Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.10.2009, Side 34

Réttir Music Reviews
Saturday 26.09.09
NASA
T’was an evening that went from chill to cool to fantastic to
kick ass to fucking outrageous. The evening’s NASA line-up
hinted that this would be a night to remember.
Chill: The two adolescent boys who make up Nolo kick-
started the evening with some laidback electro. Although
they hit some sour notes, these guys charmed the hell out of
the few who dared venture out in the Reykjavík nightlife at
such an early hour. Their performance was wobbly at first, but
Nolo got their act together and brought about a great deal of
headnodding and shoe tapping.
Cool: They came, they played, and they left. Don’t get me
wrong, Leaves did a damn good job and they excel at doing
their thing (their thing being mainstream rock radio hit fare).
It just failed to impress. Maybe Leaves are to fault, or this
really annoying dude in the audience that sported sunglasses.
In any case, this reviewer could not seem to concentrate on
anything other than figuring out something offensive to say to
him.
Fantastic: Danish outfit The State, The Market & The
DJ had me at the very first notes. The real slow sweet beauty
made you want lie in the middle of a frosty meadow under
a starry sky, rather than standing in a dim concert venue
amidst audience members who can’t shut the hell up. My only
objection is that they left the stage way too soon.
Kick ass: What the hell is going on?! Suddenly NASA is
packed to such an extent that there is no chance of moving
an inch. Or breathing correctly, for that matter. Apparat
Organ Quartet is finally reunited to many people’s delight,
and the concert is totally worth the wait. It’s out of this world,
utterly brilliant and totally awesome.
Fucking outrageous: Gas mask plus pink glitter spandex
plus yellow rubber gloves plus playful rock. Dr. Spock take
the stage. Totally twisted, totally outrageous, totally awesome.
They put on quite the impressive show whether or not you’re
into their music, and you gotta love them for that.
- Louise Petersson
Saturday 26.09.09
Sódóma
I arrive at Sódóma armed with vodka as Lockerbie start their
set. Winning the prize for dodgiest band name this weekend
(well dodgy if they were British), their post-rock sound is
laden with a poppy tinge. Unlike fellow post-rockers For A
Minor Reflection, they mercifully keep the songs down to a
mere 4 minutes. But they have a bloody string section and a
trumpet! Whatever happened to the power trio?
I unload my fifth vodka as Monotown take to the stage.
However, their boring dud rock positively violates the core of
my being and so I leave Sódóma to go to Dillon to say happy
birthday to a friend.
When I return, Weapons have already started playing.
Compared to the previous band, they´re a breath of fresh air.
They do a natty line in powerful guitar pop which, while not
groundbreaking, is simple and direct. Which is what I crave.
Also, the bass player throws some good poses with his low
slung bass.
I should be enjoying Mammút, but for some reason they
leave me flat. Perhaps it was having their last album on repeat
loop for 10 hours on a driving trip that means their songs
don´t seem to have the same immediacy they used to. Having
said that, Svefnsýkt is always a treat to hear and jump to.
More vodka barman!
By now my notes seem to have taken on a weird
hieroglyphic nature as the alcohol digs its cold, bitch mistress
claws into my brain. Bodebrixen start their set and they freak
me out. They all seem to be wearing the same striped shirts,
giving them the look of an indie Brady bunch or some crazed
sect. And they smile waaay too much. But their music is OK
for jaunty pop, not brilliant, just OK.
Bróðir Svartúlfs start playing and my attention
seriously starts to wander. I find their loose rap rock a little
undercooked and uninspiring, so I spend most of time making
drunken texts and being a pain in the arse.
Thank Christ for Bloodgroup. Their electroclash stomp
shakes me from my cynical torpor from the first song and
keeps me there all the way through. Along with the low
farting bass synths and serious grooves, frontwoman Lilja
struts the stage like some demented Valkyrie on a serious
mission to destroy us all. I’m even more surprised to find
myself dancing like a bear high on dodgy honey.
