Wow – so the first night is behind us already, it was a bit of a blur. the main thing that strikes me is how firendly this place is. I lost count of the number of familiar faces from previous years I have bumped into already, everybody wants to chat, to compare plans and suggestions, and to share beer.

I started the night in Sodoma to see Bummer, the new project of the always awesome Þórir who also appears as My Summer As A Salvation Soldier (quiet, acoustic) and in the band Gavin Portland (loud, hardcore). This new band sit in a happy middle ground, easy to tell that they made a good impression – the area front of stage was deserted when they started and pretty full when they left, a very well deserved success – I can't wait to hear some recorded stuff from this trio (+ drum machine!).

From then on it was Nasa all the way, which meant I had to miss out on Hoffman and particularly Retro Stefson, but I'll get to them later in the week!

I caught around 30 seconds of Retron's set, so I can't really say much. It was certainly loud and the crowd was fairly sweaty as they emerged towards the bars after they stopped. I suspect some fun was had! Mordingjarnir were up next, and the crowd was never still for a moment. Essentially this is old fashioned rabble-rousing punk-rock, with some exceptionally catchy moments. Their song "Afram Island" ticks every single box in the catchy punk sing-a-long checklist. Their new CD sits happily in my goody bag awaiting a listen, and now I'm looking forward to it even more.

Reykjavik! (picture above and right)came up next. They are a fabulous band, they deliver time after time at Airwaves, and no doubt throughout the year as well. Airwaves just wouldn't be the same without seeing these guys a few times. I can't remember where I read the quote (I wish I could credit it) but the article had gone through a few bands, labelling them awesome, and got to Reykjavik! and called them, "the band makes awesome an understatement". This is so true. I suspect they are an even better event in a smaller room but they whipped up a frenzy last night with awesome versions of "The Blood", "Kate Bush", "Repticon" and others. I can't wait to see them at Sodoma on Friday, with these guys the smaller the venue is, the more intense and magnified the performance gets. Get there early.

They were followed, oddly, by Swedish dance act Juvelen. I thought they were fabulous for 5 minutes, good for 15 minutes but soon became a bit repetitive. I relinquished my spot at the front of the stage to search out friendly faces, beer and cooler air towards the back of Nasa.

I woke up again for Kimono who followed after a very lengthy changeover. Often labelled experimental, but I'm not sure I agree – their stuff is interesting but essentially a guitar led three piece. The songs were accessible, despite half of them being new to me. The crowd was (inexplicably) thinner once Juvelen had finished up, but Kimono got the atmosphere up again and went down really well. This set everything up nicely for the evening's headliners – Sudden Weather Change. These guys have incredible energy, their good time attitude is infectious and gets right through the room beyond the fan cub they seem to have at the front of every show. A great set, all based around their fabulous debut album which I urge everyone to get hold of.

An excellent opening night, involving all the reasons why this festival is so addictive. And, typically, I emerged from a hot sweaty venue into a howling wind and rain… and headed directly to the hot-dogs. The weather has to get a lot worse to deny me that end of night pleasure!

(apologies for the photo quality, I don't think the camera is best designed for fast moving indoor gigs!)