Páll Óskar & Hjaltalín Together @ Iceland Airwaves '09

Páll Óskar (aka Paul Oscar) will team up with Hjaltalín for a special performance.
15 More Icelandic bands & DJs to be announced soon.
Iceland Airwaves Festival
Hjaltalín's cover of Paul Oscar's hit song @ Cultuurhuis Maison, Maldegem, Belgium
www.youtube.com/v/JrDBKuO9n2M&hl&fmt=18

Hjaltalín @ MySpace

Páll Óskar @ MySpace

Jeff Who? & Who Knew @ Sódóma Reykjavík 2. October 2009

Jeff Who? & Who Knew
Friday 2. October 2009
@ Sódóma Reykjavík @ 22:00
Admission 1.000 IKR

Jeff Who? @ MySpace
Who Knew @ MySpace

Amiina @ Animagica Night @ Jersey Opera House @ Branchage Festival, Jersey, UK 2. October 2009

Icelandic Quartet Amiina @ Branchage Festival

@ Jersey Opera House
Friday 2. October @ 19:00
Price: £10-£20
Tickets available @ Jersey Opera House
The girls are recording new songs, so a new album is expected for the beginning of next year.
Amiina

Ben Frost in the Spotlight @ IMX

Interview with Ben Frost @ Iceland Music Export (IMX) about his new Album "By the throat" and much more...

Hellvar "Nowhere" live @ Sódóma Reykjavík @ Réttir 2009

Hellvar Live @ Réttir @ Sódóma Reykjavík venue 25. September 2009
"Nowhere", a song of the debut album "Bat out of Hellvar, the first release of Kimi Records and one of the best Icelandic songs of this decade in my humble opinion.
The band is working on a 2. Album right now. The first single of this album is "Falsetto".
I hope this band gets a place on the line-up of the upcoming Airwaves '09 festival.
www.youtube.com/v/U0hOQroIFpc&hl&fmt=18

Hellvar @ MySpace

New Worm is Green Album "Glow" released today

You can listen to & buy the new Album "Glow" by Worm is Green here. Album was released on 29. September 2009.

Worm is green

Gorilla Einar Örn Benediktsson

EÖB & Mark E. Smith on Gorillaz Album - The missing link between Einar Örn, Mark E. & Damon is called Iceland
Einar Örn Benediktsson, nowadays in the duo Ghostigital, formerly the of colleague of Björk in the Sugarcubes, recorded a song @ London for the new album by Gorillaz. Gorillaz and formerly Blur frontman Damon Albarn is a longtime friend of Iceland (like me), and collaborated in the past with Einar Örn on the soundtrack for the movie "101 Reykjavik".
In the past Ghostigital remixed the Gorillaz song "Stop the dams", to be found on Gorillaz CD called "D-sides".
The recorded song contains vocals by EÖB & Mark E. Smith, the frontman of legendary band The Fall, who played live in Reykjavik in 1981 & 1983. And the supporting act of The Fall in Iceland in the 80s, was a few times Einar's punk band Purrkur Pillnikk: more in a previous post here.
One of the songs of The Fall is called "Iceland" , and is mentioning singer Megas ...:
A plate steel object was fired
And I did not feel for my compatriots
Hated even the core of myself
Not a matter of ill-health
It was fear of weakness deep in core of myself
The fact attainment was out of...

Mounting orations
..populations
To be humbled in Iceland
Sing of legend, sing of destruction
Witness the last of the god-men
Hear about Megas Jonsson *

Cast the runes against your own soul
There is not much more time to go
Work fifteen hours for the good of the soul
And be humbled in Iceland

Sit in the gold room
Fall down flat in the Cafe Iol*
Without a glance from the clientele
Good coffee black as well,
Hair blond as hell
Cast the runes against your own soul
Roll up for the underpants show
And be humbled in Iceland

And the spawn of the volcano
Is thick and impatient
Like the people around it.
See a green goblin redhead, redhead
Make a grab for the book of prayers.
Do anything for a bit of attention
Get humbled in Iceland

What the goddamn fuck is it?
That played the pipes of aluminum
A Memorex for the Krakens
That induces this rough text
And casts the runes against the self-soul
And humbles in Iceland
(Lyrics of the Fall song "Iceland")
Currently Ghostigital is working on a new album too.

