From the Editors Chair
If you are a newly-arrived visitor to Reykjavík, you might have noticed the happy-casual feel that has taken over the city centre recently. A bunch of people enjoying their drinks
Dead
In an alley stretching off of Laugavegur, Jón Sæmundur Auðarson’s Dead label has found a permanent home in his store of the same name. The former owner of Nonnabúð and [&hel
Rafskinna
Rafskinna, Iceland’s first magazine in DVD format, is a beautifully packaged, attractive collectible. Beyond the 2½ hours of (mostly unseen) footage and16-page printed octavo, i
The Maritime Museum
Located only metres from the old harbour, the Reykjavík Maritime Museum might seem uninteresting on the outside. On the inside, however, an impressive collection of unique fishery
On Karl Marx – Until Eternity Proves Him Wrong
All too frequently Marxist enthusiasts argue over a ridiculous question: Was Karl Marx an ordinary ‘philosopher’ or a divine ‘prophet’? The question itself is defective bec
A Peter Parker Conforms: “The Truth Is Out There?”
A great philosopher once said in a rather cryptic manner that nothing changes; one could say that our naked, tame souls cannot fathom this simple dictum of life, how our […]
Roots Tourism in Hofsós
At the Icelandic Emigration Centre in Hofsós, Nelson Gerrard shows me a thick, heavy book that he wrote about the lives and descendants of the Icelanders who settled on the [&hell
G! Festival: Like Valhalla’s Own Music Fest
To the untrained mind of your average European, Iceland and the Faroe Islands suffer the same relationship as Spain and Portugal, England and Scotland or Holland and Belgium – th
Seabear: A Fully-fledged Team
The lo-fi country pop group Seabear will be among the many acts performing at the annual Innipúkinn music festival, taking place in Reykjavík on August 4 and 5. The band [&hellip
Gallery Crush
At various Icelandic art schools, designer/fashionista Óli has a reputation. Having focused his art in the direction of the greater community, he has worked in various underground
Not the Same Old Jens
The soft-spoken musings of Swedish Jens Lekman are carving him a spot in music history as one of Europe’s best-loved troubadours. Bashful, sweet, and disarmingly earnest, Lekman
Great Wall
We here at the Grapevine have been watching the construction of the Great Wall restaurant through our office windows the last few months, so it was with curiosity that we […
Sour Grapes
Re: On Advertisement When I was 18, I was a communist. I’m not really sure why, the whole thing just kind of resounded with my upbringing in Sweden, and I […]
Le Rendez-vous
A little over a week ago, a new fine dining destination, restaurant Le Rendez-vous, opened its doors in the city centre. It is best described as a traditional French restaurant, [&
Controlling the Discourse by Changing the Subject
An entity called “The Journalistic Ethics Committee” operates under the aegis of the Icelandic Press Council (IPC), of which almost every Icelandic journalist is a member. The
Bringing Art to the Public
‘Miðbaugur og Kringla: Leisure, Administration and Control’ is the name of a collaborative exhibition of 11 visual artists that will open in various spaces in Reykjavík on Ju
Toys for Tourists
Choosing that perfect souvenir to send home can be difficult when stores sell pretty much the same the world ‘round. You’ve probably often wondered how designers can be so unim
Privatised and Downsized Cod
Icelanders’ allotted cod quota was recently cut by a third, which is more than ever before since Iceland won the cod wars with Great Britain in the 1970s and expanded […]
Gone Fishing
Chapter One: Fish Guts The first thing that strikes you about working on a fishing boat is the amount of fish gut stains. Black, brown and purple spots cover the […]
MySpace vs. Facebook
When browsing through the curious realms of the Internet, many find the need to partake and express themselves in the online world of abstract rules. While most of us do […]
The Crazy World of the Quota System (somewhat) Explained
My cousin Gummi put it best: “The problem with the quota system is that it’s always been discussed in such an obscure, specialized language that no one really understands how [