Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.09.2011, Blaðsíða 23

23
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 14 — 2011
Music | Reviews
Food | Festival
I recently wrote a live review of
Ofvitarnir, where I used words such as
‘plebeian,’ ‘rough’ and ‘filthy.’ This gave
the impression that they were ordinary
and one-dimensional. But after listen-
ing to their debut album several times,
it’s safe to say that this reviewer’s abil-
ity to judge on first impression really
ain’t worth shit.
Of course ‘Stephen Hawking/
Steven Tyler’ is an uneven, craggy
sounding album, with the production
squeezing the vocals almost out of
existence. But amongst the debris of
guitar fuzz and crashing drums, there
are songs stuffed with melodies and
hooks that switched open my memory
boxes marked ‘Early ’90s indie rock
that I love a lot.’
And underneath the quirky song
titles, there’s a real sadness borne out
of frustration and cynicism going on,
with songs like ‘Jurassic Park,’ about a
man’s faded hopes and dreams. It’s a
very angry mood that you really don’t
hear enough of from new Icelandic
bands these days
- BOB CLUNESS
Ofvitarnir
Stephen Hawking/Steven Tyler
www.pbppunk.com
Noise pop that does understand
your troubles
While it seems that every album I’m
listening to nowadays is trying to
convince me that we’re heading for a
‘90s revival (plaid shirts and Britpop
underpants again? FUCK THAT!), some
bands are already looking to start
up the noughties revival. A perfect
example is the second album from
Hairdoctor, last year’s ‘Wish You Were
Hair’ (Hairdoctor is side project of
FM Belfast alumni Árni Rúnar and his
mate Jón Atli Helgason (AKA DJ Sexy
Lazer)).
A mix of guitars, laptop beats and
lo-fi synth grooves, it apes the early
‘00s sounds from Gorillaz to the Super
Furry Animals or, when they go full on
electro, what you’d get from the likes
of Robots In Disguise. They even seem
to take on the vocal inflections of other
musicians, such as Damon Albarn, and
on the chorus for ‘Tape In Tape Out.’
But here’s the kicker. Although the
songs don’t exactly set the world
alight, the production values and use
of differing sound sources means it’s
actually more sprightly and full of life
than most of the current FM Belfast al-
bum. And if I were the other members
of FM Belfast I’d think that was a bit
cheeky.
- BOB CLUNESS
Hairdoctor
Wish You Were Hair
www.gogoyoko.com/artist/hairdoctor
An example of a side project as a
superior piece of trolling
President Ólafur Ragnar answered saying that Ice-
land should be open to all good people—and that
China had been friendly to us when all failed during
the crises of 2008.
In an interview with Financial Times, he ac-
cused Europe of being downright hostile at the time
and the US of having had zero interest. The Presi-
dent has always played up the possibility of doing
business with Asia as an alternative to joining the
EU. But the fact of the matter is that China made a
currency exchange agreement for 500 million dol-
lars after the crisis, whereas Iceland received a Eu-
ropean funded bailout package from the IMF worth
at least 2,1 billion dollars.
POET, POLAR ExPLORER, PARTY APPARAT-
CHIK
Huang seems like a likable enough man. He is a part
time poet, an adventurer who has climbed seven of
the highest mountain peaks in the world, including
Mount Everest, and ventured to both of the Poles.
He has friends in Iceland, one of whom was a room-
mate of his during studies in Beijing. His company,
Zhonkun Investment Group, specialises in tourism
and real estate. He is one of the richest men in
China, and he donates liberally to charity. But, of
course, he was once a party apparatchik, working
in the Ministry of Propaganda. No one in China gets
anywhere without the approval of The State.
So what would he build in the remote north-
east? It has to be mentioned that there is actually
very little foreign investment in Iceland. Foreigners
are not allowed to invest in the fishing industry,
they have not really invested in tourism, they are
hardly tolerated in the energy sector (as seen in the
Magma-affair)—mainly the investments have been
in large aluminium plants which could actually mul-
tiply in the next years, especially if the Left Green
party were to leave government.
EUROPE AS THEME PARK
Huang’s plans seem like an intriguing alternative.
He has found a place that Icelanders rarely visit.
There is a powerful glacial river running through the
land—but Huang will not be allowed to harness its
energy. He could not start sheep farming, for the
land is overgrazed. Otherwise there doesn’t seem to
be much to do in Grímsstaðir, besides maybe enjoy-
ing bright summer nights or looking for the Aurora
Borealis during winter.
In his latest book, French writer Michel Houel-
lebecq draws up an interesting vision of the future.
Europe is quite peaceful and prosperous, but it has
been turned into a theme park for Chinese and
other Asians who visit its museums, music halls,
cathedrals and ruins. It might be interesting to view
Huang’s plans in this context...
Continued from page 14 AGENTS OF WORLD DOMINATION?
Much to the foodie’s delight, the inau-
gural Reykjavík Real Food Festival will
kick off this September 14 (and keep
going until September 18). “Visitors
will be able to feast on special festival
menus at restaurants across Reykjavík,
meet farmers at the market and experi-
ence Icelandic culture through various
events and happenings,” according to a
festival press release.
In addition to more than thirty res-
taurants around town offering special
menus and discounts during the week,
there will be a food market in the patio
area at Hressó from 12:00-16:00 on Sat-
urday, September 17, and even a cup-
cake baking contest.
As far as we can tell, it’s going to be
a glorified version of ‘Restaurant Week’,
which has been sorely missing from
Reykjavík’s calendar. We sure hope so
anyways. For more information, visit
www.fullborgmatar.is.
Reykjavík Real Food Festival
ANNA ANDERSEN