Ghostigital
Einar Örn & The Sugarcubes
Part 1
www.youtube.com/v/n7ro1UAS7mI&hl&fmt=18

Part 2
www.youtube.com/v/IywCrEOBNoE&hl&fmt=18

EÖB & Damon on stage in Iceland: "Stop the dams" (2006)
www.youtube.com/v/VWivdPNK8UI&hl&fmt=18

Song of the 131. Week is by DJ Musician: "I put my hand up in the air"

131. Song of the Week is DJ Musician's Song "I put my hand up in the air", featuring Foxy Princess. A song of his new Album "Sehr Gut Cocktail", released on Whitelabel on 11. September 2009.
There are 11 Tracks on this release:
1. Techno Liebe
2. Triumph Des Willens
3. Sehr Gut Cocktail
4. Rave Sehr Gut
5. I Love Happy Hour
6. Kristin Tanzt
7. Vodka Meloni
8. Siegersmusik
9. Open Your Heart
10. Sex On The Beach
11. I Put My Hand Up In The Air (with Foxy Princess)
Whitelabel
DJ Musician @ MySpace

Quarashi Video "Orð Morð" featuring Opee & Jóhann G. Jóhannsson

Quarashi
The offcial music video for "Orð Morð" ft. Opee & the legendary Icelandic musician Jóhann G. Jóhannsson.
www.youtube.com/v/0kytm_iMSUo&hl&fmt=18


More Quarashi @ this Blogspot

Upcoming Gigs in Reykjavík in October 2009 (Pre-Airwaves '09 Festival)

Upcoming live concerts in the capital area in October 2009:
Thursday 1. October
X977 presents Alice In Chains Tribute Concert @ Sódóma Reykjavík @ 22:00
Journalist Arnar Eggert Thorodssen will talk about the history of the band
Tribute band members are:
Vocals: Jens Ólafsson (Brain Police)
Vocals: Kristófer Jensson (Lights on the Highway)
Guitar: Franz Gunnarsson (Ensími / Dr. Spock)
Guitar: Bjarni Þór Jensson (Cliff Clavin)
Drums: Þórhallur Stefánsson (Lights on the Highway)
Bass: Jón Svanur Sveinsson (Númer Núll)
Admission: 1.000 IKR

Friday 2. October
Farewell Hjlómalind @ Kaffi Hljómalind @ 20:00
Jeff Who? & Who Knew @ Sódóma Reykjavík @ 22:00 - Admission 1.000 IKR

Saturday 3. October
DJ Margeir @ His Symphony Orchestra conducted by Samuel Samuelsson @ Laugardalshöll @ 21:00 - Admission 2.900 IKR
200.000 Naglbitar & Guests: Múgsefjun @ Sódóma Reykjavík @ 22:00 - Admission 1.500 IKR

Tuesday 6. October
Fabula @ Kaffi Rósenberg @ 22:00

Wednesday 7. October
Bedroom Community Night # 16 @ Kaffibarinn @ 21:00
Noise & Ten Steps Away @ Sódóma Reykjavík @ 22:00

Thursday 8. October
October Rock Festival with Árstíðir, Soundspell, Lights on the Highway, Who Knew, Hoffman, Króna, Mammút & Dikta @ Einar Ben Bar @ 20:00
Airwaves Tickle with Pedro Pilatus an BearHug & DJ B-Ruff @ Kaffibarinn @ 23:45

Friday 9. October
Iceland Airwaves Edition of Grapevine Grand Rock: Gogoyoko/Grapevine present
Jeff Who?, Morðingjarnir, Feldberg & Mr. Fogg @ Grand Rokk venue @ 22:00

GusGus Release Concert of "24/7" @ Nikita Clothing Shop, Reykjavik 26. September 2009

GusGus Live in the Garden of Nikita Clothing, R'vik last night
www.youtube.com/v/MqCTTFuAkyE&hl&fmt=18

Komm Tanz Mit Mir Tour 2009

GusGus

The History of Icelandic Rock - Part 11

The History of Icelandic Rock
Part 11
The Kings Of The Seventies
By Dr. Gunni in Grapevine Magazine (# 15, September 2009)

