Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.01.2010, Blaðsíða 24

24
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 01 — 2010
2009 | Birkir Fjalar Viðarsson
The year in Metal? In order to kick the ol’ brain
cell bundle into gear I got in touch with my
friend to compare notes. He assured me that
nothing noteworthy had happened beyond
the Sororicide reunion and Sólstafir releasing
their best work to date. In Hardcore, a hand-
ful of bands were formed, a plethora of shows
were played to often-unenthusiastic crowds, and
various releases came out shrouded in “secrecy”
thus never really seeing the light of day. As in:
they were released but pretty much only those
"in the know" knew about them or knew where
to find ‘em. Indubitably quite common in the
metal seen as well.
In terms of proper releases, there wasn’t
a lot to dip your toes in. Sure, it was hard (in a
good way) to keep up with bands premiering
demo tracks or studio recordings intended for
future releases, because there were so many of
them being posted on-line all the time. But very
few bands offered anything tangible and a good
portion of them seem to be flukes or projects
that hardly play live at all.
Naturally, I've probably forgot to mention some
"releases" so obscure only the local message
board warriors heard about them. Bastard re-
leased Dementia and Filth, which you can now
obtain a copy of at their shows. You can also
download it at Gogoyoko. Claim to fame: funny
song titles.
Carpe Noctem is a really good modernised
(but not sterilized) Black Metal band that, like
any other Icelandic BM band, doesn’t play out
much. They released a self-titled CD, with-
out bothering to include information on their
MySpace as to how and where to get the damn
thing. Of course. Claim to fame: a member of
the band used to play in Thunder Lesbians.
Naturally.
Legendary Death Metal band Sororicide re-
formed for a couple of shows and even released
an EP, Deathless, that collects three songs from
the old days that are hard to find. Thus, it wasn’t
a bad idea at all. Let’s hope they write new ma-
terial, because these guys (some of whom may
now be found in pompous indie pop bands) out-
shredded the mighty Entombed a few months
ago, during the latter’s second trip to Iceland,
which was not such a triumphant one.
Gordon Riot released the uneventful yet
nicely executed Dirt 'n' Worms. It’s been get-
ting nice reviews, so check it out. I was never too
keen on the young people‘s Kerrang! in them
but they seem to be moving away from it, and
that‘s a good thing.
The now dysfunctional Munnríður barfed
out the hard-birth Ásdís Rán EP, named after
the Playboy hopeful model. She didn‘t like the
honours. The release didn‘t impress her, nor did
it me.
Retrön’s Fantasy Metal meets computer
game soundtracks meets Fucking Champs won
over a healthy number of people this year. Their
CD Swordplay And Guitarslay is attention wor-
thy. An ambiguous effort, musically and visu-
ally, to say the least.
Wormlust became the talk of the über-un-
derground town with the release of demo and a
split with Ireland's Haud Mundus. An impres-
sive Black Metal project with twisted ambience
securing it in the modern yet mysterious and
dark spectrum.
Myra's album never saw the light of day.
As good as it’ll be I suspect the members of
the band just imagined their trip to the studio.
Three greats, Beneath (who played Wacken,
mind you), Gone Postal and Severed Crotch are
all working on new material. Same can be said
about the never-will-die Changer. Good stuff
expected from each one. Atrum's Opus Victum
EP is still being worked on even though record-
ings started long time ago. The demos sound
rad.
This years Cinderella story is Sólstafir. A
band that's been like a Jumbo Jet in turbulence
year after year has finally arrived. If you thought
Masterpiece Of Bitterness got good reviews,
they pale in comparison to the praise Köld is get-
ting. Not only that. Sólstafir is reaching heights
no Icelandic metal band has done on interna-
tional level.
The 2009 edition of annual boozefest Eist-
naflug (Flight of the Testicles) on the East Coast
of Iceland boasted the biggest crowd yet; an
amazing feat for a solid event that by now is leg-
end. Too bad people support the booze industry
with more heart than the bands themselves. Oh
well.
All in all, ‘09 was a good year for Icelandic
metal. Even though these online promos and
snippets leave a lot to be desired, the mate-
rial holds a lot of promise. And the metalheads
upped the ante in regards to show quality. Their
events were better booked, promoted and orga-
nized than ever before.
