Reykjavík Grapevine - 06.03.2009, Síða 24

24 | REYKJAVÍK GRAPEVINE | ISSUE 3—2009
Nýlenduvöruverslun Hemma og Valda may not
look like much of a concert venue to the untrained
eye. But to those in the know, it's a completely dif-
ferent story. The tiny old wooden house has been
the host of some of the city’s most legendary con-
certs, both in the previous incarnation of Kaffi
Hljómalind and even earlier than that the legend-
ary record store Hljómalind. So to my mind there
wasn't a better place to start this series of concerts
dedicated to the Reykjavík underground scene.
First band on was the magnificent Swords of
Chaos, whose punk-tinged noise rock fit the place
perfectly. There are many things you can say about
Swords of Chaos, but boring is definitely not one of
them. Singer Úlfur leapt and bounced around the
room while the band created some of the loudest,
most abrasive rock music you'll find in Reykjavík
these days. Hopefully they'll have a release of
some sort out soon.
Following Swords of Chaos was going to make
almost any band look tame, but Faðir Vor probably
more so than most. Their calm, meditative jazz
rock was interesting, if a little dull at parts. At a dif-
ferent place, under different circumstances, they
might have been easier to enjoy but they seemed
out of their element. After playing for almost an
hour, it wasn't until the last twenty minutes or so
that they broke out of their groove and really gave
their two drummers a chance to shine.
The final band of the night was Bárujárn. And
it was obvious from the moment they started set-
ting up their equipment that they wanted to put
on a show; even if they didn't quite deliver what
they promised, they still were pretty close. Musi-
cally, Bárujárn are among the more exciting bands
around. Mixing heavy rock, punk, psychedelia
and surf rock into a cocktail may not be unique,
but they certainly have a fair amount of original-
ity. The addition of theremin certainly made them
a bit more interesting. Not to mention the go go
dancers, flashing lights and disco uniforms.
I don't think anyone has had any doubt about
the quality of the Reykjavík underground music
scene for a long time. But it is certainly nice to get
a reminder like this every once in a while.
The Noises of the Underground
BURSTING WITH FUN
WHAT
Grapevine Grassroots
number 1
WHO
Swords of Chaos
Faðir Vor
Bárujárn
WHERE
Hemmi & Valdi
WHEN
Friday, February 13
CONCERT REVIEW By Þórir GEOrG JóNSSON — PHOTO By SiGUrÐUr GUNNArSSON
As Sin Fang Bous is the solo-project of Sindri from Seabear, you will
quickly notice the comfortable voice and welcoming little melodies
that make his main band one of my favourite young Icelandic indie
acts. The differences between the projects are not that big, only that Sin
Fang Bous tries to broaden the sound of Seabear by adding electronic
gadgets. This means Clangour follows a more experimental approach,
instead of Seabear's catchy pop-tunes. This is sometimes exciting as
in Catch the Light, sometimes beautiful (Sunken Ship), but sometimes
also quite unspectacular – as in the flat Clangour and Flutes – or even
downright annoying because of apparently random electronic effects.
Clangour leaves a mixed impression as a record. However, it also is an
interesting documentation of the talented Sindri's musical experiments
as seen from a different angle. Taken in this way, it does not matter that
not all the experiments are a success.
SiN FaNg BoUS
Clangour
CD REVIEWS
rEviEwEd By FlOriAN ZüHlkE
THE VERDICT
Enter Sindri Már
Sigfússon's musical
laboratory.
lISTEN
www.myspace.com/
sinfangbous
The popular Icelandic design shop, Kraum, was
opened in 2007, a collaborative effort of some 30
designers to produce a communal designer store.
The shop initially bought and sold work from up
to 60 to 70 designers and has grown to sell the
works of over 100. In 2008, Kraum was awarded
by the Icelandic retailer council, “Tourist Shop of
the Year”.
AbOuT KRAum
The main focus of the store is to make a vibrant
crafts community by facilitating new and local
designers from Iceland. This is done through a
close partnership with the craft and design centre
that occupies and exhibits next door, in the oldest