By spring of 1973, both Gunnar Þórðarson and Rúnar Júlíusson had turned 28. Behind were the most popular groups of the beat and hippie age, Hljómar and Trúbrot. Trúbrot had just declined when they decided to resurrect Hljómar and found a record label with the same name. Singer/drummer Engilbert from the original line-up joined the team, along with singer superstar Björgvin Halldórsson. The new Hljómar did an album in 1974, but the music had nothing to do with the Hljómar of old. Instead, the contents were more related to Trúbrot, hard rock and balladry, with a dash of reggae.
“Hljómar 1974,” as the album got to be known, sold a lot less than these guys were used to. There was a lot of money at stake, as the guys had mortgaged their homes for capital. The only way to fight back was, naturally, to make the sort of music that people would pay good money
for. The conclusion was a new band with the same members, called "Ðe Lónlí Blú bojs" (“The Lonely Blue Boys,” written Icelandic style). Their first LP was released in 1975 and became a great success. The LP took its title track from The Beach Boys’ “Fun Fun Fun”— “Stuð stuð stuð”—and featured original compositions by Gunnar along with Icelandicised cover versions of popular foreign hits. One of the tracks became a ‘monster hit of the seventies,’ "Heim í Búðardal"—“Home to Búðardalur.” The lyrics, by living legend Þorsteinn Eggertsson, deal with a guy daydreaming what will await him when he returns home to Búðardalur after slaving away building the Sigalda power station. The song put the small village of Búðardalur on the map, and was so popular that stickers that read “Where is this Búðardalur, then?” became a popular item.
Rúnar ran the Hljómar record label in Iceland while Gunnar moved to England.
He had toiled away in Iceland for more than a decade and wanted to try something new, being a session-man in England sounded good. Not much happened with these plans, but Gunnar worked on several records that Hljómar eventually released. There was his own solo album,
a sophisticated record that sold poorly as it had no hits, and a children’s album, "Eniga Meniga", with songs by young writer Ólafur Haukur Símonarson sung by a young girl, Olga Guðrún Árnadóttir. Eniga Meniga eventually became a huge hit and is considered one of Iceland’s most
beloved Icelandic albums, with its socially conscious lyrics and lively music. Gunnar also finished two more Lónlí blú bojs records, "Hinn gullni meðalvegur" (“The Golden Average”) with more superhits and a Christmas album.
Having sold so many records in 1975, Gunnar felt he wasn’t getting the sort of money he deserved. Rúnar had managed the Hljómar records accounts and when Gunnar sent in his lawyers Rúnar was obviously not impressed. Nothing rotten was to be found, but there was no return to the Hljómar business after this. Instead, Gunnar founded his own Ýmir Records, and Rúnar started his Geimsteinn imprint. This was the end of Gunnar’s and Rúnar’s close working relationship, but they would record together again when Hljómar returned in the 21st century, with two more studio albums and many, many comeback gigs, the last being in Liverpool’s Cavern Club shortly before Rúnar’s untimely death in December of 2008.
Separately, the old blood brothers of Icelandic pop were to make many significant albums. With his Geimsteinn imprint, Rúnar hit it big with country-pop band Brimkló’s debut album and his own debut solo album in 1976. Both albums sold more than 5.000 copies so Rúnar brimmed with inextinguishable optimism ever since and ran Geimsteinn with hits and misses until he passed away.
Gunnar’s Ýmir label had some success too. A comedy album by Halli, Laddi and Gísli Rúnar sold well, but a disco pop solo album by Engilbert Jensen sold less. Gunnar wasn’t really record mogul material though, and he was to have more success making albums for others.
In 1976, along with singer Björgvin Halldórsson and producer/bassist Tómas Tómasson, Gunnar made the album "Einu sinni var" (“Once Upon a Time”), a collection of old Icelandic poems that school kids had learnt in school for decades, set to new music by Gunnar. Many, including some teachers, felt the album should be banned as it “distorted the tradition,” but the general public wholly disagreed and the album went on to become the best selling Icelandic album of all time, selling more than 20.000 copies before Christmas of 1976. A second album failed to repeat the sensation a year later.
Gunnar had many projects running. He made a second solo album in 1978, a double album no less, with “difficult” music and some tracks he had written for director Hrafn Gunnlaugsson’s short films. With vocal group Lummurnar (The Pancakes), many felt Gunnar had hit an artistic low. Some even went as far as calling him “the biggest enemy of Icelandic music”. Lummurnar sang old Icelandic pop songs set to disco beats programmed and produced by Gunnar. Two albums were made in 1977 and 1978 and sold like, uh, hot pancakes.
"Þú og ég" (You and I) was yet another project of Gunnar, a swank disco duo made out of singers Helga Möller and Jóhann Helgason. Gunnar shows his studio wizardry on the 1979 album "Ljúfa líf" (Sweet life), a honey drenched disco album that naturally went on to sell like crazy. Þú og ég were to make two more albums and had some success in Japan, where—for some unfathomable reason— the Gunnar-produced Icelandic disco hit home run.
Dr. Gunni
Based on his 2000 book Eru ekki allir í stuði? (Rock in Iceland). A revised update of the book is forthcoming in 2010.