The punk/hardcore seen saw a fair bit of
noteworthy releases but none as good as Death
Metal Supersquad's Dead Zeppelin. So simple,
gut wrenching, raw and catchy. Just get it. The
label releasing it, Paradísarborgar Plötur was
involved with majority of 2009’s releases, house
shows, etc. Releases included Eðli annarra
demo (noisy, dirty and aggressive), Dys’ And-
spyrna (important hxc driven metallic punk
with socially aware, do-good rallying anthems),
Tentacles of Doom's Dansað við lík (80s post
punk inspired, like a cross between The Wipers
and X but more lose and chaotic). Fuck. They are
selling it cheap, so buy this batch before they are
out of print forever.
Two young bands took the cake as the most
active ones. The very young Logn impressed
people with their savage and grinding fury,
backed by intricate drumming. Not only that.
Barely had the band been formed when they
had a split out with Manslaughter (not so im-
pressive, but fun), dozens of shows under their
belts, two t-shirts... Quite impressive. They are
already working on new recordings.
The second young-ish band is Muck,
though their climb has been a gradual one.
Their first release, Vultures, showed the boys
effortlessly scoring a soundtrack for angst and
misery, albeit not the tightest one ever. The sub-
sequent demo sees them improve in all areas.
The future looks bright for one of Iceland’s best
up 'n' coming bands.
Celestine threatened to release something,
demos were made that shows the band at its
most raging while retaining the rough and or-
ganic heaviness of their last outing. Raw and
unruly enough for the hardcore crowd, yet heavy
and tight enough for the metalheads, the band‘s
future looks interesting.
Gavin Portland‘s heavily delayed Hand In
Hand With Traitors, Back To Back With Whores
still hasn’t seen the light of day. I hear the no-
show of this impressive collection of songs,
recorded by Kurt Ballou (Converge) in his God
City studio, is largely due to the bands indepen-
dent stance and stubbornness. Or so I’ve heard.
Hark came out of nowhere with a stellar
demo of noisy and nasty Metalcore of the mid
90s best calibre. Find my review in a GV back
issue for a more thorough inspection.
Bummer is another new band that released
the super obscure Noise demo. A punk band in
its own right, but mind the shoegaze influences
and not so subtle Joy Division and Beat Happen-
ing ones, aided with a very lonely and winter-y
feel. It’s pretty special.
Akureyri's Buxnaskjónar kept impressing
me with the Þriðja heimstyrjöldin home record-
ings. It’s a reassuring feeling to have our very
own sarcastic and tongue in check punk pricks
band that doesn’t sound million miles away
from early to mid period Against Me! or the
Ergs.
And the chameleon in this year’s bunch
must be the new and eclectic full length from
Morðingjarnir, Flóttinn mikli. I’m still digest-
ing this collection of songs, which is all over
the place. Finally the band is getting the respect
they deserve and crossing over to the main-
stream, if such a thing is imaginable on this
island. Even though I’ve yet to make a verdict
on this record, it deserves the talk it’s getting.
Everybody seems to know about it. Which is an
amazing feat in and of itself.
A few bands were left out of this article, as
I tried to focus mainly on bands that released
something and were prolific in their own way.
Rest assured, there were other acts that shined.
Feel free to peep my blog, www.halifaxcol-
lect.blogspot.com, for a bunch of the ‘09 bands
that were busy in the on-line listening party
department. Birkir Fjalar Viðarsson is one of
Grapevine’s fine music critics. He also pounds.
Metal And Hardcore In 2009
2009: Music
Þórir Georg Jónsson
(My Summer As A Salvation Sol-
dier, Gavin Portland, Deathmetal
Supersquad, etc)
1. cult Ritual – cult Ritual
2009 has been an exceptionally good year for
those into Hardcore punk. I can´t remember the
last time I´ve been as excited about this many
Hardcore records in one year. But the Cult Ritual
album is the best of them all. Black Flag worship
mixed with artsy noise experiments played in a
way only a modern hardcore band could.
2. blacklisted – No One Deserves To be Here
More Than Me
Blacklisted is another Hardcore band that really
pushed the boundaries this year. Even though this
album for the most parts is a logical next step for
them, it surprised and amazed me how cohesive
and near spotless it is.
3. Animal collective – Merriweather Post
Pavillion
What ś there to say about this album? It ś probably
going to be on everyone’s, list and it deserves
to be there. Animal Collective has always been
ahead of the curve, but this surpassed all my
expectations.
4. Intelligence – Fake Surfers
Garage rock/punk is obviously the big trend these
days and as a result of that we got a lot of cool
garage-y albums this year. This one is the best in
my opinion. It ś daring and out there, but playful
and accessible at the same time.
