Reykjavík Grapevine - 07.04.2006, Blaðsíða 31

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José González
March 13th
2006
José González’s reputation may well have preceded
him, given that he recently played a show at the
Iceland Airwaves festival, which has become an “I was
there” sort of moment in Icelandic musical annals.
Before the night’s show started I caught snippets of
conversations in which people described standing in
line for over three hours in order to see him play at
the Iceland Airwaves festival without getting in.
After opening act Siggi Ármann dragged those
in attendance through an uneventful half-hour, José
González appeared on stage to a welcoming applause
from the audience. His deadpan demeanour firmly
established the subdued mood that would follow,
despite the crowd’s enthusiasm.
Somewhat surprisingly, the audience immedi-
ately reacted to the opening lines of Deadweight on
Velveteen – a lesser-known track, having avoided the
fate of underscore to dramatic scenes on The OC or
bouncing balls on the streets of San Francisco in Sony
commercials, which González’s more famous songs
have undergone. The instant recognition suggested
that those in attendance were there to do more than
satisfy their curiosity. They were obviously fans.
From then on, González went through a set that
was more or less comprised of songs from his debut
effort, Veneer (2003). Some of the crowd’s favourites
included Slow Moves, Lovestain, Crosses and a cover
of Heartbeats by Swedish electro pop-duo The Knife.
The biggest ovation though was reserved for his cover
of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart, which
brought tears to the faint hearted in attendance. After
a few minutes of enthusiastic clapping, González
returned to the stage for an encore, including covers
of Kylie Minogue’s Hand on Your Heart and an
inspired rendition of Massive Attack’s Teardrop.
During the show, listeners remained listeners,
as there was hardly a sound to be heard from those
gathered. The barmaid even found time to climb
up on top of the bar to take photos during her long
breaks between the occasional beer sold. As specta-
tors quietly lined up to exit the building, the mood
was still uncommonly subdued. An evening with José
González will do that to you, leaving you with a vivid
and lasting sensation of quiet restraint.

An Evening of Listening and Restraint
By Sveinn Birkir Björnsson | Photo by Skari
The Acoustic Black Flag Disciple (from the land of Abba)
Interview with José González
by sveinn birkir björnsson
/// Your first album (Veneer) was released in 2003; when can
we expect the next one?
– I am working on it on and off. I have been so busy touring,
and it takes me a long time to write so I haven’t really had the
time for it. Maybe next fall, or next spring.
/// But your first album is being re-released now, right?
– Yes, it first came out in Sweden on a small label and they have
been looking for deals for me and everything takes such a long
time. So it is first now that it is being released, or re-released
really, in the US via Mute Records. We will give that some
time, before the next one is released. I want the next one to be
ready this summer, so it can be released either next fall or in the
springtime.
/// You are going to play the South by Southwest festival next
week. What are your expectations from that?
– Well, it is an industry festival, and there are going to be a lot
of agents from the recording companies there, so I hope that
will lead to something. I will be playing six or seven shows there
in four days, so I will be busy. But I have heard it’s something
you almost have to do, to play these festivals, in order to break
into the US market.
/// Swedish music has had a lot of international success in
the last few years. Do you have any thoughts on what it is that
makes Swedes so successful?
– I don’t know exactly. But ever since ABBA, a lot of artists
have come out of Sweden. I think Sweden is the third biggest
exporter of music in the world. So there is this tradition of mak-
ing music in English that could function outside of Sweden. I
don’t know what it is. Swedes are good at English for one thing.
/// What about your other band, Junip? Can you tell us a bit
about that project?
– Yes, we are three in the band. We have only released one
EP [Black Refuge] although we’ve been playing together since
1998. We tend to do something together on and off, but it’s
hard to find the time now. It is a kind of an eternal project
that never goes anywhere. Elias, the drummer, and I have been
friends since childhood. We have been playing together since
we were 14 when we started a hardcore band together. Later we
met Tobias, the organ player, and we started playing together
in 1998.
/// You mentioned hardcore; I intended to ask about your
beginning in a hardcore band.
– Well, I always played bass in these bands. The first band
was Back Against the Wall, which was very much inspired by
Black Flag, the Misfits and the Dead Kennedys. Later Elias
and I started a band called Renaissance, which was a little more
hardcore. It was functional from maybe 1993-1998.
/// Do you still listen to hardcore music?
– Not so much. I still really like Sick of It All and a lot of other
stuff. Sometimes when I am in the car I will slip in some Sick
of It All, you know? Scratch The Surface. They are such a great
live band as well.
/// What about hardcore ethics, is that something that is
actual for you?
– No, not anymore. But it was, for a few years. I did not drink
and even though I was not a straightedge I did become a veg-
etarian. There was a period when I was very politically con-
scious… But no, it is not actual for me, regrettably.
/// What about your studies? You were studying towards a
PhD in biochemistry were you not?
– Yes, I was a doctoral research student in biochemistry, doing
research in DNA replication. I had been doing that for a year
and a half before I released the album. Then I did not have the
time to do both, so…
/// So, did you give it up then?
– Yes, it was too difficult to do both, but I was okay with it be-
cause I was not getting too good results in my research anyway.
/// Were you happy with the reception last night? You re-
ceived a very warm welcome and the audience was unusually
quiet and focused on listening to the music, instead of just
talking to each other like often happens.
– Yes I was very happy. It was wonderful. Maybe it was because
it was a Monday night. But people are usually very quiet when
I play. I once played in Manchester on a Saturday night, and
everybody was drunk and very rowdy, but once I started playing,
everybody sat quiet for an hour.
/// Siggi Ármann opened your show last night. What did you
think of him?
– Siggi was unbelievable. Very simple but yet very delicate
melodies. I think it’s cool to play such simple harmonies.
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