New Record Store in Reykjavik: "Lucky Records"

Ingvar Geirsson has opened a new record store Lucky Records @ Hverfisgata 82, Reykjavik.
Since 2 years, he also has a spot @ the Flea Market Kolaportið during the weekends. In the shop you'll find more than 20.000 used records (LPs) and about 8.000 12 inches. But even new CDs and Music DVDs are for sale.
Opening hours are on working days from 11:00 til 21:00.

Morðingjarnir's New Album out on Kimi Records 10. November 2009

Morðingjarnir will release their 3. Album "Flóttinn mikli" (The Great Escape") on 10. November on Kimi Label.
Album contains 11 songs, one with guest vocals by Katrína (Kata) Mogensen of the band Mammút. New single is called "Manvísa".
Morðingjarnir @ MySpace
Kimi Records

600 Extra Tickets available for Iceland Airwaves Festival 14-18. October 2009

600 Extra Tickets available for the 11. Edition of the famous Iceland Airwaves Festival.
Get tickets here

Streaming of "24/7" Album Release Concert of GusGus @ Nikita Store 26. September 2009

Nikita Clothing

New Vicky Video for "Blizzard"

Vicky
"Blizzard", a song of their Debut Album "Pull Hard", released in October 2008.
Video was directed by Tjörvi. Edited by Halli.
Art performance Johan Thom
www.youtube.com/v/ybOn9O3-Z4M&hl=nl&fmt=18

My Video of Vicky performing "Blizzard" Live @ Aldrei Festival, April 2009
www.youtube.com/v/Ofl30tfqCq0&hl=nl&fmt=18

Vicky @ MySpace

For a Minor Reflection @ LA

FaMR recording in the USA
www.youtube.com/v/qN1lvn56mGc&hl&fmt=18

FaMR

Cliff Clavin Video "Midnight getaways"

Cliff Clavin
"Midnight getaways"
Director: Arnar Helgi Hlynsson
DOP/Camera: Unnar Helgi Daníelsson
Light: Gudmundur Orri Rósenkranz
Video Editor: Gudni Halldórsson
www.youtube.com/v/9K0_y55UgJg&hl&fmt=18

Cliff Clavin @ MySpace

New Berndsen Video: "Lover in the dark"

Berndsen
"Lover In The Dark"
Directed by Farzad Farzaneh & Viktor Gårdsäter
Crew:
Johan Pettersson, post produktion
Henrik Pettersson, graphics
Lisa Eriksdottir, script supervisor
Simon Pettersson, gaffer
Ellinor Eklund, attribute maker
Studio: twentyfourseven
Sponsors: Wallin & Vallin ljus
www.youtube.com/v/bAhF9_iB2qs&hl&fmt=18

Berndsen @ MySpace

Réttir Commercial - Reykjavik 23-26. September

Réttir - Reykjavik Round-up

Free Hafdís Huld song @ Reverb Nation: "Robot Robot"

Get the free Hafdís Huld song "Robot Robot" @ Reverb Nation after registration.
Her second album will be released in Iceland next month during Airwaves '09, in the rest of the world early 2010.
Hafdís plays @ 11. Edition of Iceland Airwaves Festival 14-18. October 2009.
Logo designed by Richnosworthy

Hafdís Huld Site

New Video for Emiliana Torrini's "Me and Armini"

Emiliana Torrini
"Me and Armini"
www.youtube.com/v/pFBeGihA4RQ&hl&fmt=18

Emiliana Torrini's Website

Song of the 130. Week: Hjálmar's "Það sýnir sig"

