IceBlah

Iceland Airwaves 2017 - Mammút

It's the night before Iceland Airwaves 2017. The last band to feature here this year is one that has been there from very near the start of my own Iceland Airwaves adventure and genuinely seem to be getting better and better and more essential as every year has gone by. Mammút are a gang that has grown up in front of the Airwaves audience over the last 13 years, the poor things have been interviewed on this site four times now. Over the last couple of years they've signed to the excellent Bella Union label and started writing and recording in English. More recently they've toured extensively in North and South America and Europe, and right now they're heading back home, for Iceland Airwaves

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When was your first Iceland Airwaves? I started in 2004, I feel like you've been there pretty much since then.

 

We first played it in 2005 so we've been doing it almost since you started going. At the time we were 16 and 17 years old an none of us were nearly old enough to legally enter the bars we played at. But that's just Iceland for you.

How has it changed for artists since then?

 

I guess the audience is bigger these days since the festival has gradually gotten more and more popular. Also there is probably more press who attends so there's more exposure. Besides that it hasn't really changed much.

Do you have a favourite Airwaves memory?

 

Once we were getting ready for a show at a long gone place called Organ. During all the excitement Arnar did some crazy gymnastics movement and ripped his jeans wide open. There was no time to change so he had to play the concert pretty much with his family jewels hanging out. It was an interesting experience both for us and the crowd.

So this year saw your first album release in English with Bella Union (I know there was the EP in 2015). Was the move to writing in English the band's decision or something the label really wanted you to try?

 

The decision was entirely ours. We are extremely happy about Bella Union since the let us decide on the artistic side of things. That is freedom many signed bands do not have and we are grateful for.

On that EP back in 2015 there were re-recorded English versions of "Salt" & "Bakkus". How hard was that to do having already written and recorded in Icelandic? Did you feel that the songs changed in meaning at all?

 

It was an interesting process. We tried our best to keep true to the original meaning and we think we did a good job there. Even so we think it's more natural to write in one language so instead of doing both Icelandic and English on our newest album, Kinder Versions, like we thought of we decided to do it just in English.

So who had the genius idea that you should record a Cher song?

 

It started off as a joke between us and our producer Curver and then it just escalated into doing it for real.

Back to Airwaves 2017, which shows are you going to make sure you get to see?

 

Fleet Foxes, Aldous Harding and Sigrid are the most exciting from abroad. The Icelandic ones who are always a blast to see are GusGus, HAM, Reykjavíkurdætur, GKR and DJ Flugvél og Geimskip.

 

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Mammút play three times at Iceland Airwaves this week.

 

Thursday November 2nd at 10:00pm at Hof in Akureyri.

 

Friday November 3rd at 5:00pm at Bryggjan Brugghús.

 

Saturday November 4th at 10:50pm at Gamla Bíó.

Daði Freyr going solo at Iceland Airwaves 2017

Keen Airwaves goers have probably seen Berlin-based Icelander Daði Freyr before, playing as part of the band Retrobot a few years back. In the last year though he’s really become a star in Iceland after his amazing song and performance of “Is this Love?” charmed everyone yet still somehow only finished in second place in the qualifying for Eurovision. That song became a big national hit and now he’s preparing to play at Airwaves for this first time as a solo artist, and he has an EP coming out right around the same time. 

Hello Daði! Where are you and what are you doing?

I am sitting in an apartment in Grettisgata, petting a fluffy cat and drinking tea because I´m getting paranoid about getting sick. I am also making the poster for the release concert of my debut EP as Daði Freyr which will take place at Húrra the 26th of October. 

I think I'm right in saying this is your first Airwaves festival playing under your own name. But you've played before in other bands haven't you, how many other bands have you been in or are you still in?

This is my first time performing under my own name. I have performed two times with my former band RetRoBot. We haven’t been active for a while, maybe one day we will do a reunion, who knows. I am currently in the band Lesula with my friend Jökull Logi and I’m also working on some music with Karitas Harpa, we call ourselves Karitas & Daði. 

I guess a lot of people first really got to know you with the song, "Hvað með það?" which so nearly became Iceland's Eurovision entry. How does it feel to be robbed (in my view!) of certain Eurovision glory?

It feels pretty good actually. If we would have gone through to Eurovision I would have had to postpone my graduation from dBs Music Berlin because I would not have had time to finish. Also the reaction to the song and performance in Söngakeppnin was much more than I could have ever hoped for, so I can’t really ask for more.

Is there any chance I could persuade you to recreate that exact choreography for Airwaves?

There is always a chance. But no ;)

Browsing around your Soundcloud account, it seems you have a little obsession for "The Breakfast Club" - can you explain yourself?

I did the music for a play that my friend Dominique Gyða was directing for Verzlunnarskólinn. They did The Breakfast Club. Right now I’m working on the music for her next play which will premiere in November, it’s called Skömm.

Who else are you excited to see at Iceland Airwaves this year?

I am very excited to see what Sykur, DJ Flugvél & Geimskip, GusGus, Sigrid, Benjamin Clementine, Kiriyama Family, Halldór Eldjárn and a bunch of others have to show this year. I’m pretty sure I will miss a lot of concerts that I would like to see. But you can’t have everything. 

Finally, what are your tips for people attending Airwaves and visiting Iceland for the first time?

Don’t plan to much ahead, visit all the venues, don’t stay in Reykjavík the whole time, Iceland has so much to offer, Reykjavík is just the tip of the iceberg.

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 I can’t wait to see Daði play at Airwaves very soon. Here are your opportunities…

Wednesday November 1^st, 2:30pm at American Bar

Wednesday November 1^st, 5:00pm at Viking Brewery

Wednesday November 1^st, 7:00pm at Petersen Suite

Thursday November 2^nd, 6:30pm at Slippbarinn

Friday November 3^rd, 9:40pm at Húrra

Saturday November 4^th, 1:00pm at Bryggjan Brugghús

photo by: Mummi Lú

Iceland Airwaves 2017: GKR is coming to London!!

I have really enjoyed GKR at the last two Airwaves and I'm certainly looking forward to catching his shows again this year. But before that, those of us in London have the chance to see him on Thursday this week when he plays as part of the always excellent JaJaJa night at The Lexington.

GKR is an excellent Iceandic-language rapper with bags and bags of on-stage passion, charisma and damned infectious bounciness. Oh, and some pretty bright clothing too. It's pretty hard to imagine not enjoying seeing him play - last year, at his biggest show, in Harpa there was a roomfull of beaming faces with eyes fixed on this young kid on stage in bright yellow shorts and t-shirt. During his young career he's won accolades at home and got great attention abroad.

I spoke to him 2 years ago, but now with two days to go until his debut London show, and a week and a day until Iceland Airwaves 2017, it was time for a second chat with Gaukur.

Hello again Gaukur! Where are you and what are you doing?

 

I'm at home laying in bed watching TED talks.

