touch and asking for advice - especially around what local bands they should go to watch. Some of them wondering if they should even bother with the local bands. Seriously, THIS IS A GREAT MUSIC SCENE, GO AND SEE THE ICELANDERS. OK?

I could help with this question, which Icelandic bands to prioritise. But I could also get some help. I've asked a load of great Icelandic musicians for their thoughts. And if you want to know what i think, I'll get to that nearer the time but for now... if I've asked a band for their views. it is because they themselves are a great band!

I have a lot of travelling to do before I turn up in Reykjavik for Airwaves but I will do my best to keep up a steady flow of these articles now. Today, I'll start off with two of the quieter acts around, and both are simply awesome.

My Summer As A Salvation Soldier has been making music for years now. This is the performance name
of a great guy called Þórir, who makes gorgeous, mellow albums by himself (as well as playing in some of Iceland's hardcore bands like the exceptional Gavin Portland and new project, Bummer). He first came to my attention when I heard his cover of Outkast's "Hey Ya" in a record shop, but there's so much more to him than that, check out myspace. Bummer will be playing the main festival, but look out for Þórir, or more likely My Summer As A Salvation Soldier, on the off-venue listings - it will be intimate, friendly, emotional and beautiful.

For now you can download (FOR FREE!) a brand new and superb 5 track E.P. here or get a physical version from Lefse Records. And as for the rest of the festival...

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Well to me the airwaves festival is just as much about the local bands playing constantly everywhere during the weekend as it is about the international acts. But having to narrow it down to 5 I'd say:

Me, the Slumbering Napoleon - Possibly (and probably) the best new band in Iceland these days. They play heavy loud and aggressive indie rock. Highly recommended.

Kimono - They're just one of those bands you don..t want to miss when they play. Because they don..t play often and they're always perfect.

Sword of Chaos - Very noisy punk rock. Fast and chaotic and a heap of stage presence.

Go Go Darkness - A new project from Henrik from Singapore Sling. He's one of my favorite songwriters around and what little I've heard from this project is amazing so I'm very excited to see that.

Bummer - A new project of mine. Loud catchy messy punk songs.

Which international acts are you excited to see?

There are a few this year. Micachu and the Shapes should be a good show. The Field is a big favorite of mine and Crystal Antlers should be good.

Ólafur Arnalds makes very modern classical music that I just cannot do justice to in words. He's had me utterly charmed all year with his founds songs project where, initially via twitter, he recorded and released 7 songs in seven days. You can check them out on the link just above, and the songs proved so popular that they have now become a physical release, again via the link above.

I think, well Óli thinks, he'll be playing at the Art Museum on Saturday night. There will doubtless be a whole lot going on at that point, but I can't think of many things I could recommend more highly. And as for the rest of the festival,

Name 5 UNMISSABLE Icelandic bands at Airwaves 2009?

Oculus, Kimono, Agent Fresco, Gus Gus and Gone Postal

Which international acts are you excited to see?

I probably wont see much as I'm premiering the ballet Dyad 1909 with my score in London the same week and don't arrive to Iceland until Saturday, just in time for my show. But if I could I would go see Kings of Convenience!

In Praise Of... Sudden Weather Change

Sudden Weather Change are a mightly fine band. They got my attention at Airwaves last year with a free CD demo (free stuff is so great). The CD was very good, but it was followed by an album in 2009 that was better than I had expected, seriously one of the best collections I've heard all year. It has the snappy title of, "Stop! Handgrenade In The Name Of Crib Death 'nderstand?", but you can call it SHIT NO CD if you like.

SO, I've tracked down the boys for an iceblah style questioning, so hit play just below, and prepare to be puzzled...

Let's start with the obvious, "Sudden Weather Change" - something to do with the unstable Icelandic climate?

No

OK, fair enough, so what's your favourtite weather? (these questions get better)

Probably "indian summer", where you wake up and dont expect anything good but the autumn day turns out a bright, hot one, just like in the middle of July.

And the album title... how many beers before you came up with that? Can you explain it!?

We had an English class together in college, and we were reading these articles about crib death, war, handgrenades and others that take on some of the most horrible things in life... So we ended up puzzling some of the words together and they sound really good together, mostly rhythm wise...

