Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.01.2010, Blaðsíða 14

The Global Battle Of The Bands
Sódóma Reykjavík 21:00 - 13th to 16th of January
Preliminary round of the Global battle of the Bands
The first round of the local Global Battle of the Bands preliminaries will commence
on Wednesday. The contest will take over Sódóma for three nights, promising to
fulfill every garage band’s wet dream is up for grabs, as the winners will receive
a trip to the UK and get to compete in the final rounds of the competition. This
is a great opportunity for young bands to come forth and showcase their stuff,
but seasoned veterans are also encouraged to enter – every act is free to enter
so long as it can perform two original compositions. Bands interested in joining
the competition can send along their info to gbob.iceland@gmail.com, but those
interested in taking the proceedings can do so at Sódóma for a mere 500 ISK
admission fee. Every competition night will start at the timely hour of 21:00.MZ
Faust
Borgarleikhúsið
Faust is awesome. It’s probably one the most famous theatrical pieces of all time.
Written by Goethe in the 18th century, the piece has long been considered one of
the best of all time. However, old pieces they can sometimes benefit from a little
revamping to make sense in a modern context. And that is exactly what theatrical
group Vesturport has done with Faust this time around. Bringing a whole new take
on the old drama – featuring original music and lyrics by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis!
This isn’t the first time Vesturport have done this sort of thing. Older works
they’ve already tried their hand at reworking include Romeo and Juliet, which
garnered international praise, and Georg Büchner’s classic Woyzeck. The show will
premiere on the 13th of January and tickets can be bought online at midi.is or at
Borgarleikhúsið.
13
Jan.
13
Jan.
16
Jan.
ÓLI OFUR @ NASA
NASA 23:30
1.000 ISK
Reykjavík isn’t exactly the Ibiza of the North. Well, not until last year, maybe, when
it started claiming its status as a techno fortress. So-called ‘club nights’ are getting
more popular by the day, where some imported DJ or other demonstrates his
awesomeness accompanied by several of his Icelandic colleagues.
Things are about to change, though, as Óli Ofur is claiming his throne as the
techno king of Iceland and for the first time on our native ground an all-Icelandic DJ
leads a genuine “club night”! Óli is a known cat in the DJ industry and has diligently
avoided clichés and repetitions in his music, instead building up his own groove
ambitiously. So believe me, this night will be legendary. SKK
16
Jan.
Oki Doki # 13
Sódóma Reykjavík 21:50
Agent Fresco, Who Knew,
Útúrdúr and For a Minor
Reflection
Those looking for some rock and action
this first weekend since the holidays
should consider heading to Sódóma
on the ninth to witness one of the first
concerts of the year. Now-seasoned
rockers Agent Fresco promise to
blast our economic worries to pieces
headlining a solid bill of local rock
acts that includes indie outfits Útúrdúr
and Who Knew?, as well as post-rock
revisionists For a Minor Reflection, who
will share their eerie and epic stage
presence. Admission is set at 1.000 ISK
and the night is scheduled to begin at
21:50 (although our experiences with
Sódóma stage-times give reason to
think that highly doubtful). Stage diving
is allowed, but every third headbang
costs 50 ISK.
The Icelandic French
Movie Festival
Háskólabíó and
Regnboginn
Now here’s a reason to celebrate! The
tenth annual Icelandic French Film
Festival starts on January 15th, and
will last until the 28th. The festival is
sponsored by the French and Canadian
embassies, but other contributors
are Græna Ljósið, Sena and Alliance
Française. The festival’s programme
looks promising as hell, with them
premiering ten new francophone films
from all over the world (crazy places like
Canada, Algeria, Tunisia and, of course,
France). For instance, opening film Le
Petit Nicholas was a box office hit in
France and was seen by more than five
million folks over there. That’s a lot of
people. Other prominent films up for
scrutiny are Louis Michel, directed by
Icelander Sólveig Anspach, Le Premier
cri and Khamsa. More info will be made
available later at www.af.is - go look at
it soon!
The End
Hafnarborg - January 9th
Ragnar Kjartansson’s The End is
finally in Iceland! The show opens in
Hafnarborg on January 9th and will run
until March 7th and features paintings
the self-described incurable romantic
made during his infamous stint at the
53rd edition of the Venice Biennale. At
the Biennale, Ragnar painted a portrait
of a young man in a swimsuit smoking
cigarettes and drinking beer day after
day, everyday. The goal was presenting
a tableau vivant to the viewers, and that
goal was certainly reached, garnering
acclaim from publications such as the
New York Times.
In addition to this live performance, a
video installation was displayed in a
separate room showing Ragnar and
a collaborator playing an ambiguous
country music arrangement. The
paintings that accumulated in piles
around the Icelandic Pavilion in Venice
can now be seen in Hafnarborg and
will likely give viewers an impressive
impression of Ragnar’s performance.
SVT
9
Jan.
15
Jan.