A song of Hjálmar's fourth Album entitled "IV", "Það sýnir sig" is my 130. Song of the Week. Album was released this month.
The History of Hjálmar (Based on MySpace Bio)
The Icelandic band Hjálmar started back in 2004 as a reggae experiment: to mix reggae with Icelandic music roots. The band is known for its energetic & colourful live shows.
Hjálmar's original band members were Sigurður Guðmundsson, Þorsteinn Einarsson, Guðmundur Kristinn Jónsson and Kristinn Snær Agnarsson from Iceland, and Petter Winnberg from Sweden.
The debut album "Hljóðlega af stað" ("A Quite Take-Off") was released in September 2004 and sold well. In the beginning of the year 2005 the band received two awards at the Icelandic Music Awards: "Best Newcomers" and "Best Rock Album". The band was also nominated for the Best Live act. Later in the year 2005 the band transformed into an Icelandic/Swedish group when Kristinn Snær left to be replaced by percussionist Nils Olof Törnqvist. Mikael Svensson simultaneously joined the group on keyboard. This was the combination of the band when it produced its second album "Hjálmar", released in September 2005 and was nominated for the "Best Pop Album" at the Icelandic Music Awards. Once again Hjálmar was also nominated for the best live act. The song, "Ég vil fá mér kærustu" ("I want a Girlfriend") was the most played song on RAS 2 of the Icelandic National Radio RUV in 2005.
The third album "Ferðasót" ("Dusty from Travelling") came out in November 2007. Although the band was still mainly playing reggae, this album showed tendency towards more aggressive music as well as strong references to Icelandic musical tradition and folk music in general. The texts were also more personal and at the Icelandic Music Awards 2007 Þorsteinn Einarsson, Hjálmar’s main text writer, got nominated as the text writer of the year.
Just shortly after the release of Ferðasót the Swedish part of the band was replaced by local drummer Helgi Svavar Helgason, and bass player Valdimar Kolbeinn Sigurjónsson.
In July 2008 Hjálmar joined forces with Swedish rapper and songwriter Timbuktu for the song "Dom hinner aldrig ikapp". The song was an instant radio hit in Iceland and was released on Timbuktu's album "En high 5 & 1 Falafel" later that year.
In May this year, Hjálmar went to Jamaica to record at the famous Harry J Studio and the Tuff Gong Studio, along with local reggae artists such as Cat Coore, Sticky, Robbie Lyn and Dean Fraser. Those recordings ended up on Hjálmar's fourth album, "IV", that was released in September 2009.
The individual members of Hjálmar are all well respected within the Icelandic music and entertainment scene and as either solo artists, text writers, producers (albums, music for TV, commercials, film and theatre) as well as playing and recording with other Icelandic artists and bands.
Hjálmar's current line-up:
Þorsteinn Einarsson:Lead vocal & Guitar
Sigurður Guðmundsson:Lead vocal & Keyboards
Guðmundur Kristinn Jónsson: Guitar
Valdimar Kolbeinn Sigurjónsson: Bass
Helgi Svavar Helgason: Drums
Hjálmar @ MySpace

Uleti (Fly away) - Music by Jónsi & Alex ("Boy 1904")

A Video by Ora Kolmanovsky
The soundtrack is by Jónsi & Alex "Boy 1904", a song of their Album "Riceboy Sleeps".
www.youtube.com/v/vikcgg7e7bU&hl&fmt=18

Jónsi & Alex

Havarí: A New Music/Art Shop in Reykjavík

The couple Svavar Pétur Eysteinsson & Berglind Häsler, original from Seyðisfjörður in the East Fjords, are running the new Havarí shop downtown Reykjavík. Both are musicians in the band Skakkamanage, they form the duo Létt á Bárunni, and Svavar solo is Prins Polo.
The Shop is situated nextdoors Shalimar Restaurant @ Austurstræti 6, across the street is Subway.
In their shop you can buy stuff (music & art) of 4 origins Kimi Records, Borgin Hljómplötur (a sublabel of Kimi), Gogoyoko & Skakka­popp. The album "IV" by Hjálmar is for presale there since yesterday.
Skakkamange Live @ Nordic House in Reykjavík 3. April 2009
www.youtube.com/v/YLzpE5aw0Rg&hl&fmt=18

Duo Létt á Bárunni performs "Drepum drepum" @ Seyðisfjörður 18. April 2009
(White Stripes in Iceland?)
www.youtube.com/v/baQmQst75UM&hl&fmt=18

Skakkapopp
Kimi Records
Gogoyoko

Rude Icelandic band names

Icelandic bands that have rude words or meanings in their name

One of the early bands of Björk, Tappi Tíkarrass, which means “Cork the Bitch’s Ass” was given after band member Jakob’s father claimed that the band’s music “fitted like a cork in a bitch’s ass”.
The band in the movie/documentary Rokk í Reykjavík:

Megas & Tappi Tíkarrass together on stage, with the help of Björk's sister Inga Guðmundsdóttir and Rose McDowall (vocals for Current 93, Ornamental, Psychic TV, Death in June, etc.).
Inga Guðmundsdóttir & Björk did the backing vocals on Megas' Album 'Loftmynd".