How did the band get together? one of you guys doesn't sound very Icelandic to me...

We were all studying art in college (back in the day) and sat at the same table during lunch breaks and discovered our similar taste and opinions about music... we started as a 11-piece noise band, but only 5 of us wanted to keep going and pay rent for rehearsal space.

What about the sound you make, I saw drownedinsound used words like fizz and fuzz to describe you last year - have you got any better descriptions? What bands influence you?

Our music is like a game of puzzle... when you have 3 guitars, a bass, a drum, and some vocals you have to work things out... and really think about each member like a unit... and when you got 5 small units, working theyre way through sound-exploration youll get a new "whole"... which is best described as a puzzle... yes, our sound is like a game of... puzzle.

Your concerts are like a party, are they all your mates down at the front with their shirts off?

It started out as a trend between some of our friends, but now everybody seems to be getting into it.

And what's wrong with Nicholas Cage? Is he so bad?

Have you seen that film... yes, the one he's in?? by the way, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZhciDUvnlY

What other stuff are you listening to at the moment?

Fugazi, Flying Lotus, some reggae, Q and not U, Botnleðja (greatest icelandic band ever lived), Crystal Antlers (look forward to see them at Airwaves) and various mixdiscs with heavy some noise music.

Thanks so much, where can non Icelanders get hold of the CD?

The album will be out on the 2nd of October all over Europe and for US residents it will come out on the 27th of October... but gogoyoko.com, tonlist.com also have them for sale. For further updates check out the Kimi-website!

Thanks very much for your time, see you in October at Airwaves. And so should you all...

Iceland Airwaves 2009 Update

So, It's been a busy few days for Airwaves 2009. I've got my press pass :-) and I've just booked my flights and my festival pass directly from the main website at www.icelandairwaves.is - they've also got something called a 'friends of airwaves' card which gets you discounts on merchandise, food, drinks etc. (of course I did!).

And after my recent post about international acts, I'm really interested to see a rapidly increasingly number of confirmed acts. Some I've heard of, some I haven't. I don't think (I can't remember) seeing any of them before and I can tell you that I'll be devoting a lot of the next week to listening to all of these artists. Right now, I can't get awesome Norwegians Casio Kids, "Fot I Hose" out of my head. Iceland Airwaves has a great track record of identifying great bands for the festival, looks like another good line-up is on the way in 2009.

I'll be back soon with a few hints and tips, and the iceblah build-up will be underway (surely I can't beat 25 interviews last year). For now, here's the full list of International bands confirmed...

22 (NOR)
Alaska In Winter (DE)
BC (NOR)
Bodi Bill (DE)
Brasstronaut (CA)
Casiokids (NO)
Christine Owman (SE)
Crystal Antlers (US)
Culture Reject (CA)
Darling Don’t Dance (DK)
James Yuill (UK)
Jessica 6 (US)
Juvelen (SE)
KAKKMADDAFAKKA (NO)
Kasper Bjørke (DK)
Kidcrash (US)
Kings Of Convenience (NO)
Metronomy (UK)
Micachu & The Shapes (UK)
Moto Boy (SE)
Nina Kinert (SE)
Oh Land (DK)
The Drums (US)
The Field (SE)
The Golden Filter (US)
The Megaphonic Thrift (NO)
The New Wine (NO)
The Postelles (US)
The Tiny (SE)
Thecocknbullkid (UK)
Trentemøller (DK)
Vinnie Who (DK)
Wareika (DE)
When Saints Go Machine (DK)
Yumiko (IT)

Good to see a good few mad names in there as ever, this list is also on the official site here (from where I nicked it!) together with profiles and links. Check it out.

It's Múm week... "It's just a love song with fish"

How wonderful, a whole week of that excellent and tasteful drowned in sound website looked after by the members of Múm. All this, of course, is building towards their much anticipated new album, "Sing Along To Songs You Don't Know" which you can and should pre-order from here.

Múm week started today with two excellent articles,

The Icelandic Music Scene After The Economic Collapse

Discover Three Young Reykjavik Bands

Added on August 11th, track by track feature on the new album includes the fabulous quote, "The lyrics aren't as strange as some might think, it's just a love song with fish."