 

Before we talk Airwaves, let's talk about London. Excitingly, you are playing here in a couple of weeks. Have you played here before?

 

Never played here before! Super excited.

 

Are you just coming over for that one show? Or are there other plans?

 

Yes one show, a photo-shoot and hopefully meet some good people.

 

Then you go back to Iceland for Airwaves. You've got three official shows, one in the Art Museum with a big line-up of local hip-hop - that's such a huge scene now, even bigger than a couple of years ago. Is it hard to find a place in there?  

 

No not really that hard to find your place, Iceland is small, do something good and everyone knows. But I really don't relate as much to the scene as I'd like, unfortunately.

 

Your other two shows are in much smaller venues. Which kind of gig do you prefer?

 

The smaller ones are better unless you have the BEST spot on the big venues.

 

Are we going to hear any new stuff from you in London or at Airwaves?

 

Yes, of course! Always got something new.

 

Last question - what are you most excited to see at Airwaves this year?

 

Mura Masa.

 

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So there you have it!

 

Wednesday November 1st, 7:00pm at Bíó Paradís

Thursday November 2nd, 4:00pm at Bryggjan Brugghús

Thursday November 2nd, 7:40pm at Reykjavík Art Museum

Friday November 3rd, 10:00pm at Pósthúsbarinn, *Akureyri

Saturday November 4th, 3:00pm at American Bar

Saturday November 4th, 7:15pm at Viking Brewery

Iceland Airwaves 2017: Einarindra bringing the smooth

Einarindra makes that certain sort of smooth electronic music with a synth sound that I can't get enough of. He's been getting good attention over the last couple of years from Iceland and beyond for his two E.P.s "Stories" and "Unravel" which are both well worth checking out. I actually decided to finally try to get a feature with Einar after seeing, listening to, and enjoying a mixtape he put together for Under The Radar again which showcased some is his earlier influences.  It's pretty clear that Einar is a master of making music, and selecting music, that I'm going to want to hear late at night.

I had a chat with Einar ahead of his 5 shows at Airwaves this year.

Hi! Where are you and what are you doing?

I´m at home in my small room where my studio is in Reykjavík, well actually in Kópavogur which is kind of a part of Reykjavík.

Last year your EP "Stories" got some amazing reviews. And a few months ago we got your follow up, "Unravel" - did you feel any pressure after such good reviews last year? And how would you compare the two records?

Well no not really, I felt pretty confident in that I was evolving my sound a bit and was excited about the tracks but at the same time these tracks are more dark and emotional, written after going through some tough times so I didn´t really try to promote them so much but I needed to get them out there though just to be able to start working on something else and put these behind me. So to compare those two records I would have to say that the second one is in similar territory but I´ve evolved a bit both lyrically and musically, I think at least. But right now I´m just really looking forward to finishing new stuff and having time to do that which will hopefully happen early next year.

I loved the mixtape you did for Under The Radar recently. Was that selection a pretty good insight into some of your influences? Or just a bunch of tunes you grew up loving?

The mixtape represented music that I loved when I was like 14-20 and of course still love. It was also my gateway from hip hop into loving a more diverse type of music. So these days it´s not a direct influence but this music is definitely  embedded in my soul and thus indirectly influences what I do and it was such a lovely moment to revisit these albums and check out the artists and labels and what they are up to these days. I also feel it´s more of a sacred thing to listen to these old vinyl records then just pulling them of Spotify or something.

I'd love to know what acts you are most keen to see at Airwaves this year - can you give me 5 must-see artists?

There is a ton of music I´m really excited to see both the Icelandic ones and those coming from oversees, unfortunately I will probably not have much time for seeing them but I´ll also try to just go randomly to somewhere and see something, that´s part of the nice feeling of Airwaves that you can basically go see anything and there is a very good change it is something very interesting. But if I have to name five it´s Benjamin Clementine, Mura Masa, Tusks, Deep Throat Choir, the Möller records showcase and so many, many more.

Finally, do you have any advice for people attending Airwaves or visiting Iceland for the first time?

People coming here should spend as much time as they can to enjoy the music, you can be engrossed in music 24/7 during Airwaves cause there is so many off venue airwaves as well. This music festival has tons of good music and if you have the time try to check out as many as you can. I wouldn’t expect to be going for other touristy things during those few days cause you´ll missed out on the festival, but if you are going to stay longer then go north for my hometown Húsavík, see some whales, protest the new factory there, go to Ásbyrgi, Dettifoss, Mývatn and swim in the Icelandic sea - there is a chance you´ll encounter a whale there, happened to me once!

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So, here are your chances to catch Einarindra at Iceland Airwaves 2017...

 Thursday November 2nd, 10:30pm at Húrra

Friday November 3rd, 5:30pm at 12 Tónar

Saturday November 4th, 2:00pm at Viking Brewery

Saturday November 4th, 8:00pm at Iðnó

Sunday November 5th, 3:30pm at Kaffibarinn 

 

Pink Street Boys, "Being Loud Is Very Important To Me"

What do you mean it's only two weeks until Iceland Airwaves 2017? Where did the time go? Obviously this blog been busy watching the Icelandic football team but it's fair to say that iceblah needed to be woken up.

There is no more effective band to be woken up by than The Pink Street Boys, officially Iceland's loudest. They have caught the attention of, and been heartily praised by, Rolling Stone magazine, Drowned In Sound and this venerable blog. If you ask me to name 5 or 10 must-see bands for Iceland Airwaves (please do, I love writing lists), then these boys will surely be on it. Another good reason for the Pink Street Boys being the first band featured here this year is that they are almost certainly going to be the first band I see at Airwaves this year. I arrive in town at about 4pm on the Wednesday and they are playing an as yet unannounced (OOPS) off-venue show at 12 Tónar at 5:30.

I just spoke to Jónsi about noise and football and sewers and stuff like that. Oh, and their brand new album...

Traditional first question - where are you and what are you doing?

I'm at work eating lunch. I went to Bónus and got my self a salmon/shrimp salad to put on my Danish rye bread.

 

So you guys have been voted both "the loudest band in Iceland" and the "best live band in Iceland". Is loudest always best?

 

Being loud is very important to me. Every spectacular show that I've been to has been really loud. Also RIP Lemmy says it’s cool.

 

Can I ask about your shows - they certainly are loud, and feel kind of chaotic or even dangerous. Do you feel like you have to be extra loud, as if the audience are going to expect it, like we want to feel our ribs rattling?

 

I think the reason we are loud is not only because we tune our amps to 11, it’s because of our playing style. Our practice room is a little bit smaller than the coffee / listening room in 12 Tónar so to be heard we have to be really tight otherwise it will just be chaos. So being really tight and turning up our amps makes us the loudest band north of Belfast. 

 

How about a nice acoustic set in a bookshop or something?

 

That can be done but then we will have to play our country set.

