The Diversion Sessions
Former Skátar rocker Markús Bjarnason shows a softer side on his new album ‘Now I Know.’ Recorded under the name Markús & the Diversion Sessions, ‘Now I Know’ is a [
EIVÖR – LARVA
Why do people try to cover Kate Bush? Eivör fails as hard as Futureheads and Placebo ever did, but we’ll disregard that for the purposes of this review, because other […]
Svarthöfði: Svarthöfði EP
Didn’t know much about Svarthöfði (Icelandic for Darth Vader) but I took a punt on these guys through Gogoyoko. I wish I hadn’t bothered. They may call themselves punk, but [
Heading Towards Chaos
“For a Minor Reflection is a four-piece, made of two guys with indie tops, a man with glasses and a metalhead.” When asked to describe his band, Kjartan Holm of […]
Loji – Skyndiskyssur
Minimalistic vocal-centric lo-fi is a tough game to play. It’s not that it’s so hit or miss; it’s that a lot of the time the listeners finds themselves questioning if [&helli
For A Minor Reflection
With all the rock being recorded in Iceland, you’d think we’d have found one producer who can make it sound the way it should. The fact that FAMR apparently sought […]
Ólafur Arnalds
If you’ve ever witnessed Ólafur Arnalds perform, you know that his music has an almost magical aura. I recently saw a hall with hundreds of metal-festival attendees hushing each
Singing In The Rain
It was presented as an extravaganza of “eclectic music, inspired by Iceland.” Then it was (very quietly) announced that some of the artists (Hjaltalín, Retro Stefson, For a Mi
Stafrænn Hákon – Sanitas
There was a point somewhere about five years ago when post-rock went from still being something, kinda, to becoming full-on cock-rock that overcompensating dudebros could justifiab
Rokk í Reykjavík!
In 1981, filmmaker Friðrik Þór Friðriksson began filming Icelandic rock bands in action around Reykjavík for an upcoming documentary about the scene. Friðrik had at that poin
Daði: Self Portrait
To my knowledge, the only notable thing to have come from Dalvík recently is Friðrik Ómar, a poisoned pop dwarf whose music is the equivalent of a dozen Care Bears […]
Shabbiness And Bankruptcy
Obviously I have no first-hand experience of clubs before I started playing in 1980, but from what I’ve heard there were some pretty cool venues operated before my time. Vetrarga
Þeyr Has Spiritual Intercourse With The Nation
In 1981, a flock of serious men came out of the woodworks—often wearing long grey or black overcoats. They probably clutched a Joy Division or a Þeyr record under their [&hellip
Into The Light
He is tow-headed and unassuming, sitting on a patio, fidgeting as he lights a cigarette. He is driving to the airport in four hours to go on a two-week tour […]
Me, the Slumbering Napoleon: The Bloody Core Of It
A while ago I reviewed MTSN´s debut EP and gave it a cautious thumbs up for its scuzzy rock sound. Now I’m taking it all back. I had really high […]
The Flaming Banshees: Satan is a Farmer
A lot of the acoustic based releases making the rounds this year seem to be following the same tired 60s and 70s template of Neil young/Nick Drake/Van Morrison. The end […]
Wormlust: Seven Paths
Everybody and their mother are talking about atmospheric black metal these days. Sure enough, there’s a tidal wave of bands trying to get their piece of the pie, by throwing
Reykjavík Needs Henrik Björnsson And His Music
Singapore Sling are one of the finer constants of Icelandic music. Throughout the last decade, the band has consistently released stunning music and played jaw-dropping, death-affi
A Good Long Nap
The Icelandic Opera is a strange little room. It’s a stripped-down, baroque-style hall with creaky seats and clattering doors. Every tiny sound—from the worst coughing fit to s
Processions
It would be nigh on impossible to describe the complexities of Daníel Bjarnason’s debut album in 150 words, but suffice it to say it´s pretty powerful stuff. Processions ma
Logn / Manslaughter: Split
Exploding out of the gate in true Nasum fashion, both guns grinding, with an evil yet instantly memorable main riff. To make a long story short, every Logn song, save […]