The band Kolrassa Krókríðandi or "Blackassed motherfuckers" was formed in Keflavík by four 16-year old girls: Elíza M. Geirsdóttir (singer of band Skandinavia, now solo), Sigrún Eiríksdóttir, Ester Bíbí Ásgeirsdóttir (now in band Singapore Sling) & Birgitta Vilbergsdóttir. They choose the English band name Bellatrix, not as rude as blackassed...
"Gammagarg" Video
www.youtube.com/v/NB-ViXBkAFQ&hl&fmt=18

Óttarr Proppé (once in HAM, also member of Dr. Spock) is member of the band Rass, means "arse". They released the album "Andstaða" in 2005.
"Umboðsmaður Íslands" Video
www.youtube.com/v/krFfdYHL8CU&hl&fmt=18

Fist Fokkers, the duo Úlfur & Kári
Fist Fokkers @ MySpace

Pornopop, the band of the brothers Águst & Pétur Einarsson
Pornopop Album @ Slow Songs

Bang Gang, not "gang bang"
Bang Gang
"I know you sleep" Video, a song of 3. Album "Ghosts from the past" (2008)
www.youtube.com/v/r_GwpsykSDA&hl&fmt=18

The band of Atli Fannar Bjarkason (former Editor of Monitor Magazine), Hölt Hóra, "limping hooker/prostitute"
"Vændiskonan" Video, a song of their Debut Album "Love me like you elskar mig" (2005)
www.youtube.com/v/zvxiStUwvEs&hl&fmt=18"

Hölt Hóra

More suggestions are welcome!

Ghosts in Icelandic music

Not the elves rule in Icelandic music scene, but the ghosts do

First of all there is the band of Curver Thorodssen & Einar Örn Benediktsson, namely Ghostigital.
Ghostigital
The title of Bang Gang's third album was "Ghosts from the past" (2008), and one song has the title "Ghost from the past".
Bang Gang @ MySpace
Bang Gang
Skátar's album got the title "Ghost of the Bollocks to Come" (Grandmothers, 2007).

Seabear album "The ghost that carried us away" (Morr Music, 2007)
Seabearia, the Official Website of Seabear

More suggestions are welcome!

Exhibition "Heilbrigð æska“, pönkið og Kópavogurinn 1978 – 1983

Heilbrigð æska: pönkið og Kópavogurinn 1978 – 1983
An Exhibition about Punk Music in Kópavogur
in the period 1978-1983

Opening of this exhibition made by student Aðalheiður Erlendsdóttir & Pétur Ólafsson was yesterday @ 15.00 @ Tónlistarsafn Íslands, Hábraut 2, Kópavogur.

Opening hours of the exhibition: 11:00-16:00 on working days in Oktober, November & December 2009.
Tónlistarsafn

Dr. Gunni talked about punk music@ Kópavogur .

There is a strong liaison between the town of Kópavogur & punk music.

Punk band Fræbbblarnir started in MK School in the winter of 1978 @ the first Myrkramessu @ school. Other bands were Snillingarnir, Taugadeildin, Þeyr, F-8, Dordinglar, Geðfró, Stífgrím & NAST.

Clash Iceland Airwaves 2009 Competition

Win a trip to the Iceland Airwaves Festival 2009 Edition with Clash.

Btw this is the answer of the competition:

Captain Fufanu, Bypass & Hypno @ Hitt Húsið Basement 24. September 2009

Bypass & Captain Fufanu & Hypno
Fimmtudagsforleikur / The Thursday Teaser
Thursady 24. September 2009
@ Hitt Húsið Basement, Pósthússtræti 3-5
@ 20:00-21:50
An evening full of great electronica tunes

For a Minor Reflection @ The Lexington, London 2. November 2009

Goo Nite
presents
For a Minor Reflection
Her Name is Calla - The Devil May Cares
Monday 2. November 2009
@ The Lexington, 96-98 Pentonville Road, London
@ 19:30-22:30

FOR A MINOR REFLECTION (Iceland)
For a Minor Reflection comprises of four 19-year-olds from Reykjavík, Iceland. Their music is best described as energetic, melodious post-rock, though being the natural creative visionaries they are, the band expand and even subvert their style with almost every song. They supported Sigur Ros on their last tour in the UK. This band is for fans of Godspeed you! Black Emperor & Explosions in the Sky.