 

Your newest song "wet", comes with a pretty normal video about a naked chicken man living in a sewer. How did that happen?

 

That sewer used to be a hangout for some members of the band in their pre-teen years. The chicken man is a metaphor about how we feel towards life and politics.

 

And you have a brand new album due any day now don't you? What can you tell us about that?

 

Yeah, the album “Smells Like Boys” should be out around Airwaves. Its a collection of songs we wrote after the success of our first album “Hits#1”. The songwriting hasn’t changed and neither have the lyrics, which you can read if you buy the record.

 

Are you football fans? You know that countries in the world cup usually get an 'official song', would you fancy that job?

 

We support Fjölnir from Grafarvogur. Their official song is terrible and i think we need to do something about that. But no we don’t really care about sports. UFC is fun.

 

You are definitely on my list of 5 must-see acts for Airwaves. Who is on your list for this year?

 

If Skelkur í Bringu, Singapore Sling or Godchilla are playing I'll check them out.

 

Last one, what's your advice for people visiting Airwaves and Iceland for the first time?

 

Hot dogs taste the same wherever you get them.   It’s going to rain at some point. Don’t be rude unless you are funny.

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That, people, is some sound and wise advice. You can, you must, catch The Pink Street Boys on and off venue during Iceland Airwaves 2017.

Wednesday November 1st, 17:30 at 12 Tónar.

Friday November 3rd, 21:40 at Gaukurinn.

 

iceblah...re-activating soon for Airwaves 2017...

meanwhile, this...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

see you soon XX

Last year's heroes Milkywhale - back for more and with new sparkly shoes

I really try not to feature the same artists two years in a row, but I was really keen to make Milkywhale an exception. They got such great reaction from so many people at Iceland Airwaves 2015, and many people can't wait to see them again. I'm sure people would love to hear about what Melkorka and Árni have been up to since last year, and what they might be getting ready for us this time! Even more surprisingly, Melkorka agreed to speak to me two years in a row.

Hello again! You got an amazing reaction to your many shows at Airwaves last year. Was the attention all enjoyable?

 

Hi Mark! Yes indeed it was very enjoyable. Me and Árni had so much fun, especially since we had no idea what to expect. We just wanted to play pop music, fool around and have fun with it. It seems like lot of people jumped on board the Milkywhale watching boat. For me, playing music on stage and seeing people being in the moment with me is definitely the most rewarding thing that I do. It is just unlike anything else. 

 

What have been the highlights for Milkywhale in the year since Airwaves 2015?

 

We were invited to play at Roskilde Festival after Airwaves 2015 and that was definitely the highlight so far! Árni is such an experienced musician but I come from the performing arts world which is a bit more subtle when it comes to the audience screaming and jumping. I think I will never forget the moment when I asked people to come and dance. All of a sudden there where hundreds of people running towards the stage, clapping, screaming, singing along and doing mosh pits throughout our show. 

We also hosted our own concert at the Reykjavik Culture Night last August on a whale watching boat. The whole concept was that we were going to search for the loneliest whale in the world and play some music for it. In the end it was an amazing party, we'd really love to do that again. 

Now, you have to do it all again. Do you feel pressure after the amazing reaction last year?

 

Yes an no. Me and Árni are pretty ambitious when it comes to making and performing music but the bottom line is always to play music that we like. In a way we are more experienced than last year and we know more what to expect. But we also want to keep the show fresh and fun, and playful and that takes constant practice. Being playful is kind of the keyword here. 

 

Like last year, you get to play on the big stage at Harpa which suits you so well. Do you have a preference between the big modern venue or the small and sweaty bars?

 

We usually try to make a big venue feel small and sweaty. We work with a designer that makes visuals for us that usually work better in bigger venues. In bigger venues I also have more space to run around and play with different dimensions during the concert. So it's mostly for practical reasons, but of course the more people the merrier. 

 

What about your recorded music. Is there going to be a Milkywhale record sometime? 

 

YES! And it is actually coming out soon after Airwaves! It is called Milkywhale. Stay tuned. We are REALLY excited. 

Will you be playing some new material at Airwaves 2016?

 

Definitely! Since last Airwaves we've made a few new songs that will also be a part of our new record. We have a longer slot this year in Harpa, headlining Norðurljós the first day of Airwaves. So we will definitely make sure people will dance with more up beat songs. We also have new sparkly shoes, new overalls, more white clothes, more choreographies and Árni is on stage as well. So plenty of exciting things coming up for this Airwaves. 

Finally, what other acts are you especially keen to see at the festival this year?

 

There are so many acts I'm looking forward to see. I definitely wont miss Snorri Helgason, Prins Póló, Kött Grá Pjé and Boogie Trouble. Also my favourite sugar bears Úlfur Úlfur, Emmsjé Gauti and SXSXSX. Last but not least I have to recommend a good friend of mine Sigga Soffía who is an amazing dancer working with musician Jónas Sen showing bits of their latest work Fubar. So a bit of everything. That's also what makes Airwaves so special.

 

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Come and see what all the fuss is about, here are your chances...

 

Wednesday Nov 2nd, 12:20am (Thurs morning) at Harpa Norðurljós

 

Thursday Nov 3rd, 4pm at Hlemmur Square

 

Friday Nov 4th, 5pm Kaffihús Vesturbæjar

 

Saturday Nov 5th, 4pm Bryggjan Brugghús

Reykjavíkurdætur are better than the cream in your Oreo

Reykjavíkurdætur have been very hard to ignore over the last two or three years. An all-female collective with the sound and beats to easily get past the early novelty value, they will be high up on a lot of must-see lists for Airwaves again. I've been hoping to chat to them since 2014 so I'm happy that Anna Tara and Bergthora agreed to talk!

 Hello! Where are you right now, and what are you doing?

I am in Barcelona learning Spanish and hoping to do a masters in Sexology in Spanish next year.

How many are in the band right now? Do people come and go a little?

There are 13 girls in the band right now plus two dj´s. Yes people absolutely come and go for various reasons, pregnancies, studying abroad and depending on how busy they are.

So how does it work, do you all fight over who does what, or is it a big unified gang?

Haha, there is no need to fight because a lot if it is hard work that needs to be done and we expect everyone to contribute. Our manager Alda has an overview over what projects need to be done and everybody takes responsibility for something. Sometimes we create smaller groups that are responsible for certain projects like recording the album, organising the album release gig, responsibility for certain gigs, recording music videos, organising oversea trips and so on.

When you first appeared 2 years or so ago I guess you were seen as a bit of a novelty. Are you happy that now you are seen first as a music act and less as a spectacle?

I am not sure I feel that we are seen less as a spectacle and more as a music act. I am happy to be seen as a spectacle because it is magical but of course I would like more respect as a musician that I don´t think we always get.

I know you’ve had a very busy year, recording and releasing your debut album and playing festivals all over Europe. What have been the big highlights?