Wednesday's update, Orvar's playlist, "Songs To Drown In A Lake To" featuring many things of beauty including Slowblow's incredible cover version of Brothers In Arms.

And Thursday... the week gets odder and it gets better. This time, Orvar interviews Brazilian soccer legend Socrates.

And for Friday they've added something that sounds very helpful - I'm sure a lot of us have had the problem of how to spend a rainy day in Reykjavik, and now Múm have given a list of ten things (with ten helpful polaroid photos) to pass those wet afternoons right here.

And to make it all complete, at this link you can download - for free - the first single from the album. Why wouldn't you?

Dear Iceland Airwaves...

Overseas bands & fantasy festivals...

In the last post I said that I like the foreign bands at Airwaves to be ones that are popular and cool but that I don't like - so I get more chance (and more space) to see the bands I do like. Well that made me think of 2 things. Firstly, how many fabulous non-Icelandic bands I have seen over the years at Airwaves, and secondly what sort of overseas bands would I really love to appear of the Airwaves website as confirmed 2009 artists.

So Mr Airwaves, (or should that be Mr Destiny?), some non-Icelandic bands that I would love to see this year, and that are mostly reasonably possible. But, you know, you could still call Prince - he might fancy it.

The Blizzards - (right) Fast-rising Irish guitar pop band, awesome debut album coming soon, one of those you can book now and be very pleased with come October. They remind me of Jeff Who? Judge for yourself...

White Collar Weapons - long-time iceblah faves, now getting some UK radio play.

Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer - (down and right) I admit I *might* be related to this one. But live entertainment (and that is the right word) don't get much better. Done Glastonbury, off to the Edinburgh Festival. The BBC said "pure genius"

Phoenix - too big already? They just sound right for Airwaves. Certainly very cool. Adorable new album this year.

Passion Pit - Get us dancing. Even me. The Neo Tokyo remix of Sleepyhead is one of the best things heard all year...

Fight Like Apes - Great singles like 'Tie Me Up With Jackets', fine album, great live - easy choice.

Hockey, Carolina Liar - together because I get them a bit confused, great songs though and good rising profile.

Teitur - Easy - do the Faroes even count as overseas?

Fanfarlo - Huge credit for (1) album initially priced at $1, still only $5.99 (2) and it's really good.

Lily Allen - swoon (right).

Alaska In Winter - What's that? You already have? Good work. Love that one about speedboats.

So, the bad news is that while I've been putting this list together applications for overseas bands for this year has closed. I'll choose to ignore that and dream on anyway. Still, the promoters would surely wish to act on this beautifully curated list. Or not.

And to part two - my ten personal favourite non-Icelanders seen at Airwaves festivals past...

2004
Hot Chip at Nasa and in 12 Tonar

2005
Jose Gonzales in 12 Tonar
The Perceptionists in Gaukur

2006
We Are Scientists in Gaukur
Tilly & The Wall (left) in 12 Tonar and Art Museum
Patrick Watson in Gaukur

2007
The Teenagers in Nasa
Bloc Party in The Art Museum

2008
Boys In A Band pretty much everywhere
Matias Tellez in Organ

Great memories, and I surprised myself slightly by leaving out so much great stuff; The Bravery & Keane back in 2004, AuRevoir Simone & Architecture In Helsinki the following year and Metric & Amanda Blank in 2006 etc etc. And I thought I was all about the Icelanders.

So, in a rare appeal to the massive readership of this blog, please send in your non-Icelandic Airwaves highlights to me as a comment to this post...

I'm Not In A Band

Not that talented.

I've had a deluge. I've had 3 whole messages to this blog in the last week - trust me, that's more than usual. They accused me (playfully!) respectively of

1. being in a band (and therefore motivated by self-interest)
2. being in the music industry (and therefore motivated by self-interest)
3. being Icelandic.

In reverse order...

I'm not Icelandic, I sometimes wish I was. If I was Icelandic I guess I might be in a band.

I'm in the publishing industry, I stop myself from writing about books too much.

I'm not in a band. I love bands, curiously I especially love Icelandic bands. And when I love them, I write about them. And if something good happens to them, I'll tell you - not because I'm in a band.