house in Reykjavík. The owners’ collective knowl-
edge as designers places them in good stead for
opening such an enterprise. One radical change of
the traditional designer boutique was to buy direct
from the maker rather than working on commis-
sion. This subsequently assists crafts-folk in evolv-
ing new work, creating diversity and support for a
variety of designs and designers within the shop.
WHO SHOpS THERE
AND WHAT DO THEy SEll?
Initially one presumes the shop is specifically mar-
keted to tourists, but upon closer scrutiny it turns
out the mainstays are mature Icelandic women
interested in distinctive, one-off designs. Explains
one of the sales assistants: “I see three genera-
tions of women shopping together here, from the
mothers and daughters to the grandmothers and
grand-daughters. All of them seem to be able to
find something for themselves. ” Commenting fur-
ther, she demonstrated that the varied price range
reflects different age groups. “Younger customers
tend to buy jewellery by Helga Ósk Einarsdóttir.
She draws inspiration from traditional Icelandic
patterns, and sells some of the cheaper products
– they go for around 2.000 ISK”. When asked about
the most expensive product on offer, she points to
the tailored lamb coats by Sunneva, worth around
300.000 ISK. “That’s our most expensive item, I be-
lieve.”
Browsing through the shop it becomes ap-
parent that an underlying theme in the variety of
designs is the distinct utilization of native Icelan-
dic resources. For instance, shoemaker Maria K
Magnúsdóttir makes unconventional ankle boots
from horse manes and fish skins that look uncan-
nily similar to crocodile. Fanney Antonsdóttir and
Dögg Guðmunsdóttir skin a whole cod and place
its fragile remains as a lampshade. Farmer/de-
signer Guðrún Steingrímsdóttir produces obscure
brooches from the whale teeth. Overall, it seems
the designers are willing to challenge ideas of
beauty and functionality.
Seething Kraum
THE BRENNIVÍN WOOL SOCKS
SHOppING By ricHArd PAUl FOlEy
In addition to sporting one of the best titles in recent music history,
Merriweather Post Pavilion may just be the best balance between in-
ventive, well-furnished musicianship and catchy, poptastic joygasmic
electro for a decade. While some fashionable techno bands struggle to
be relevant (Scissor Sisters, MGMT) and Icelandic ones just struggle in
general (FM Belfast, Bloodgroup), Animal Collective perfectly encap-
sulate everything great about 2000’s techno: it’s minimal without being
harsh, danceable without being loud, languid without being boring,
grandiose without being pretentious and psychedelic without being
dated. Its dreamy, gently lilting melodies go everywhere and nowhere
at the same time, the barely-there drum beats almost unnecessary as
softly-urgent vocals and no-holds-barred synth frolicking take centre
stage. It’s over-the-top and intensely public, but at the same time very
private, very direct... it’s hard to talk about an album like this without
getting a little poetic, but simply put, it is beyond compare, a little more
than excellent and a little less than perfect.
On her debut album, Elín Ey presents her energetic voice very fittingly
to the sounds of her fragile guitar play. The sad tone and lyrics make
this record perfect for getting drunk over love lost. This is also the point
where “See you in dreamland” gets monotonous in a way – the songs
seldom change their tune. “See you in dreamland” catches the sadness
of being left and alone but does not stray from that theme and therefore
gets boring on a full-length album: the songs have the same shuffled
tempo and the same chords. However, Elín Ey manages to break that
circle in some of her songs – “Coming to get you” or “Why don't we do it
in the road”, for example, both ass-kicking blues tunes that bring some
verve. Some more of those would have done the record good.
aNiMaL CoLLECTiVE
Meerriweather Post Pavilion
ELÍN EY
See You In Dreamland
rEviEwEd By SiNdri EldON
rEviEwEd By FlOriAN ZüHlkE
THE VERDICT
It rules beyond what pro-
fanity can express.

lISTEN
www.myspace.com/
animalcollectivetheband
THE VERDICT
Sad songs that unfortu-
nately get monotonous
quite fast.

lISTEN
www.myspace.com/
elineyj