Roskilde Festival for sure because we have never played for ten thousand people before, it is a very unique experience. Special love to the girls who through their knickers at me as soon as I put on the Strap-on.

As part of your crowd funding for your record you offered an all-night party with the daughters. Did anyone take that offer? Are they still alive?

Actually nobody dared to do it. That was maybe for the best.

OK, the big question, one of the English language lyrics on your record claims 'better than the cream in your Oreo'. Now, seriously, is anything REALLY better than that?

Yes of course. The cream in the Oreos is actually made from stuff which is bad for your body, it’s possible to make way better and healthier creams than that. Plus it’s done by big corporate companies that behave like bullies on the market. So yes.

You've already played some pretty legendary Airwaves shows. What should we expect this time? And why should people choose it over everything else that will be going on at the same time?

I think it’s always best to have no expectations so I’m hesitant to make some. Anyway, most definitely we’ll have lots of energy and lots of different styles of flow going on. Our shows are always interesting because there are so many things happening at the same time on the stage. I would describe the show to be multilayered, energetic and powerful but fragile at the same time. I think people should see it because we are 13 girls rapping on stage and we’ve been busy doing it for the last years, so we’re actually good.

Have you had a good look at the Airwaves schedule? What else are you really excited to see?

Oh yes, we’re so excited to see Digable Planets (really a big dream coming true there!), Santigold, Björk of course, Kate Tempest, PJ Harvey, Silvana Imam, The Internet, The Seratones and so many more. Now I’m not even naming the Icelandic bands.

Finally, can you give some advice for people attending Iceland Airwaves and visiting Iceland for the first time?

Well, just go with the flow. Don’t overplan. Pretty much everything on the program is worth seeing. The weather could be shitty and there might be lines, so show up early and remember there’s always space for grace … the tourist boom has made people very sick of wind jackets.

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Reykjavíkurdætur's plans for Iceland Airwaves require you to show up at the following times...

Wednesday Nov 2nd, 10:30pm at Harpa Silfurberg

Friday Nov 4th, 9:40pm also in Harpa Silfurberg

 

FM Belfast - so pretty, not smelly.

Oh how I love FM Belfast. Surely everybody loves FM Belfast. I was going to call the Iceland's finest party starters, but actually they are probably better described as party finishers - there's nowhere to go once FM Belfast have finished with you other than home in a happy and sweaty daze. They've been doing this for over a decade now, FM Belfast is always one of the key shows to catch at Iceland Airwaves. I'm so happy that chief streamer thrower Lóa agreed to have a little chat with me about new music on the way, cover versions, new FM Belfast music and more...

Hi Lóa, where are you and what are you doing?

 

Hi Mark. I'm in Reykjavík preparing for a trip to Berlin. I'm going to spend a week there with my mentor and write my book.

 

For people who are less familiar with FM Belfast, who is in the band and what other bands do you all play in?

 

Hello people less familiar with our band. Here's a run through:

Singer, Computer boy wonder: Árni R. Hlöðversson, he plays with Prins Póló and Milkyhwale.

Singer, head of decorations: Lóa H. Hjálmtýsdóttir, at the moment FM Belfast is my only musical outlet.

Singer, dancer: Örvar Þ. Smárason, he's in Múm.

Drummer, singer, stage diver: Ívar P Kjartansson, is also in Miri and sometimes he plays with Benni Hemm Hemm.

Dancer, singer, rapper, bureaucrat: Egill Eyjólfsson, he's not playing with another band.

Singer, keyboard, theremin: Hermigervill, also in Retro Stefson, Hermigervill and Berndsen.

Singer, MC, sometimes percussionist: Björn Kristjánsson, he's in Borko and Royal.

 

For the last 10 years or so, FM Belfast have been THE essential party band at Iceland Airwaves. Is it all as much fun as it looks?

 

I'm glad that's the case. I can't answer for everyone but for me it's really fun. I'm also an illustrator so I spend days and days sitting by myself in silence so for me this is like a party. I also don't really go to parties because I get uncomfortable when I don't know what to talk about. 

Do you sometimes wish all those boys on stage would not strip down to their underwear?

 

No, it has never bothered me at all. I'm just glad they aren't foul smelling people.

I've always loved how you insert unexpected and joyous cover versions into your sets (can we have Welcome To The Jungle again?). Do you have plans for Airwaves 2016?

 

Thank you. I've always love this too. It's usually jokes from rehearsals that end up in the shows because we find them funny. I'm not aware of the 2016 plans. 

You've just released a brand new song, 'You're So Pretty'. Does this mean there's more new music on the way?

 

Yes, yes, yes! It's making me very happy.

What else are you keen to see at Airwaves this year?

 

I'm flying from Finland on the Saturday so I don't have much time to see shows but my favourite is stumbling on shows in a random fashion. I've discovered many new bands this way. I always check on my friends as well, they have nice bands. I'm very sad to miss the Múm show.

Finally, what is the official FM Belfast advice for people coming to Airwaves and Iceland for the first time?

 

Try to see as many acts as you can. Go to the pools in the morning. Dress warm. Don't spend your money on bad coffee, we have many litres of good coffee. Use a condom. 

 

So wise.

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FM Belfast will party you hard at Harpa Silfurberg on Saturday Nov 5th at 1am (Sunday Morning).

 

Also, there's an FM Belfast dj set at Hlemmur Square on Thursday 3rd November at 12:30pm.

Stroff will try to keep you up all night

Stroff are an excellent indie-sounding guitar band, they've been around since 2012. They feature, as is fashionable, members of various other excellent bands. I thought it was about time I had a chat with them. Beware though, this interview features the devastating news, to me at least, that the logo which I had presumed to be a puffin is...not...a...puffin. Read on, if you dare.

 

Where are you right now and what are you doing?

I am at home. Just finished fixing the dishwasher.

 

Who is in the band, and what other bands do you all play with?

Árni Þór on guitar( Stafrænn Hákon, Mug), Halli Þorsteins on bass (Náttfari), Kjartan on drums (Kimono, Seabear), Markús on vocals and guitar (Markús and the diversion sessions, Skátar, Sofandi) and Örn Ingi (Seabear, Skakkamanage) 

 

You are playing your Airwaves show at 2:30am in Gaukurinn on Saturday night / Sunday morning. Are you excited about that slot?

It is always exciting to play a show. But it’s a bit late for us old timers. Our guitar player Árni has never stayed up longer than 3:00 in the morning so if the show runs late he might fall asleep during the gig. So if we can stay up its gonna be a good show.

I'm loving your logo of a knitted puffin on a skateboard picture. Where did that come from?

It is actually a picture of a parrot that Árni drew for a poster that we did. His mother in law is a master knitter and she knitted 5 sweaters for us, one for each with different picture on the front. The cover is a picture of one of those sweaters.

 

Have you checked out the entire schedule? What else are you super keen to see?

I would love to see The Sonics and Warpaint.