I decide to call it a night and go home. Unfortunately
my taxi money has gone on vodka so I’m forced to trek the
10km back to Breiðholt. In the rain. Oh yeah a consummate
professional. - Bob Cluness
Shopping | By Haukur S Magnússon
16 Grapevine Airwaves Mini 2009
Jet Korine is a Reykjavík based fashion
designer, stylist and costume designer.
She hails from the Netherlands, al-
though she has been in Iceland long
enough for folks to call her an Icelander.
She is without doubt one of Reykjavík’s
smartest dressers, and she does a lot of
dressing other folks for a living, too. She
knows all about clothes.
So we thought we’d ask her to help
us compile a sorta guide to fashion shop-
ping at Airwaves. All she asked in return
is that we mention that JET KORINE, the
brand, will be available on-line this win-
ter, and its cool blanket coats can already
be spotted on Reykjavík streets, as worn
by rare fashionistas. So there you have it.
The Jet Korine guide to Airwaves
fashion shopping is divided into xx lev-
els, according to how much they’ll cost
you. We start with some cheapo second-
hand shopping, move up to pre-selected
second hand shopping, finally ending at
some first hand shopping and design-
stuff.
Second-hand //
Selected second-hand
Cool vintage pieces are an absolute main
fashion item that has always been really
strong in Iceland. They help you person-
alise your outfits, because you won’t find
them on other people. They are easy to
combine with design pieces, and a lot
of design pieces need that, to not be too
sterile and clean.
Hjálpræðisherinn //
The Red Cross Stores // Kolaportið
This is the rawest version of second hand
clothing. You get everything from fleece
sweaters to ugly tacky jeans; you can nev-
er count on good items. But those who
are up for it, and are armed with some
good taste or the funkiness to bear those
kinds of items can get excellent bargains
at the Red Cross stores on Laugavegur
and Hlemmur, Hjálpræðisherinn on
Ránargata and the Kolaportið f lea mar-
ket on weekends.
To successfully shop at those stores,
the individual must have a clear view
on how to combine his or her clothes,
although they could be the place to get
inspiration to buy something unusual.
Always leave the f leece behind.
Spúútnik // Rokk & Rósir // Nostalgía
These stores cherry pick the best items
from second-hand markets, so you
wind up paying a bit more, but finding
a special piece is a lot easier. I recom-
mend getting some Dr. Martens at these
stores; they’re an absolute must. Prefer-
ably green, red or black.
Spúútnik is the rawest version of
the select vintage stores. They have ev-
erything available for girls and boys, in
good amounts. For select female pieces,
Nostalgía and Rokk & Rósir are the place
to go – they have a bit more narrowed
down version.
Select second-hand //
New items
Herrafataverzlun Kormáks & Skjaldar
Kormákur & Skjöldur have both second
hand and new items, and they have the
finest collection within their specialised
corner. The store is a nice little niche out-
fit where boys can go and, to put it into
fashion terms, buy themselves a style,
with a little ambiance from the old days.
They also sell Farmer’s Market sweaters
and they do have an incredible amount
of suits that will fit anyone of any size,
with any taste.
Aftur
Aftur give second hand items a new life,
which is definitely a dominant down-
town look. They rework second hand
items into new garments, in a very par-
ticular and recognizable way that a lot of
people have tried to copy, but just can’t.
Their items feature a fantastic use of
patchwork and collage, and a fine-tuned
sense of colour that others don’t seem to
be able to repeat.
New items // Design
from around the world
Here’s where we leave second hand and
look at stores that host Icelandic and
foreign design brands that are a little
pricier.
Belleville
Belleville is cool and slick, and they have
a new shipment of Bernhard Willhelm
in store. They also sell Raf Simon and
Cosmic Wonder – all very nice brands.
KronKron
KronKron is a design store where you’ll
get pricey, but extremely beautiful, de-
sign items. They have a couple of Icelan-
dic brands, a lot of Scandinavian stuff
like Henrik Vibskov as well as lots of in-
ternational designers. It’s really the only
store in Reykjavík that sums up Scandi-
navian streetwear on a design level.
The Jet Korine Guide
To Buying Fashion
During Airwaves
Elsewhere| By Birkir Fjalar Viðarsson
There’s Also Icelandic
Metal! Check it out!