www.myspace.com/foraminorreflection
www.foraminorreflection.com

HER NAME IS CALLA
Her Name is Calla produce an intensity rarely seen these days, a mix of hushed tones and wailing guitars with brass and strings throw in for good measure. This UK-based collective have an almost slow-core element to their music but it's bigger and louder and longer than all of that. A must see.
www.myspace.com/hernameiscalla
THE DEVIL MAY CARES
The Devil May Cares are a new nine-piece ensemble stretched pretty evenly across addresses in London and Brighton. The band began life as a six-piece choir, playing a handful of shows in Brighton last year, and they have since been introducing guitar, bass, drums, piano and on the occasion, when one is to hand, a saxophone or something else that squawks to the theatrical, wordy, and often lengthy songs. Comparisons by audience members at an earlier wave of shows mentioned A Silver Mount Zion and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.
www.myspace.com/devilmaycares

Buy tickets for £6 @ www.wegottickets.com/event/56335
The Lexington
96-98 Pentonville Road, London, UK
Tel. 020 7837 5371 / Tube: Angel
Doors @ 20:00
Goo Nite

Krummi goes Pop in the USA

Krummi in the USA

Krummi Björgvinsson is now living in Atlanta & works on a solo Album in the USA. Not a Rock Album but a CD with poppy dance music. Dóra, keyboardplayer of Esja, is collaborating with Krummi.
Krummi is a member of the bands Mínus and Esja. Probably there will be a new Esja Album next year.
Krummi will be playing in a movie next year.
Esja plays @ Iceland Airwaves 2009.

Icelandic artists @ Iceland Airwaves '09 Festival - An Update

More local artists were added today:
Less than 3 Svanhvít!, Æla, Agent Fresco, Bárujárn, Berndsen, Björt, Bróðir Svartúlfs, Bummer, Captain Fufanu, Cliff Clavin, Coral, Cosmic Call, Cynic Guru, Dikta, DLX ATX, Dr.Spock, Dynamo Fog, Eberg, Fjallabræður, FM Belfast, For a minor Reflection, Foreign Monkeys, Ghostigital, Go Go Darkness, Gone Postal, Gordon Riots, Gus Gus, Hafdis Huld, Hank&Tank, Hjaltalín, Hraun, Ingi, Jan Mayen, Jeff Who?, Jón Tryggvi, Jónas Sigurdsson & Malbikið Svífur, Kimono, Klink, Langi Seli og Skuggarnir, Leaves, Lights On The Highway, Ljósvaki, Mongoose, Mammút, Me, The Slumbering Napoleon, Mikado, Mikael Lind, Miri, Morðingjarnir, Moses Hightower, Movement, Nolo, Oculus, Ólafur Arnalds, Our Lives, Pascal Pinon, Pedro Pilatus & Bear Hug, Poetrix, Pontiak Pilatus, Rabbi Bananas, Ramses, Retro Stefson, Retrön, Reykjavík!, Shogun, Sing for me Sandra, Sometime, Soundspell, Sprengjuhöllin, Sudden Weather Change, Svavar Knútur, Swords of Chaos, Sykur, Ten Steps Away, Tenderfoot, The Viking Giant Show, Toggi, Tonik, Úlpa, Uni, Útidúr, Vicky, We Made God, Weapons, Who Knew, XXX Rottweiler
More to come soon...
Iceland Airwaves
Update: Only about 450 tickets left!

The History of Icelandic Rock - Part 10

The History of Icelandic Rock Music
Part 10
Pétur And His P-bands
Dr. Gunni in Grapevine Magazine (September 2009)

