I really didn't know much about Mafama before spending some quality time with their music after they were added to the line-up of Iceland Airwaves 2014. They are a quirky blend of many different influences. They have also made a staggeringly odd and pretty disturbing (in a good way, I think) video for their song […]
Sindri Eldon is described on the Airwaves site as a "hellish elemental fireball taken human form". He was already very high on my wish list for pre-Airwaves interviews this year, I've been enjoying his shows and the music on bandcamp increasingly over the last few years, but that sealed it! I'm pretty sure that this […]
There are two things to celebrate today. Firstly, you can now legally call your Icelandic baby Mark, the greatest of all names. Secondly, not content with being the continent's best football team (FACT), exactly three weeks from now Iceland will throw the world's best music festival, Iceland Airwaves 2014. I have a lot to do […]
We all love Sóley don't we? That wonderful, haunting, enchanting and utterly engaging debut album, "We Sink", from 3 years ago (3 years already!) seemed to be universally loved and YOU dear iceblahers (?) voted it as the best record of 2011. All the shows at Airwaves have been very well attended indeed. But, […]
Grísalappalísa were the first band I saw at Iceland Airwaves 2013. I'd heard and fallen in love with their first record, the seven track 'Ali', and I knew that this was a rare sighting of some former members of the legendary Jakobínarína (seriously, look them up if you don't know them already). The live show, […]
I love Prins Póló (or is it PrinsPóló? Read on to find out) so I'm pretty happy that they have just released a wonderful new record called 'Sorrí'. The herd, led by Svavar Eysteinsson, formerly of Rúnk and Skakkamanage, are in fine form as always. The album includes asome songs that are a little familiar already, […]
Pollapönk's Eurovision adventure provided SO MUCH FUN a few weeks ago. They became a social media sensation all around Europe when they got into the final with the very last announcement and then just carried on really, really, really enjoying themselves. It all gave people I know a chance to tell me they had seen […]
I was pretty lucky and excited to get a promo copy of the brand new FM Belfast album recently, it arrived in one of those square parcels with Icelandic postage on it that I so love to receive. This is their third album – if you discount that oddly premature but excellent ‘best of’ that […]
It is December, so it must be end of year list time. This is the third time I have run this particular piece of fun. Last year, 64 of you lovelies took the time to cast your votes and we managed to get a bit of press attention too. The search for a worthy successor […]
"Grúska Babúska is a 4 piece all female band, with an out-of-space wonky, electronic, synth, melodic, acoustic and twisted icelandic fairytale sound" I'm not even going to attempt to better that description which you can find on Grúska Babúska's very fancy website. It does sum the sound up pretty nicely, plus I really like the […]