Valgeir Sigurðsson: Architecture Of Loss
On ‘Architecture of Loss,’ Valgeir Sigurðsson pares down musical selections originally written for Stephen Petronio’s ballet of the same name. The resulting album is a dark,
Útidúr: Detour
Útidúr were called the ‘Beirut of Iceland’ in their early days, and not without reason. There is more than a bit of Zach Condon in lead vocalist Gunnar Örn’s d
Oyama I Wanna
Big things are expected of neo-shogazers Oyama in 2013 and their debut EP, ‘I Wanna,’ is their first proper mission statement. It certainly wears its influences on its sleeve w
The Roster of Icelandic Bands
Amiina The former string team for Sigur Rós, Amiina have evolved tremendously over the past few years. With the kalimba, saw, Theremin and other weird instruments, their songs are
Tomorrow’s Party
The idea of Iceland as a music lover’s utopia is a recent one to surface, mostly inspired by an impressive run of internationally successful artists and propagated by the ever-in
Welcome To The Fall
Fall founder Mark E. Smith: a fiend, a frontman, straight up punk or a living legend? Whatever your answer, you can’t deny that the man has led a long and […]
Parties of Tomorrow And Yesterday
Keflavík is the birthplace of the Icelandic rock-scene with bands like Hljómar sprouting up there in the late ‘60s. Unfortunately, the Keflavík Music Festival held June 5–9
Your ATP Mixtape Of The Issue
This issue we have a massive playlist with songs from the artists playing at ATP Iceland. The playlist includes: Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds – Jubilee Street Thee Oh [&hellip
Sigur Rós’s ‘Kveikur’ Receives Foreign Critical Acclaim
Sigur Rós’s newest album, ‘Kveikur,’ which was officially released on the 17th of June has received critical acclaim around the world. Metacritic.com lists the album with an
Hymnalaya: Hymns
Religion and “rock ‘n’ roll” are uneasy bedfellows. It seems fair to say that most Christian bands don’t shout about their religion from the rooftops.
Karaoke At The Grapevine’s 10 Year Anniversary Party
The Reykjavík Grapevine celebrated its 10 year anniversary yesterday at KEX Hostel. There was beer and sangria and cake and some INCREDIBLE live karaoke. We managed to get some of
Drones And Viola
‘Drones And Viola’ is the second of three releases in Muhly’s “Drones” series. It again features Bruce Brubaker on piano, this time accompanied by Nadia Sirota on Viola.
Samaris: Stofnar Falla EP
On their second EP, young trio Samaris further develop their dystopian folk sound. The palette is similar—clarinet, breathy vocals, dark Icelandic folk melodies with folkloric ly
It Wouldn’t Be A Grapevine Party Without…Some Music Of Course!
It’s been ten years since the first copy of Grapevine saw the Icelandic midnight sun and that certainly calls for an all caps PARTY. For that occasion Straum.is has compiled [&he
Ólafur Arnalds: For Now I Am Winter
Following Ólafur’s fantastic performance at Sónar Reykjavík, I was almost certain that I would give ‘For Now I Am Winter’ a glowing review. I expected (wanted, even) to en
Bloodgroup: Tracing Echoes
Hot on the heels of Legend and Hjaltalín’s dark musical displays, Bloodgroup’s third album ‘Tracing Echoes’ shows the group in a more sombre, solemn mood. The posters for
Nadia Sirota: Baroque
If the notion of sitting through an hour of Baroque music makes you shuffle backwards toward the nearest exit, fear not: Nadia Sirota’s ‘Baroque’ is a rich, contemporary albu
On A Date With Ophidian I: Murder Most Waterfowl!
On the Lord’s day of rest (known to most of us as Sunday), some like to unwind after a couple nights of hard binging and dodgy hedonistic practices. Some like […]
A Boom-tastic Concert Year
The Boom Years are finally back… when it comes to the import of popular foreign music! Local music lovers still reminisce over the 2003-2008 era, when musicians such as Eric [&he
The Mess Is Back!
Reykjavík Music Mess is a DIY music festival held annually in a couple of the city’s downtown venues. The festival started in 2011 and has consistently brought together the
Can We Fit More Metalheads In Here?
Skálmöld has been one of my favourite bands since they released ‘Baldur’ in the deep and dark winter of 2010. I saw them shortly thereafter in Gamli Gaukurinn and was