The Reykjavík Grapevine: Music

T-Model Ford

We interviewed T-Model for the last issue, and complained that his comments may be repeated a bit too often, and that his music wasn’t appreciated enough. We were amused, then, [

March 10, 2006

Grapevine Presents: Benni Hemm Hemm Live at Hotel Borg, March 30th

For our second podcast, the Grapevine presents Benni Hemm Hemm’s Hotel Borg performance of March 30th, 2006, in its entirety. We are skipping the introductions and interviews for

February 10, 2006

If Tattoos Were Instruments

When Jón Atli of Hairdoctor told me the opening line he was planning, I was expecting a rumble. Jón Atli is a small, well-groomed… well, pretty boy with a good […]

February 10, 2006

You’ll Be Dead in Three Years:

The last 18 months have been productive for singer and songwriter Þórir Georg Jónsson (also known by his interesting stage name My Summer as a Salvation Soldier). In 2004, Þór

February 10, 2006

First Annual Þórir Week Approaches Climax with Grapevine Podcast

The Grapevine’s First Annual Þórir Week reaches dizzying heights today, Friday, March 3, as Þórir takes to downtown Reykjavík to bring his music to the people. Starting at 5

Entertain Us

Slightly exhausted on the last day of Christmas, the Grapevine made it out to Laugardalshöll for a corporate-sponsored, all ages concert, which, were it not one night before the b

Ampop: My Delusions

Why does everyone whose band can do a halfway-passable impression of Radiohead suddenly think they’re qualified musicians? I don’t propose to answer that, but I will tell you t

A Taste for Corn Liquor

When my attempt to interview the blues legend T-Model Ford in one of his favourite juke joints of Clarksdale, Mississippi fails, I take the offer of his colleague Lightning Malcolm

Ðe lónlí blú bojs: Komplít

If you feel like buying a Björgvin Halldórsson album (may God have mercy on your soul), but don’t have the financial standings to shell out 2,500 ISK for the three-disc [&helli

Editor’s Choice

Hairdoctor: Shampoo Hairdoctor snuck up on us—known more for their hairdressing and DJing at Sirkus bar, they seemed to be taking advantage of the good will they’d built up whe

Megasukk: Hús datt

Hús datt is a collection of 21 deliciously short collaborations between perverted drunkard/master wordsmith Megas and oddball country duet Súkkat, and the result walks a fine lin

Björgvin Halldórsson: Ár og öld

It should come as no surprise that middle-aged pop celebrity Björgvin Halldórsson’s dabbling in country, rock and blues have aged far better than his cheesy, contrived power ba

Blues Gone Wild

Bob Log III, the black sheep of Mississippi blues label Fat Possum Records, hit Iceland like a more hormonal, if more awkward, Matthew McConaughey. The stoner charm of his voice [&

Hjálmar: Hjálmar

Swedish-Icelandic reggae group Hjálmar’s self-titled sophomore release is its predecessor’s superior in every way. The songs have lost their careless let’s-all-get-high atmo

Wish We Were There

Grapevine resources were stretched too thin, and no reporter was able to document the chemistry of Mugison, Trabant and Hjálmar playing together at NASA just before the holidays.

Sálin hans Jóns míns: Undir þínum áhrifum

Sálin have seemingly discarded their usual forthrightness for a more scattered, loose approach, opting for a blander, more finely crafted style of guitar-pop than the catchy, hook

Sturdy Bar Required

Walking into Hressó on December 21st to see a Þórir gig, it felt a bit like New Year’s Day—the party had obviously already happened, and Reykjavík! was entirely responsible

Worm Is Green: Push Play

A placid, atmospheric selection of electro trip-hop with a lyrical fixation on lonely robots, Push Play oozes listlessly from song to song, finding comfort in radio-friendly conten

Atmospheric Basement

Some bands are possessed of an eerie, if not very adventurous, talent: The ability to sound almost exactly the same live as they do on record. Worm Is Green is […]