Reykjavík Grapevine - 15.06.2007, Page 21

RVK_GV_08_007_REVIEWS_54_REYKJAVÍK_GRAPEVINE_ISSUE 08_007_REVIEWS/MUSIC/FROM THE ARCHIVES
Reviews by Bart Cameron, Klas Molde and Páll Hilmarsson
Mugison is one of Iceland’s most celebrated live musicians at
the moment, and rightfully so. His live gigs at the Iceland Air-
waves festival as well as the recent release party for his new
full-length album have been energetic and quite simply a lot
of good fun. 2001’s Lonely Mountain earned comparisons to
everything from múm through classical singer/songwriters to
country-music, The Beatles and things just plain weird. Mugi-
mama is this monkey music? is no less diverse; on it we’ve got
everything from filmic atmospheres to catchy refrains, manic
groaning and groovy guitars. How he fits things together
without losing focus is nothing short of a miracle. However,
without in any way coming to his senses, Mugison’s matured.
Mugimama is richer sounding, better looking and even more
fun, which is what it’s essentially about. KM
www.myspace.com/mugison
When punk goes right, explaining it is a hell of a thing. Rass
(ass) have produced the best punk album I’ve heard since…
well, since you were allowed to call things punk. The thing
about extremely repetitive, shouted rock songs is that the
lyrics have to be accurate, truthful and entertaining—in all
of the 12 extremely short tracks on this album, with lyrics in
English and Icelandic, the lyrics are that good, shouted in a
soulful, menacing and at the same time playful manner. We
leave you with kind words from an English language track:
“One day when Uncle Ben went to work, he was looking like
a big fat stork. One day when Uncle Sven went to Mary, he
was looking like a big fat Gary.” BC
www.myspace.com/rassrass
Rass
Andstaða
Mugison
Mugimama is This Monkeymusic?
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Supposedly there’s a whole generation of young artists and musicians
who all have the same perspective on their work to justify the title “the
cute generation”. The pillars of the “movement” are often named as Sigur
Rós and múm. Let’s add Skakkamanage to the list. This lo-fi minimal-
istic music is cute as hell, partly recorded in bedrooms and apartments
in Reykjavík. Nice, odd and sometime catchy folk songs that have some
weird attraction that’s hard to pinpoint. But somehow the album nev-
er reaches greatness and after a few listens left me annoyed. Annoyed
because Skakkamanage could have done better, judging from their live
shows. They seem to have fallen into the pit that’s marked: lo-fi makes
everything great. Which is a bad pit. On the last track, Colonial, they
finally crawl out of that pit and show us something amazing. Despite its
shortcomings though, it’s probably one of the most interesting Icelandic
albums this year. PH
www.myspace.com/skakkamanage
Skakkamanage
Lab of Love
There’s usually integrity to any release from 12 Tónar, Ice-
land’s independent record label. The store and the local mu-
sic scene always have a stake in one of their releases, and
even the failures are compelling. When 12 Tónar hits the
right note, they can capture the local imagination. The new
jazz album, Vottur, by Flís, is strong and immensely likeable.
A respectable three-piece including Davíð Þór Jónsson on
piano, Valdimar Kolbeinn Sigurjónsson on bass, and Helgi
Svarar Helgason on drums, the group reinvents the Icelan-
dic standards originally performed in the fifties by Haukur
Morthens. The blend of moody ballad with classical touches
and lyric jazz takes on the endearing gothic tone that Tim
Burton might ask for were he to direct a movie of A Charlie
Brown Christmas. The discovery here is that music existed in
Iceland before rock, and it may have been very good. BC
www.myspace.com/flismusic
Flís
Vottur
An album inspired by recordings of electromagnetic waves
emitting from an obsolete computer the size of a large re-
frigerator. Sounds fun? Not really but this actually is a highly
enjoyable CD. Originally composed for a string quartet as
the soundtrack to a dance piece, this is eerie and haunting
symphonic stuff with sounds from the computer sampled.
Each of the five tracks slowly builds up to a peak with strings
and weird sounds – after all this is built on electromagnetic
sounds. The computer plays a big part and its various acces-
sories like the IBM 1403 printer or the IBM 1402 Card Read-
Punch. The album is big and powerful and cinematic. It has
a remorseful sound, somehow sounding like a eulogy or an
homage to an obsolete machine. A great and beautiful piece
of modern composition. PH
www.myspace.com/johannjohannsson
Jóhann Jóhannsson
IBM 1401, A User’s Manual
Benni Hemm Hemm plays chords on an acoustic guitar, and has an enor-
mous brass band, a Led Zeppelin-inspired drummer, and a solid bassist
essentially echoing him. The result is an energetic feel-good take on folk.
No particular melodies or chord progressions stand out, as the key is in
the repetition. And unlike the Flaming Lips, Benni’s lyrics aren’t entirely
poignant, and his voice, while solid, isn’t all that evocative. Often, you
wait for the trumpet and full band, and often this is worth the wait. How-
ever, when Benni delivers silly or cynical lyrics, he really shines, as on the
song I Can Love You in a Wheelchair, Baby. This album is complete and
engaging, and if not every melody or lyric sticks in your head on the initial
listen, worry not—you’ll be listening to it so much, that every word will
lodge in there.
www.myspace.com/bennihemmhemm
Benni Hemm Hemm
Benni Hemm Hemm
When you slip the lyrics “but your bad sense of humour and
your laughter’s like a tumour to my brain,” into a song you
deserve to sell a couple albums (and probably a kick to the
groin too). On his debut album, “I believe in this,” Þórir has
penned more than a few priceless zingers using the scarred
wit of that loneliest of individuals: the literate teenager. The
stunner for me is the vocal stylings: Þórir performs most of
the album in nervous staccato mutters. Live, this has been
charming. But to hear it recorded, it sounds affected. Es-
pecially as through the whole album, one notices he has a
significant range and decent strength in his voice, most pro-
nounced in the middle registers. Look, we know the kid can
play guitar and write songs, so the coy delivery sounds like
a mistake. BC
www.myspace.com/mysummerasasalvationsoldier
Þórir
I Belive in This
Veteran rockers Brain Police return with their fourth studio
album, sporting a new guitarist, Búi Bendtsen. The result is
more guitar heavy than past albums without losing their dis-
tinctive stoner-rock sound. Seen live Brain Police are a tough
act to follow and Beyond the Wasteland captures that well.
So a great album? Almost, but not quite. The problem with
Brain Police is their monotonous sound – it’s easy to spot
their songs on the radio – but it’s harder than hell to pinpoint
which song it is or from what album. Beyond the Wasteland
shows improvement in that department. Evidently, Brain Po-
lice are developing their sound. So if you’re not anal about
musicians constantly coming up with new ideas (hell, AC/DC
have made over 15 great albums that all sound pretty much
the same) and just want a good, solid, rock album then Brain
Police has your medicine. PH
www.myspace.com/brainpolice
Brain Police
Beyond the Wasteland
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