 

What advice can you share for first-timers at Airwaves and in Iceland?

 

Don’t be fooled by the “Beer” in the 10-11 stores. It´s not beer.

 

---

 

Obviosuly, that is excellent advice. That beer is not something to get you drunk.

 

Stroff play just the one show at iceland Airwaves 2016, and it's a stamina-tester:

 

Sunday November 5th (Saturday night) @ 02:30 in Gaukurinn.

 

You know you want to!

Major Pink requires your sweat...

So I have just interviewed Major Pink and, to be honest, I still have no idea if he is real or not. But it doesn't matter, it's been a lot of fun and I am convinced enough to place them on the 'must see' list and I suspect you might feel the same in a few minutes. Here's what happened when I interrupted the major in his mansion to give him a good old fashioned iceblah interrogation...

Hello Major Pink. Where are you and what are you doing?

I'm currently residing in my mansion with the band, answering some questions. No lollygagging here.

 

You are a fictional character, is that correct?

I’ll take that as an insult. Are you fictional? I am Major Pink.

 

OK, so who created Major Pink? What do we need to know?

I was created by Mr. and Mrs. Pink some years ago, bless their souls. I wouldn’t think it appropriate to go into more details. I certainly didn’t ask.

 

You have two shows at Airwaves, one in a big modern venue and one in a small and sweaty bar. Do you have a preference?

I like to get up close and personal. I’d take a sweaty bar over a big modern venue any day of the week. I want to smell the sweat. I want to feel it.

 

What other shows at Iceland Airwaves 2016 would Major Pink especially recommend?

I’ve been keeping tabs on Ceasetone, Moses Hightower, Mammút, Fufanu, Sin Fang, Magnús Jóhann, FM Belfast and Agent Fresco. They’re all well and good. Then of course all the the British ones.

What advice would you like to give to people coming to Airwaves and Iceland for the first time?

Oh I’ve never been, but if you see me in Iceland I’ll be happy to share a pint of the black stuff with all of you while we figure out this mysterious island of ice and snow together.

---

Jolly Good. As I know the Major would say. I assume that by now you have been convinced to check out this Major in the flesh, here are your opportunities...

Friday November 4th, 8pm at Harpa Norðurljós.

Saturday November 5th, 6:45pm at Bar 11.

Sunday November 6th, 10:30pm at Húrra.

 

 

Kreld - ready for the big stage

As far as I know, Kreld (the solo project of Kristján Eldjárn of Sykur) has only released one song, but what a song it is. On "Way Low" Kristján duets with the amazing Jófríður Ákadóttir of Gangly, Pascal Pinon and Samaris, and the song is an ice-cold elctro treat. Press play on the video below and find out a bit more about the man behind it...

 

Hi Kristján, where are you right now and what are you doing?

Hi Mark! Right now I'm elbows deep in a disemboweled, old mixer that's been giving me some problems recently. I use a lot of old instruments and equipment both my studio and live work, and while they are fun to use and sound good, you have to pay dividends vis-a-vis maintenance.

 

We are familiar with you from the band Sykur of course. Is Kreld a pure solo project or are you working with others?

 

Kreld is very much my personal project. It came about as an outlet for me to release material that doesn't fit into any of my collaborative projects. While I've had some wonderful and talented people to help me and give me input, this is first and foremost a means for me to create exactly the music I want to, without making compromises.

 

You will be opening up in the Art Museum venue on Friday night of Airwaves. Is that a great space to play in, or maybe a little intimidating?

 

The Art Museum is a wonderful place to play, I played there last year with Sykur and it was one of the best gigs we've played. Of course it's intimidating though. This is a new project for me and I'm only taking my first steps as a frontman. The only places I've played live so far are smaller venues, and there is a certain level of intimacy that gets lost when an act goes straight from that to playing in this huge hall. Don't get me wrong; it's going to be great, I just have to work extra hard for it!

 

 

 

'Way Low' is a fabulous song. What are your plans to release more music?

 

Thanks! There's definitely more songs in the works. I took some time off from recording  in order to practice and get my live set up to speed. I'm very grateful that I did because the songs have evolved through that process and the material I would have recorded if I'd gone and done it straight away would have been way different from what it is today. But yeah, you can expect new material very early 2017.

 

Have you checked out the entire schedule? What else are you super keen to see?

 

I'm really excited to see Leyya, they are an Argentinian band that just released a really nice album called 'Spanish Disco Deluxe'. Then Sykur is playing with Kate Tempest, she's a British rapper with great lyrics.

What advice can you share for first-timers at Airwaves and in Iceland?

 

Pick a venue with one or two bands that you want to see and stay there for the entire evening! You will both discover a lot of music that you wouldn't otherwise have listened to and you'll skip the queues and weather while hiking between venues!

 

---

 

 Kreld play three shows at Iceland Airwaves 2016,

 

Tuesday November 1st, 9:30pm at Loft Hostel

 

Friday November 4th, 8pm at Art Museum

 

Saturday November 5th, 9:40pm at Hurra

 

 

Krakk & Spaghettí "we thought of a funny name and didn't know how to rap"

I'll be honest, and I don't want to diminish the art or the brilliance of a lot of Icelandic music, but I've always been a sucker for a funny band name. It is true that I heard the name "Krakk & Spaghettí" before I heard their music - but I was very ready and willing to like them. Luckily, I did. They are young and very engaging and charming. I feel that their releases get better each time, which makes a lot of sense for a band that started as a joke.

We all live in Reykjavík and we are all students, Margrét is learning to be a graphic designer and works as a cleaning lady, Atli is learning fine arts and is also a barista and Þorgerður is learning geology. 

 

Who is in the band?

 

There are three of us, Margrét Aðalheiður, Þorgerður and Atli Pálsson, Margrét and Þorgerður do the rapping and Atli makes the beats.

Right. So I hear that Krakk & Spaghettí started as a joke, in fact in a competition to write the worst song! What's the story?

 

Margrét and Þorgerður were both in a school called Menntaskólinn við Hamrahlíð and the student council had the idea to have a competition who could write and perform the worst song. We thought this would be a fun way to present the rap group we had already formed but thought of it more as a joke, mostly to be funny on twitter. The idea was to make a rap group because we thought of a funny name and didn't know how to rap! So we wrote a song about how we wish we would have not chosen this particular school to go to and made a beat from children toys and it sounded awful. We also forgot most of the lyrics on stage.

 

And who had the idea to have your photo taken covered in spaghetti? Fun, or not fun?

 

Spaghetti has a lot of starch and gets reaaaaally sticky. It is also very cold and wet when it touches bare skin! This was an idea from the photographer Magnús Elvar and we think he had a lot of fun, we laughed a lot as well but it was definitely really disgusting.

 

You are playing in Valshöllin. It's going to be interesting to see how Airwaves is changed by having bands playing a little further from the centre of town. How do you think it will go?