The Airwaves festival is a
good thing. Bunch of bands,
amalgam of styles and
genres. Couple of great bands, bunch of
good ones, healthy dose of meh-bands
and then there are the selected annoy-
ing, pretentious and pathetic bands.
And I wouldn’t want it any other way, re-
ally. Strength through diversity, eh? This
year’s line-up has less heavy, raging and
extreme bands than before, so why not
take a look at some bands not included in
the fest, but are still worthy of your atten-
tion, seeing as you are snooping around
the Icelandic grassroots anyway.
At Dodge City, are a busy bunch. Play-
ing shows frequently and all over the
place. Not a million miles away from lat-
er-day Poison The Well and Every Time
I Die at their most calmed down and
hook-minded. Featuring confident and
dynamic vocals as well as pretty rough
sounding bass.
www. myspace.com/atdodgecity
Atrum rule, OK? These guys play cold,
heathen, blackened death metal with
the right amount of thrashy rawness to
keep them in safe distance from the pol-
ished and lame sound of many of today’s
larger metal acts. But that’s not enough
to impress me. The kicker here is some
bloody good song writing that doesn’t
rely on low-tunings or studio trickery.
Great dual vocals in just the right places,
topped with lead vocals that bring to
mind Celtic Frost and Bathory from time
to time. Boner inducing.
www.myspace.com/atrumiceland
Which brings me to Beneath, who also
have an air of maturity around them, due
to the fact that two of the members are,
erm, old. In Icelandic metal terms, at
least. But fear not, their brand of modern
death metal is plenty modern and dense
with layers upon layers of intricate guitar
work, melodies and crushing mid-tem-
po parts. Each song has so much going
on that it could confuse you at first listen
but stick with it and it will prove more
musical than you’d anticipated.
www.myspace.com/beneathdeathmetal
Bastard never really pull it off live and
in the beginning there were too many
awkward elements going on in their
music, but luckily for them their pro-
gression is a positive one and they are
going into the right direction with their
dynamic blackened death.
www.myspace.com/heavymetalbastard
Iceland’s heaviest Celestine deliver
a sonic combination that ends with a
devastating knock out, each and every
time they step into the ring. This band
keeps pushing their sound at an even
pace, with pretty much new songs to add
to their much loved set-lists every three
months or something. Such is the pro-
lific work ethic of these young lads.
www.myspace.com/celestinemusic
What happens when a black metal band
has a nu-metal-sounding name? Noth-
ing. That’s what happens. Chao play
furious black metal that is true to the
alienating, raw, monotonous and simple
elements that made the genre so notori-
ous. But this is not some throwback, ret-
ro stuff. The song structures, dynamic
drumming, evil yet catchy guitar pick-
ing as well as the surprising stop and
go’s make Chao a breath of fresh and
Christ killing air in the Icelandic metal
scene. So good.
www.myspace.com/chaobm
Momentum is one of the most talked
about bands today, which is pretty im-
pressive as they rarely play. The band
keeps evolving, playing with people’s ex-
pectations. Having long since forsaken
their black metalish beginnings, we now
find them in some psychedelic proggy
metal sphere. Makes them all the more
curious.
www.myspace.com/momentumtheband
Not nearly as spaced out but indefinitely
more baked are seekers of the riff, Plas-
tic Gods. Iceland’s only band that is
proper in their doom, sludge and heavy
stoner dabblings. Boris, Sunn 0))) and
Grief come to mind. Rad.
www.myspace.com/plasticgods
Ever so catholic, Severed Crotch re-
main the scene’s most beloved band.
Liked by metalheads of varying degrees,
they somehow manage to marry a rag-
ing party time with their technical ultra
brutal death metal. Set firmly in the
modern genre, these days we see them
flirt a little with the old school as well.
And it works charms.
www.myspace.com/severedcrotch
Svartidauði is probably the most true
and uncompromising in their take on
no-bullshit, misanthropic, pro-degrada-
tion black metal. Naturally they are kvlt-
as fuck and actually deserve the hype,
because their BM will hurt you, and your
friends will hate it. Wonderful.
www.myspace.com/svartidaudi
Go to www.grapevine.is/airwaves for your daily Airwaves tips