5. Urban blight – More Reality
Hard as nails Agnostic Front influenced Hardcore
from Canada. It ś raw, pissed off and intense. They
may not be the most original band around but
what they do, they do better than almost everyone
else around.
Haukur Viðar Alfreðsson
(Morðingjarnir)
1. Ladyhawke – Ladyhawke
I know, I know, it came out in 2008. But hey, I first
heard it in 2009, and it’s the best!
2. Prodigy – Invaders Must Die
For me, getting a new Prodigy album – let alone
such a good one – is like for your dad getting a
new Steely Dan record.
3. Lily Allen – It's Not Me, It's You
Juuuuuust a little worse than her début, but still
great. Lily snorts all these other British bimbos up
her nostrils.
4. Fear Factory – Mechanize
Future-Metal for 15 year-old boys. And middle-
aged fatties. Is released this February – but has
long since leaked.
5. The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
This is the Decemberists’ worst record yet, but it’s
still good. And it was a bad year for records.
Snorri Helgason
(Sprengjuhöllin, solo)
Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
Girls – Album
Julian Casablancas – Phrazes For The Young
Richard Howley – Truelove’s Gutter
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – The Pains Of
Being Pure At Heart
birkir Fjalar Viðarsson
(I Adapt, Gavin Portland)
Code – Resplendent Grotesque
Moutheater – Ornament
Napalm Death – Time Waits For No Slave
Propagandhi – Supporting Caste
Pulling Teeth – Paranoid Delusions | Paradise
Illusions
Örn Ingi Ágústsson
(Skakkamanage, Seabear, etc)
1) Dinosaur Jr. – Farm
2) Polvo – In Prism
3) Immortal – All Shall Fall
4) Sonic Youth – The Eternal
5) Behemoth – Evangelion
benedikt Reynisson (Skátar)
1. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Ocra
2. Micachu - Jewellery
3. Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish We Were an
Eagle
4. Flaming Lips - Embryonic
5. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion
Tanya Pollock (Weirdcore,
Anoymous)
1. Dirty Projectors – Bitte Ocra
2. Micachu – Jewellery
3. Bill Callahan – Sometimes I Wish We Were an
Eagle
4. Flaming Lips – Embryonic
5. Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavillion
Lilja Kristín Jónsdóttir
(Bloodgroup)
(no order)
Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavillion
Antony And The Johnsons – The Crying Light
Bill Callahan – Sometimes I Wish We Were An
Eagle
Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
John Fruiscante – The Empyrian
Haukur Heiðar Hauksson
(Dikta)
1) Silversun Pickups – Swoon
2) Brand New – Daisy
3) Florence and the Machine – Lungs
4) Andrew Bird – Noble Beast
5) Bat for Lashes – Two Suns
Hallur Kr. Jónsson (Bloodgroup)
1. John Frusciante – Empyrean (By far the best
international release of the year)
2. Fever Ray – Fever Ray
3. Bat for lashes – Two suns
4. Flaming Lips – Embryonic
5. Röyksopp – Junior
Sindri Már Sigfússon (Seabear,
Sin Fang Bous)
1. Fever Ray – Fever Ray
2. Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
3. Grizzly Vear – Veckatimest
4. Anthony And The Johnsons – The Crying Light
5. Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
ARTISTS PIcK THEIR TOP 5 INTERNATIONAL ALbUMS OF 2009
Þórir Georg Jónsson
(My Summer As A Salvation Soldier,
Gavin Portland, Deathmetal Supersquad,
etc)
1. Tentacles of Doom – Dansað við lík.
Tentacles of Doom are my favourite band around.
It ś as simple as that. Dark and melodic post punk
influenced by the proggier side of 80s hardcore.
Cannot recommend this enough.
2. Kimono –Easy Music For Difficult People.
Kimono just get better and better with every
album they release. Some might think that losing
a bass player would create a gap in their sound,
but it ś quite the opposite. Kimono have never
sounded this good.
3. Me, The Slumbering Napoleon –The
bloody core Of It
Kids playing noisy indy rock. Makes me think of
Polvo, Harvey Milk and I’m being good. Heavy and
aggressive and really awesome.
4. Dys –Andspyrna + Ísland brennur
Iceland’s anarcho punk legends. A "new" EP
recorded about five years ago, but finally released
this year with their first album added on as bonus
tracks. If you ŕe into punk rock, this album is a
must.