Valshöllin is a little bit far away from the other venues and therefor less people might drop by there but that also means that the crowd there will stay there more and it is also a little bit less of a bar and more of a concert hall and that will be in our benefit we think.

 

Who else are you excited to see on the Airwaves schedule?

 

Kött Grá Pje is our idol and it is always fun to see him. Múm is also a band we really like and we have high hopes for Santigold. Apart from Kött Grá Pje our favorite rap groups performing are Reykjarvíkurdætur, Shades of Reykjavík and GKR. They also have crazy shows.

Finally, what advice can you give to people coming to Airwaves and Iceland for the first time?

 

Don't buy bottled water, make sure you buy alcohol at the liquor-store (or bars) and be aware of their opening hours. Dress in layers and make sure you go to the restaurant Mandi it has the best falafels!

 

---

 

Those photos, by the way, are all thanks to the excellent Magnús Elvar.

 

You have four whole chances to experience Krakk & Spaghettí at Iceland Airwaves 2016, here goes...

 

Thursday Nov 3rd, 7pm at Icewear Þingholtsstræti

 

Saturday Nov 5th, 4:45pm at Bar Ananas

 

Saturday Nov 5th, 8:20pm, upstairs at Valshöllin

 

Sunday Nov 6th, 12pm at Quest

Cryptochrome - Airwaves 2016's party-starters

Every year I try very hard not to plan too far ahead of the first band of the first night and then see what happens from there. Cryptochrome play in Hurra before it's even 8pm on the first night of Iceland Airwaves 2016 so I suggest you join me in checking out their hard to classify (but with a significant nod to hip-hop) sounds in one of the best venues you'll ever set foot in. I needed to find out more...

 

Hi, where are you right now and what are you doing?

Hi! We are at home on a Saturday morning, 101 Reykjavík. Anik and Una, starting the day with the kids and working on our future like we always do. Una is making a collage cryptologo, and the kids are freestyling songs. I haven't yet had breakfast.

Who is in the band, and what other bands do you play with (if any)?

Anik and Una are the vocalists and lyricists, and we write some of the music too. We are trained visual artists but have always made music as well. S.O.N is the beat maker, dj, and he also does graphics. Anik and S.O.N used to be part of the European hip hop group 'dark circle'. Leigh is the producer and he also engineers other bands as well. All of us focus mainly on Cryptochrome.

You have an early slot on the opening night of the festival. Is it cool to be the first taste of Airwaves 2016 for a lot of people?

It's very cool! We'll give the people a good start to an amazing festival. and for us as well, to be able to relax afterwards. We also have a free hallowe'en Airwaves warm-up gig at Stúdentakjallarinn which we're headlining, alongside some very nice other acts which will be very worth checking out. Then a small London/Berlin tour soon afterwards.

 

Who would you most like to see dancing at the front of your show?

 

Lovely people. We always have a very loyal core of devout followers, plus a selection of new converts. We are blessed to have a very broad demographic so it's always nice to see a wide spectrum of people enjoying our music, we wouldn't want it otherwise. There are always musicians in the crowd which is much appreciated. Our music is always about peace, love and unity haha, so we like to see hatchets buried and peace pipes smoked. a whole lot of lovers, basically.

 

More than once, I've seen your music described as genre-defying. Do you feel a part of any particular scene or sound in Iceland or elsewhere?

 

No, not really, and we really enjoy that. S.O.N and Anik come from a traditional hip-hop background, but even there we were boundary-pushing. We take our influence from such a broad base, 'music', basically, that it would be uncharacteristic of us to adhere to one particular sound. This can make it tricky for people to categorise us, but at the same time it gives us the broad demographic we enjoy so much, and allows us a wide range of expression, which we find vital as creative people.

Have you checked out the entire schedule? What else are you super keen to see?

It's always super nice to see friends doing their thing, which is what airwaves is perfect for... Mr.Silla, Kött Grá Pje, Berndsen, Avóka, Amabadama, Futuregrapher, Múm, Lord Pusswhip, rvkdnb, Reykjavíkurdætur, Sóley, Sin Fang, Singapore Sling (kinda alphabetical haha!)... it's also a great opportunity to see people we've never got round to seeing. I'm really looking forward to Kate Tempest and Kano who are both doing big things in the UK, plus Digable Planets, PJ Harvey, The Internet... the list goes on. Whether or not we'll actually manage all that is a completely different story!

 

What advice can you share for first-timers at Airwaves and in Iceland?

There seem to be two schools of thought. As airwaves is unlike most other festivals in that it's held in a wide variety of venues that mostly have queues, some like to find one venue for one night and stick to it. Others like to drift and be drawn into places on a whim, as there's lots going on off-venue as well, and the streets are always just as electric as the venues themselves. we say: one of the above, according to what suits your temperament. And, do try to take some time in the countryside, that's no secret. Allow yourself some time to switch off: That's the magic that fuels this place. Drink from the streams and rivers, respect the countryside, and don't buy bottled water.

---

That's the longest list of recommended bands I've ever had here, good luck seeing all of them!

Cryptochrome play their Iceland Airwaves 2016 shows at 19:50 on the Wednesday night in Hurra. A very fine way to start your festival. I'll be there.

 

Tófa - an arty punky party

Art-punk band Tófa will be a new name to a lot of people at Iceland Airwaves this year. They actually unleashed their debut record 'Fleetwood Max' right in the middle of last year's festival. That got a lot of very nice reviews, and the band will be releasing their second collection any day now. Tófa includes members of both Rökkurró and For A Minor Refection, but sound not a lot like either of those more familiar bands, and it seems that's a lot of fun for all concerned in this arty punky party. I had a chat with guitarist Kjartan...

Hello, where are you right now, and what are you doing?

At the moment we’re all kind of scattered around the world. I’m in Den Haag in The Netherlands studying, Jói is in Copenhagen, Denmark and the rest of the gang is in Reykjavík, Iceland. We just do a lot of work through das interwebs, so we could really all be in a separate country and it wouldn’t matter that much.

You will be a new name to a lot of the Airwaves crowd. Who is in the band, and what other bands do you all play with?

Yes indeed we will be a new name to the huge list of bands playing this year. The band consists of Allie who provides vocals, Árni who plays baritone guitar, Andri plays bass, Jói drums and I play guitar. Árni is in another band called Rökkurró, Andri and I are in a band called For a Minor Reflection. Jói is the former drummer in For a Minor Reflection, Árni has played with For a Minor Reflection and I think all of us have played with Rökkurró. So it’s a small circle of nice people helping each other out. That’s how Tófa really was formed to begin with. Árni, Jói and I were kind of just jammin’ some music that was completely different from what we had been doing before. Then one by one Allie and Andri joined in and then… Party!

You say you are inspired by 20th century literature (I work in publishing, so I love to hear this!). What kind of literature in particular, and how does that influence manifest itself in what we hear in your music?