Pétur Kristjánsson was the hardest-working rocker of the seventies. In a decade laden with frothy pop music, country ballads and disco, Pétur kept the rock and roll flames burning.
Son of fifties big band leader KK, Pétur soon took after his father, although he went for an altogether different musical direction. Pétur sang and played the bass. His first real band was Pops, a legendary cover band that has counted various members through the years and can still be found playing on occasion. Pops’ only release was a 7” in the early seventies, where the band teamed up with comedian Flosi Ólafsson on the novelty hit "Það er geggjað að geta hneggja"— (“It’s insane to be able to neigh”).
After Pops, Pétur did stints with Náttúra and Svanfríður (already covered here earlier), but after Svanfríður died off in 1973, Pétur formed his most famous rock band, Pelican. Right from the beginning Pelican was a popular band and had a sweet sailing at the Icelandic ball scene. In 1974 the band went to Massachusetts, USA, to record a LP at the Shaggy Dog Studio, where the reformed band Hljómar had already recorded its ill-fated country rock opus "Hljómar 1974". In America, Pelican got in contact with various biz-people, and for awhile it looked like Pelican would sign a record deal and hit the big time.
In 1974, Pelican was the biggest band in Iceland. The first song from the album, “Jenny Darling”, was released on a single in the summer, a frisky number that went on to become Pétur’s signature song. The song was the hit of the summer and when the album “Uppteknir” (a word-play, can both mean “Unpacked” and “Busy”—the album cover featured the band inside a sardine tin), came out in the fall it became the best selling Icelandic album yet, shifting 11.000 units.
Being ultra popular in Iceland wasn’t enough, of course! The band wanted more: international fame. Pelican returned to Massachusetts in 1975 to record the follow-up album, "Lítil fluga", (“Little fly”). The Americans booked the band on a nine date tour of the East Coast, where Pelican played for up to 1.000 people at a time. The band was assigned a legion of roadies, sound-men, lighting engineers, and so on—“the real deal”—and the members were in awe: “We got to glimpse the glory,” Pétur said later.
The band was offered various record deals and the chance to support bands such as the Allman Brothers and the Doobie brothers, and the albino brothers Johnny and Edgar Winter, too. Sweet times lay ahead, and the band returned to Iceland to play for their eager fans. One of the things that the Americans had been talking about was that Pétur wasn’t a good enough singer. Without him, and with a new singer, great things were sure to happen, they said. The other Pelican members took these speculations way too seriously and discussed the possibility of sacking the band’s founder. When Pétur heard this through the grapevine, he confronted his pals, ultimately leaving his own band as a result.
Naturally the news spread fast and people gasped—Pétur kicked from his own band? Pétur had all the pity, and Paradís, the band he formed fresh from the ejection, soon got to be the main band in Iceland, while Pelican with a new singer, Herbert Guðmundsson, quickly faded to obscurity. With Paradís, Pétur behaved in a super professional manner, and ran the band like a business. Eager to top his former bandmembers and under influence from Pelican’s professional stint in America, Pétur invested in hefty sound- and light-equipment and even a smoke-machine, the first one in Iceland. Paradís went through thirteen members during its course—Pétur being the only constant—and five more workers were on board when Paradís played balls in the Icelandic countryside, including a special guy to run the light show and a perky DJ to keep things hopping during breaks. Paradís made an album in 1976, featuring the full-blooded rock that Pétur had been singing for four years now. Some felt Pétur was beginning to show signs of stagnation, and after disappointing sales Paradís split up. In the spring of 1977, Pétur formed yet another band beginning with the letter P: Poker.
Poker’s main goal was to “make it” abroad, and escape the doldrums of Iceland (a recurring theme in Iceland’s rock history). With Pétur came guitar virtuoso Björgvin Gíslason from Paradís, and Pálmi Gunnarsson, Jóhann Helgason, Sigurður Karlsson and Kristján Guðmundsson came in from funk band Celsíus. Many other members were to come and go in the band’s short history. To cut a long story short, nothing came of Poker’s dreams of “making it.” In 1977, however, every member of the band except Pétur and Jóhann, performed on a debut solo album by an unknown 11-year old girl called Björk Guðmundsdóttir.
With his seventies dreams of “making it” wholly immaterialised, Pétur lay low for awhile and concentrated on running his record shop. In the early eighties, some younger boys asked him to join a new band, Start, which played rock in the direction of Loverboy and Foreigner. Start went on to become a popular band and Pétur was once more on top of things. Start’s sole LP offering was released in 1981.
Since then and until his untimely death in 2004, Pétur kept at it with various outfits, sometimes reformed versions of his old bands, sometimes new ones. He was a mentor in the fine art of rock and roll, famous for his record fairs (his relatives still hold a record fair annually at Perlan), a sweet and funny guy that was beloved by all. As promised, "Wild Thing" was played at his funeral.
Dr. Gunni, based on his book Eru ekki allir í stuði? (Rock in Iceland, published in 2000). A revised update of the book is forthcoming in 2010.

Desember: A new Icelandic Movie with singer Lay Low as actress

Desember Movie Trailer
Featuring singer Lay Low as actress. Soundtrack features Singapore Sling & Kimono
www.youtube.com/v/EV7f9VDu7z8&hl&fmt=18

Lay Low @ MySpace
Singapore Sling @ MySpace
Kimono

Ólafur Arnalds Unofficial Video for Song "Fok"

Ólafur Arnalds
"Fok"
www.youtube.com/v/dZanpTVmBD8&hl&fmt=18

Ólafur Arnalds @ MySpace