So I'm quickly going to tell you that iceblah's favourite London-based-non-Icelandic band, White Collar Weapons, got the lead song from their debut E.P. played on iceblah's favourite London-based-non-Icelandic radio station, xfm. And excitingly, you can replay the glory here.

And if I can work the technology, you should be able to play another track from that E.P. "Birds" below.

Iceland Airwaves 2009 Bands and why bad is good...

...I think a least half of the people who arrive at my little blog from google have typed in "Iceland Airwaves 2009", (although maybe that could change if I type Britney Spears Naked a bit more often).  Most of you keen googlers probably already know that, after some doubt, Iceland Airwaves 2009 in Reykjavik has been confirmed for the 14th to the 18th October :-)

So now the fun starts, the fun of the slow and steady release of the names of the bands getting booked for the festival, the fun ofthe schedule being released and trying to plot a course to see all the best stuff, and the fun of iceblah trying to interview about 20 of the acts in a week beforehand!

If I'm honest, when the bands are announced what I'm really hoping for are some international bands who are trendy, popular, cool but that I don't like. I'm an Icelandic music fan, a "loveable Icelandic music nerd" according to Iceland Express. I go to Airwaves to see Icelandic bands, so the more people who are lured to see cool things from elsewhere the better, I don't want to miss my favourite Icelanders. That's not to say I will shun all overseas bands, I've seen some great stuff over the years from bands like Bloc Party, The Perceptionists and plenty plenty more, but I will pick and choose, and keep everything crossed for an iceblah-friendly schedule.

The first slice of artists for Iceland Airwaves 2009 was announced late last week, the international list is the not for the romantically tender (!) including Metronomy (best track - Heatbreaker) and Nina Kinert (pictured to the right, best track - Heartbreak Town). James Yuill is an interesting one, I've been a fan of his brand of folktronica for a couple of years. The other overseas acts signed up are Micachu And The Shapes, Thecocknbullkid, Casio Kids, Golden Filter & The Golden Silvers. So if I was in a band called The Golden Kids, I'd fancy my chances of getting an Airwaves 09 booking!

But of course the main point is the Icelanders, and a lovely long list is announced...

Reykjavik!, Mammut, FM Belfast, Jeff Who?, Retro Stefson, Hjaltalin, Sudden Weather Change, GusGus, Dikta, Eberg, Olafur Arnalds, Esja, Benny Crespo's Gang, Agent Fresco, Vicky, Eberg, Leaves, Aela, Oculus, Me The Slumbering Napoleon, Swords Of Chaos, Dynamo Fog, Langiseli, Barujarn, Sykur, Skuggarnir and Miri.

Heaven. See you there, and keep coming back here for more Iceland Airwaves 2009 stuff soon.

Between here and Iceland, there's the Faroes

Every time I open a newspaper or magazine, a little (OK, large) part of me is wondering if there will by some chance be an article about Icelandic music. These discoveries are a delight, exciting to see coverage, and exciting to have that rare experience of knowing better than a journalist (sometimes!).  In today's copy of The Observer - that's Britain's Sunday paper for intelligent people - was their very brilliant monthly music magazine. And what was inside as their feature article was possibly even more surprising than that much sought for Icelandic homage. Pages and pages about the music scene in The Faroe Islands, featuring the lovely Eivor Palsdottir (left) and the genuinely excellent Boys In A Band (right).

I'm really fond of Boys In A Band, and judging by the number of shows at Airwaves 2008, and the reception they got every single time, so is Iceland. They mix old fashioned rock with a slice of irony and something of the modern UK indie scene. Clash magazine got it perfectly, "They sound like The Strokes without that crushing pretension ruining it all or Jet with some balls and talent". They could be huge, maybe even should be huge. And I think that about a lot of the Icelandic bands too - so why not? It is possible of course that I am just massively biased towards Iceland, but I'm not alone - there a lot of people who hear bands like Mammut or Jeff Who? and agree that they sound like a big popular band. The article in The Observer today might shed some light on it, and confirm what I have suspected and heard elsewhere; that it is possible that these guys don't want to be famous (imagine that in these times of reality TV), that they feel safe and satisfied in Iceland or The Faroe Islands, there's no need to take that risk - they all have jobs and families. Here's a bit from the interview,

"It's hard to leave a place like this for the dangers of life on the road," says Heri. "On the Faroes, nothing is a matter of life or death. You will never be homeless or fucked up."