5. Sólstafir – Köld
The definitive Icelandic metal band. On this album
they take their sound to a new level, stepping
further away from their Black Metal roots and in a
more gothic direction. I´ll be very surprised if this
album doesn´t end up on a lot of peoples list.
Haukur Viðar Alfreðsson
(Morðingjarnir)
1. Signy H. – This Is How I See It
You’ll only find this on-line (and you’ll have to
do some searching), but this material thrashes
everything else that was released this year.
2. Dr. Gunni – Inniheldur
“Taka í rass, taka í rass, allir voru að taka einhvern
í rass!”
3. buxnaskjónar – Þriðja heimsstyrjöldin
Iceland’s most promising punk band. And they
can’t buy liquor for another four years.
4. bloodgroup – Dry Land
This one took a while to grow on me, but it’s great.
Less party action than before, but better sounding,
better singing and more grown up.
5. Kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
Nerd-rock for middle-aged mini-celebs. This is
kimono’s most solid offering. Their best? Possibly.
berglind Häsler
(Skakkamanage, Létt á bárunni)
1) múm – Sing Along To Songs You Don’t Know
2) kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
3) Prins Póló - Einn Heima
4) Egill S – Egill S
5) Bloodgroup – Dry Land
Snorri Helgason
(Sprengjuhöllin)
Egill S – Egill S
Hjálmar – IV
Hjaltalín – Terminal
Sigga Toll & Heiðurspiltar – Á ljúflingshól
Snorri Helgason – I'm Gonna Put My Name On
Your Door
birkir Fjalar Viðarsson
(I Adapt, Gavin Portland, Grape-
vine writer)
Blood Group - Easy music for difficult people
Death Metal Supersquad - Dead Zeppelin
Dr. Gunni - Inniheldur
Kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
Solstafir - Köld

Arnljótur Sigurðsson
(living legend)
Berndsen – Lover in the Dark
Egill S – Egill S
Haukur Gröndal – Narodna Muzika
Stereo Hypnosis – Hypnogogia
Tyft – Smell The Difference
Örn Ingi Ágústsson
(Skakkamanage, Seabear, etc)
1) Kimono – Easy music for difficult people
2) Nolo – No Lo Fi
3) Prins póló – Einn heima EP
4) Sudden Weather Change – Stop! Handgrenade
In The Name Of Cribdeath ´Nderstand?
5) Skátar – Goth báðum megin
benedikt Reynisson (Skátar)
1. Kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
2. Bloodgroup – Dry Land
3. Sudden Weather Change – Stop! Handgrenade
In The Name Of Cribdeath ´Nderstand?
4. Koi – Sum of All Things
5. Steve Sampling – Milljón mismunandi mann
bóas Hallgrímsson (Reykjavík!)
(TOP 7 - no order)
Ben Frost – By The Throat
Hildur Guðnadóttir – Without Sinking
Morðingjarnir - Flóttinn mikli
múm - Sing Along To Songs You Don’t Know
Prins Póló – Einn heima
Snorri Helgason – I’m Gonna Put My Name On
Your Door
Sudden Weather Change – Stop! Handgrenade In
The Name Of Crib Death ‘nderstand?
Lilja Kristín Jónsdóttir
(Bloodgroup)
Bloodgroup – Dry Land (but of course)
Hjálmar – IV
Skátar – Goth Báðum Megin
Sudden Weather Change - Stop! Handgrenade In
The Name Of Cribdeath ´Nderstand?
Sykur – Frábært eða Frábært
Haukur Heiðar Hauksson
(Dikta)
1) Dikta – Get it Together :)
2) Ourlives – We Lost the Race
3) Lights on the Highway – Amanita Muscaria
4) Ólafur Arnalds – Found Songs
5) Svavar Knútur – Kvöldvaka
Hallur Kr. Jónsson
(Bloodgroup)
1. Bloodgroup – Dry Land (The best album of the
year)
2. Sykur – Frábært eða frábært
3. Skátar – Goth báðum megin
4. kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
5. Hjálmar - IV
Tanya Pollock
(Weirdcore, Anoymous)
Björk – Voltaic
Hermigervill – Leikur vinsæl íslenzk lög
Kimono – Easy Music For Difficult People
Ruxpin – Where Do We Float From Here
Weirdcore – Weirdcore2 Compilation
ARTISTS PIcK THEIR TOP 5 IcELANDIc ALbUMS OF 2009