Well… I’m not the literature geek in the group - we have two men who have a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree in literature, so I’m fine with just focusing on the music part of Tófa. But Jói and Allie write all the lyrics. Some of them are based on some short stories or poems by Jói, some are fresh of the cow - something that fits the mood of the song. We even have one song on our upcoming album that consists of words by Allen Ginsberg. We’re really proud of our lyrics. They go all over the place and we have so much of material to choose from - eventually it’s up to Allie to choose which lyrics she likes to sing over each tune. Some are in English, others in Icelandic. So really the lyrics are poems rather than ‘song lyrics’, however you want to interpret that and there are some songs we’ve done where there’s no real singing, but instead Allie reciting some words over feed-backing guitars etc.

I'm listening to your excellent record, Fleetwood Max, right now. It has a lot of energy, do you manage to recreate that on stage?

I’m positive we deliver that same energy, and even more on stage. That’s kind of how we do things. I think it’s so boring to go to a studio, play by a click track and then have everything sounding super ‘great’ and modern. How we do it is that we use very few mics, let the amps face back to back so they don’t bleed too much - but some - and then we just press record and start playing with everything in the same room. That way we can kind of get the energy in the room on to tape (computer). Some bands are great in the studio, but we are at our best on stage and having fun!

I know you have a link to the American band, Perfect Pussy. That's pretty cool, how did that come about?

Perfect Pussy are so fucking great - they’re one of the reasons why we wanted to make music like this. If I recall correctly, Gauji - Allie’s husband, tweeted our album to Meredith Graves from Perfect Pussy and she really liked it and came in contact with us after that.

Have you checked out the Airwaves schedule, what are you really excited about seeing?

The schedule this year is ballin’! I’m super stoked to see Warpaint and PJ Harvey.

Finally, can you give a piece of advice to people visiting Iceland and Airwaves for the first time please?

First of all… Bring your warmest clothes. It’s gonna be cold as fuck waiting in the queue for (what it seems) a long time. Buy alcohol in the Duty Free - the beer in Iceland is way too expensive. Don’t go to the Blue Lagoon - it’s filthy. Have a hot dog at Bæjarins Beztu.

---

All of this is, I guarantee, excellent advice. Listen to Kjartan folks.

And guess what lucky people, there are many chances to see Tófa at Iceland Airwaves 2016. Here's the list...

Monday 31st October - 17:30 - Lucky Records
Wednesday 2nd November - 18:00 - Kaffibarinn
Thursday 3rd November - 17:30 - Hitt Húsið (very special yoga gig)
Thursday 3rd November - 18:30 - 12 Tónar
Friday 4th November - 14:30 - Loft Hostel
Friday 4th November - 16:00 - Hlemmur Square
Saturday 5th November - 20:00 - Gaukurinn (on-venue)

Björk Week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 It’s been a very Björky week, which is not a bad way for a week to be. On Monday I went to the Björk Digital exhibition currently at Somerset House in London, and then last night I was lucky enough to go to her show at the Royal Albert Hall.

First, the exhibition. You go around this in groups of about 20. There are essentially five rooms, each containing a song. Your group experience each song together. First is a room with two large screens on either side, impossible to see both at once, and about 30 or so speakers. In here, the song is Black Lake. There are similar, but not identical videos to the song on each screen. I enjoy it, the song is great, the sound is as clear as can be and the video is Björk traipsing around a (presumably Icelandic) cave.

The following four rooms are all virtual reality experiences, and this was my first time with VR (as I call it, now we’re familiar). The result of that was mostly that I found myself concentrating on the ‘wow’ of VR technology and not so much on the music or specifics of what I was watching. That, and the fact that I would occasionally bang into other people, also immersed in a VR world - it takes some getting used to. That said, the Stonemilker experience – surrounded by several singing Björks on a beach – was fabulously enjoyable. Best of all was Notget, the last room, where an initially smaller than life-size, robotic rendering of Björk slowly grew throughout the track until she was there, right next to you, and at least twice as high. It was quite something.

There were other rooms with some instruments from the Biophilia shows, and the app that accompanied that album. There was a shop selling various merchandise – mainly CDs and vinyl – and a video screening room showing endless videos from throughout her career. Most welcome of all was the chance to see the fabulous Bachelorette video for the first time in years.

And then last night. Björk in the Royal Albert Hall, with only strings (about 24 people’s worth of strings) for company. It was every bit as incredible as that sounds. A venue so utterly perfect for her unique voice and the brilliant arrangements of songs from her latest album, Vulnicura, and some older material rearranged. It was an odd experience, somehow simultaneously incredibly relaxing (melody, strings) and disturbing (the lyrical content of her recent album performed with huge emotion).

The stage set was simple – the singer surrounded by a two-deep semi-circle of strings – and the costumes were predictably fabulous. There was the luminous headdress of part one, which was followed by the (and we all agreed on this) lit-up jellyfish costume complete with dangling tentacles for part two.

The first half was all from Vulnicura (fabulous versions especially of Notget and Stonemilker). After a brief interval came some older stuff. Some very familiar tracks, such as an amazing Joga and Pagan Poetry, (during which my favourite moment of the night came when the audience became the backing vocalists delivering the "she loves him" of the recorded version, and she couldn’t help a smile turning into a good few audible laughs) and some surprises such as ‘I’ve Seen It All’ from Selma Songs, and an outing for 'Anchor Song’ from Debut.

After Björk and the orchestra left the stage after the two song encore, the show was clearly over but the audience made a noise so incredible (don’t just take my word for it) that our hero was compelled to return to the stage just to say thank you again – it was somehow incredibly touching, and as perfect as the week of Björkness.

Guardian review. Uncut review. Arts Desk review. Evening Standard review.

Setlist, Sep 21st 2016

Stonemilker

Lionsong

History Of Touches

Black Lake

Family

Notget

-

Aurora

I've Seen It All

Joga

Pagan Poetry

Quicksand

Mouth Mantra

-

Anchor Song

Pluto

Never Under-estimate an Icelander.

Bloc Party covered Björk last night

Bloc Party played in Kingston last night, the latest in a very long line of impressive live acts booked by the very wonderful Banquet Records to properly liven up the local live scene. In the last year or so, off the top of my head, I've seen Suede, Frank Turner, Maximo Park, The Cribs, The Wombats, Vaccines, Franz Ferdinand, JME and probably some others play just down the road from home (these things matter at my age OK).

Anyway, last night Bloc Party played about a minute of Big time Sensuality as an introduction to their track, 'Song for Clay' from their second album. Nice work, and proof below.

 So, I am now collecting cover versions of Icelandic acts by non Icelandic acts. Let me have them...

Iceland Airwaves videos from KEX Hostel

The excellent recordings from the KEXP shows at the KEX Hostel during Iceland Airwaves 2015 have started to get posted online. They're fantastic quality, the shows and subsequent recordings have been a very welcome addition to the festival over recent years. All those uploaded so far are linked below. The Soley and Gus Gus shows are fantastic highlights.