"It's a safe nest where nothing bad will happen," adds bass player Sakaris, who, as the only band member to live in the capital of Tórshavn, is known as the Big City Boy. (Tórshavn is about the size of a reasonably large field.) "You can leave for five years and when you come back the people look and act exactly the same."

"There was a guy that took a safe from a bank and tried to get it in his car," says Heri, as he racks his brain to recall some drama. "He was in prison for two days. The safe was empty anyway."

It's an excellent piece, I'm not going to paste any more of it on here - I really suggest you go and check it out by clicking here.

And, by the way Eivor and BIAB - you are in the UK press, how about a tour?

A Hero Returns!

Oh Yes, you have to love Eurovision don't you! And this year I got it just right, I missed all of the music and sat down with beer and delicious kebab to watch the highlight... the voting. Now, I hadn't done any research, I didn't know that Norwegian eyebrow man was hot favourite, I was expecting another Eastern Block clean sweep. So, yes, Norway won by about a thousand points. But who's this in second place. The gorgeous Yohanna of Iceland, sticking two fingers up in Azerbaijan's face.

This was a perfect result for Iceland. I suspect the joy might have turned slightly to terror if they had been slightly closer to the eyebrows man. The thought of hosting and paying for next year's competition would be slightly scary. I'm not sure, I think a low budget affair in Nasa would be something quite special and Iceland of course has loads of bands they could enter that are frankly so good that they would stand no chance at all of winning it again.

Even in the relative absence of tactical voting, there was still some amusement to be had. The UK, perhaps aiming for some kind of forgiveness by means of Eurovision points awarded Iceland a weighty 8 points. Iceland, not impressed, gave the UK a well deserved zero.

Twitter also showed its true worth during Eurovision as a way to have collaborative viewing of big (I nearly said major, but that would be wrong) events. The flow of comments was never ending and occasionally funny. "#eurovision Wow Iceland have more Eurovision points than money". So, congratulations to Yohanna, you can buy her song  (in the UK, the song is just outside the top 30 right now), and enjoy her homecoming party in Reykjavik, courtesy of www.exctoday.com and youtube below too. And here is the IMX take on it all.

Quickly...

The wonderful, magical Olof Arnalds is back in New York doing 4 shows as below, the final one with Bjork. Just a shame I'm stuck in London on a course learning to be an "effective leader". Anyhow, here's the dates...

May 5th- Union Hall- Brooklyn
May 6th- Sycamore- Brooklyn
May 7th- Scandinavia House (Volvo Hall), NYC
May 8th- Housing Works Bookstore Cafe w/Björk and The Dirty Projectors- NYC

And also, new music by Olof is starting to emerge, you can go here and get a download of a new song, "Vinur Minn" - enjoy.

Olof Arnalds' 2007 album "Vid og Vid" is one of many glaring ommissions from the just published list of the best 100 Icelandic albums EVER! But that's just my opinion, you can go here and vote for your favourite 20 of the 100 to get to the final list, please do so...and get it right!

Finally, just to prove some Icelandic bands are genuinely 'cute', Mum have announced a small London show in Notting Hill, I'll be there, details here...

Assorted Awesomeness

Awesome thing 1: I'm nearly over my violent jealousy of both Reykjavik! and Mammut playing two gigs in Germany, and none (NONE!) in London. And it is helped by the brilliant podcasts they made which can be downloaded from here. Or, if I have the technology figured out you can see them below. What a fine looking bunch of young Icelanders... the flattery will get them to London I'm sure.


Awesome thing 2: Something that is happening in the UK is this Sunday when there is an "Iceland to Brighton" event, which is Brighton, not Iceland. The newly major label band Blindfold will be playing, there will be roast meat to eat, and prizes to be won - all good! The details are here, and a promo poster is there --->


Awesome thing 3: The Aldrei For Eg Sudur took place over Easter in Isafjordur. Sounds like Mugi did another fantastic job (I'll get there one year, really I will). A good time was had by all, other than the internal flights to get out to the Westfjords which were, let's say, entertaining. You can ready all about it in The Economist (yes, odd isn't it) here, written by that splendid Paul Sullivan chap - buy his book here!