Reykjavík Grapevine - 15.07.2011, Blaðsíða 20

“We tried this place
purely on the back
of its excellent
review on
Tripadvisor
and weren’t
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A genuine Nordic 3 course feast
starting from 4.900,-
Pósthússtræti 11 101 Reykjavík Tel: 578 2008 www.silfur.is
20
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 10 — 2011
Opinion | Music Art | Films
More information can be found at:
Manchester International Festival: www. mif.co.uk
Björk: www.bjork.com
Biophilia is coming to Harpa, Reykjavík for six shows in October as part of Iceland Airwaves. Tix at www.midi.is
I have always admired Björk. That’s never
been the problem. Björk has constantly
caught my admiration, but somehow ado-
ration—even enjoyment—has been out
of grasp. It’s with some trepidation, then,
that I find myself at a world premiere
of her new Biophilia show, performed
as part of the Manchester International
Festival. This performance starts at four
on a Sunday afternoon, a time usually re-
served for sleeping after a glutinous Sun-
day lunch, and a time that would surely
never be deemed acceptable in Reykjavík.
Even more out of the ordinary is the lo-
cation and configuration of the event.
Staged in a former Victorian market hall,
Björk performs to an intimate audience
of 1.800 from a stage set in the centre
of the floor, flanked on each of the four
sides by her fans. The audience is sepa-
rated from the stage by only museum-
style roping. Dotted around the stage are
a percussionist, an electronic artist and
instruments that Björk has specially cre-
ated for ‘Biophilia,’ such as a digital pipe
organ controlled through an iPad, four
gravitational pendulum harps, a ‘sharpsi-
chord‘ (me neither!), and a ‘gameleste’—
the love child of a gamelan and a celeste,
of course.
WOW!
As grand entrances go, it’s astonishing.
Accompanied by a 24-piece, all-female
Icelandic choir, Björk enters wearing
a preposterous outsized orange wig,
reminiscent of a cartoon dog, and a heav-
ily ruffled blue dress. Starting with new
song ‘Thunderbolt,’ a caged Tesla coil is
lowered from the ceiling. Purple/white
forks of lightning fizzle and crack. Björk
lets rip with that voice. The audience can-
not help but take notice.
‘Biophilia’ is billed as a multimedia
project and will involve music, apps, in-
ternet, installations, an educational arm
and, of course, live shows. The album is
to be released as a series of interactive
iPad apps, and will be the first of its kind.
A surprise voiceover from a breathy Da-
vid Attenborough informs me that ‘Bio-
philia’ is a ‘love of life’ and the subsequent
study of the relationship between nature,
music and technology. It might well be,
but I start to worry more about the fragile
relationship between artist and audience.
FALLING FLAT, GETTING UP
Some of the new songs fall strangely flat,
in spite of the concept and ideas behind
them. ‘Moon’ based on lunar phases,
fails to ignite, as do ‘Dark Matters’ and
‘Hollow.’ ‘Virus’ is pulled through by its
projections of evil, humanised biological
battles on the hexagonal bank of screens
above the stage.
It’s the older, more familiar songs that
begin to connect Björk to her audience.
‘Hidden Place’ positively lights up the
room with joyful singing from the choir
and graphic, colourful images (a seal is
consumed by star fish on the sea floor).
‘Isobel’ also benefits from the choirs’
presence, fusing some of Björk's often
cold beats and stark verses with a genuine
depth and warmth.
Iceland is never far from Biophilia.
In ‘Mutual Core,’ a song about tectonic
plates, images start from a widescreen
view of !ingvellir before panning out to
show a globe criss-crossed with glowing
lines of plates and fissures. ‘Crystalline’
with its dance roots and surprise drum
and bass ending is a crowd pleaser. It’s
not hard to imagine it blasting from a
Reykjavík club.
YET ANOTHER CONVERSION IS
MADE
Björk patrols the stage, ensuring that ev-
eryone feels included and involved. It’s a
strategy that works; Björk in a fearsome
wig, standing all of two metres away
from you, and looking straight into your
eyeballs really does get the heart beating.
But it’s the choir that I really enjoyed;
sometimes choreographed in bizarre
square dance formations and dressed in
sparkled blue and gold outfits, they add
a touch of humanity to proceedings to
counterbalance Björk's often esoteric con-
cepts, and cold contraptions. I’m told that
afterwards they are performing in central
Manchester; I feel genuinely sorry that I
won’t be able to make it, and even more so
when I’m told they were excellent singing
in the late evening sunlight.