I'll keep this list updated, for now the full shows available are Sóley, GusGus, Fufanu, Úlfur Eldjárn, Vök and Markús & the Diversion Sessions.

27th Jan update - new full show recordings from Sturla Atlas, Úlfur Úlfur and Low Roar.

1st Feb update - more full show recordings: Reykjavíkurdætur, Agent Fresco, Hjaltalín and Júníus Meyvant.

20th Feb update - shows by East Of My Youth and Emmsjé Gauti.

 

 

Iceland Airwaves 2015 - The best 10 things I saw

Happy New Year! I finally sliced my wristbands off yesterday, and I finally managed to resolve all my internal arguments and settle on the 10 finest things I saw at Iceland Airwaves 2015. I've changed my mind several times since of course, but 8 weeks is probably long enough to make some decisions. So with huge regret towards the excellent Fufanu, Kælan Mikla, Kimono, Milkywhale, Þórir Georg and We$en here's my list...

Æla

What a show on the first night. They have the tunes, the set was a good mix of the familiar old and the new record. But what they have in even more abundance is charisma and showmanship. More specifically they have glitter, nudity, a horse’s head and nappies. By the time they played set closer “Love The Honey” in the early hours of Thursday morning all four of those things were on show and on the stage. The undisputed highlight of the first night.

Grísalappalísa

I love this band. Two years after I first saw them at Airwaves 2013 I show absolutely no sign of getting bored of watching Grísalappalísa. I saw them three times this year. Twice I tweeted, “First rule of Iceland Airwaves – always see Grísalappalísa”. It is good advice, and anyone who likes seeing great tunes, performed with huge spoonfuls of energy, attitude and panache should place them top of a ‘to-see’ list. They are, like many others, possibly better in the smaller venues but their celebratory big show, in Harpa, came in between the Reykjavik! and Sin Fang shows that also make this list. It was some Friday night out.

HAM

It was SO nice to have NASA back as an Airwaves venue this year. It kind of thrilled me every time I walked in. The best show in there, and one of the best of the whole week, was by legendary metal band HAM. They filled that place with noise and atmosphere, it was a room full of people nodding (or banging) their heads in synch with each other from start – they started with the mighty Dauð Hóra, which set a pace that never let up. We are HAM. You are HAM.

Hinds

Wait, what? A band that isn’t from Iceland! I’ve loved Hinds sound and attitude since I first heard them so they were a certainty to make it onto that very short list of international bands I really, really didn’t want to miss at Airwaves. Actually, I’m pretty sure they were the only name on it this year. They played in a mid-to-late night slot in a packed and familiarly sticky Gaukurinn. The venue suited them, as it suits so many every year, and their delicious guitar licks and clever vocal interplays and harmonies were spot on.

Pink Street Boys

I saw these boys three times at Iceland Airwaves 2015 (and one more time in London since, more on that soon). They put on a great show and have some brilliant songs, they’re kind of unique (yes – glib phrase used all too often about Icelandic bands). It was very telling how much more atmosphere there was at the show in Gaukurrin compared to the larger and much more open space of Gamla Bíó. For some bands, this is just how it works. It’s so important that Iceland Airwaves and the City of Reykjavík find a way to keep enough small sweatbox bars and venues to allow this type of show to happen in the right places.

Reykjavík!

This was special. After a gentle campaign, during which I like to think I stayed just on the right side of online bullying, those nice boys of Reykjavik! agreed that getting together, and dusting off their instruments around Airwaves time, might be fun. It had been three (or four?) years since they had last been spotted at Airwaves.  So off we excitedly went to that cramped front bit of trendy Kaffibarinn, we wondered how on earth the band would fit into the space, let alone how Boas would satisfy his need to move through an audience. The reward was a long show, around 75 minutes. It was hot, sweaty, occasionally bloody and always emotional. All that, and I met their parents – they are NICE BOYS. The setlist was perfect – I guess you can’t call it a greatest hit set, but it sure did contain all of their best stuff form all albums, my highlight amongst many was Repticon, partly because I sang a bit of it. I can’t do it justice; it was magical to see this band play again. Same again soon boys?

Rythmatik

Músíktilraunir (the annual music experiments competition for new bands) has a hell of a track record in finding talent. I was impressed by this years’ winners, Rythmatik. They are a straightforward 4 piece band, they write good guitar/pop songs and perform them well and with that shy, modest and slightly awkward charm that we’ve seen in a lot of young Icelandic acts. Their performances were good and they are only going to get better, they were definitely shifting a pleasing number of CDs after the shows I saw. Rythmatik area super-engaging band, and they’re very obviously having fun. Bonus points for showing up at the Reykjavik! Kaffibarinn show too.

Sin Fang

There was a rumour going round the day before this Harpa show (this is the sort of rumour that goes around at Airwaves) that Sin Fang was going to play the old fashioned way, with a full band – guitars and drums and that sort of thing. I love watching Sin Fang with any configuration of machines and instruments but I think the songs are shown off best with a full live band. The set at Harpa was great, although it did seem to be quite short – I don’t know if that was planned or that there was something wrong technically that was beyond my unsophisticated ears. There is always a song or two that is being hummed in my head for weeks after Airwaves – this time, “Walk With You” was very much that song.

Singapore Sling

What a treat to see this band, rarely seen these days at Iceland Airwaves, and I had to miss their London show a few months back. There was just one chance, and it was in the small, cramped but perfectly appropriate setting of the 12 Tónar record store. It was also daytime, possibly twilight, which doesn’t seem like Singapore Sling’s natural habitat but this show was great. It was loud; there was a ferociously brilliant version of their best track of recent years, “You Drive Me Insane”. On top of all of that, a week later the world was treated to a brand new album. No wonder there was a song or two in the set I didn’t recognise.

Úlfur Úlfur

I reckon these guys are the best of a very good bunch in Icelandic hip hop right now. It has clearly been a big year for the genre and for this band, there’s been a breakthrough into mainstream, it is arguably the biggest genre and got a lot of attention before, during and after Airwaves. I saw Úlfur Úlfur three times and they all felt like celebration shows, all were to packed audiences who knew seemingly every word of every song. They were never better than the first time I saw them, upstairs in the Loft Hostel where you could not have fitted a single extra body. I say I saw them, but it was pretty hard to see the stage through the constant forest of raised arms and leaping fans. They also got my favourite review comment, in this article from a guy named Sean (hi Sean!), “I'm not sure if you saw Ulfur Ulfur, but the only words I understood were "mother fucker". I still absolutely loved their set and I don't even like rap. That's kind of what Airwaves was for me, something that I didn't really understand, but still enjoyed because the general vibe was so positive.”

Same again next year then, Iceland Airwaves 2016 will go from November 2nd to 6th.