Björk returns for an encore. She starts
with ‘One Day’ from her Debut album.
Sung only with her percussionist for
company, he plays what appears to be
a set of upside down woks, apparently
called a ‘hang.’ The effect is simple, sub-
lime, and sensational. It is followed by a
magical ‘Jóga’—including the now much
admired choir—and ends with a celebra-
tory ‘Declare Independence.’
I’m not sure of the ‘Biophilia’ con-
cept, the newfangled instruments or the
clear desire to be the ‘future of music’.
Maybe Björk should keep things simple.
It seems that this is where she is at her
best. It’s those moments of this extraor-
dinary show that will stay with me for a
long time to come. I leave converted.
Learning To Löve Björk
The ‘Biophilia’ show involves outlandish contraptions,
preposterous wigs and some really great music
Future Shorts ONE has come to Reykja-
vík and wants to kick up a storm in the
world of performance, art, cinema and
nights out with the people of this city. It
aims to be a monthly film event with a
difference. Read on to learn more.
WTF IS A ‘FUTURE SHORTS’?
Future Shorts has for the past eight years
strived to build a new audience for film
across the globe, developing a growing
platform for makers of short film that
would allows millions of people world-
wide to experience and engage with their
work. The aim is to bring short film to
the masses, developing its full commer-
cial potential.
Future Shorts has grown to be the largest
worldwide short films network building
the biggest independent community—
both online with social networks and at
live events such as the acclaimed ‘Secret
Cinema’ productions in the UK. It is a
‘living’ cinema, one that survives by the
beat of the audience, following completely
in the belief in the social element of film
as an experience and communicator un-
restricted by geography, status or wealth.
Future Shorts has now gone on to cre-
ate ONE, a monthly global film festival,
a film event that takes place simultane-
ously in an international network of over
fifty cities, screening the same monthly
collection of short films. The films are
selected on a global scale, alongside live
music, performance, design and much
more—creating an immersive environ-
ment; a celebration of creativity, culture
and community.
With these events, ONE upholds the
belief that anyone, anywhere should have
the opportunity to watch these short
films, previously only seen by an elite few
at film festivals. The aim is to tear these
boundaries to shreds and make good
quality shorts to an entire global network.
WTF is a ‘Future Shorts ONE Reykjavík’,
then?
ONE has been brought to Reykjavík
with the aim of creating a local platform
for a global communication. Not only is
this dialogue meant to serve spectators
and voyeurs of short film, but also as a
global stage for all of the creative people
involved in the nights; actors, musicians,
artists, DJs, designers, directors, pho-
tographers and filmmakers. A stage on
which their work and performances can
be shared and seen by the ONE audiences
around the world, where they can profes-
sionally develop a dialogue with other
countries and represent the creative and
artistic world of their country.
The idea with each monthly event is to
create a bubble, an existing little world
formed and created to alter the reality of
a space, for instance an airport departure
lounge. You could say that an alternate re-
ality is formed. In this world you can find
musicians and bands that within this
reality may be extraordinarily famous,
or they may be homeless buskers on the
street, the possibilities are as endless as
your imagination.
Essentially the aim of these events in
Reykjavík is to heighten the imagination
of the spectator to a hyperreality, where
they can become an instigator, commu-
nicator and actor; a space in which the
boundaries of the performer and the au-
dience is blurred to such a level that it is
lost entirely...
WHEN IS ONE REYKJAVÍK?
The next ONE event is taking place on
Saturday July 23 at Bar 46, Hverfisgata
46 from 21:00 till late. 1.500 ISK entry
fee (drink included.
And in what world will you find your-
self?
Our latest ONE will be a collaborative
event with the Lindy Ravers of Reykjavík,
a 1940s WW2 Britain Summer Ball Blitz.
Expect to see people flying around the
dance floor, plenty of men in fine uni-
forms, women with perfect pin curls in
their hair, American service men, black
market traders, traditional games and
play.
Live music by Lily and Blue Boys, inter-
active performances and music from DJ-
Gun.
THE BEATS OF CINEMA
This is an article about 'Future Shorts
ONE Reykjavík' by its organiser. Oh yeah.
EDWARD HANCOX JESSICA ROSE