Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.06.2012, Blaðsíða 24

24
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 7 — 2012
E
N
N
E
M
M
/
S
ÍA
/
N
M
51
11
6
www.elding.is
Take part in an adventure at sea with an unforgettable
trip into the world of whales and sea birds all year round.
Other adventures at sea
Puffin Watching 15 May - 15 August at 9:30 and 15:00
Sea Angling 1 May - 30 September at 11:00
Elding Whale Watching schedule – all year round
* From 15 May to 15 September
** From 15 June to 15 August
Jan-Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct-Dec
9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00
10:00 10:00 10:00
13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00
14:00 14:00 14:00
17:00* 17:00 17:00 17:00 17:00*
20:30** 20:30 20:30**
EL-01 / EL-02 / EL-03
Environmental Award
Icelandic Tourist Board
Tour Operator
Authorised by
Icelandic Tourist Board
Make sureit’s Elding!
Call us on +354 555 3565
or visit www.elding.is
ELDING WHALE WATCHING
from Reykjavík Running a bar in Reykjavík has never been the most stable of businesses.
Indeed, for the past twenty years, 101
Reykjavík has seen hundreds of bars
open their doors briefly before van-
ishing into the ether (or bankruptcy).
Most of them have a short lifespan
and are mourned by few (mostly their
creditors), but some have left a per-
manent mark on the city’s conscious-
ness. One can regularly hear veterans
of the nightlife reminisce over them.
The following list is by no means com-
plete and is based on no scientific
data whatsoever.
SIRKúS
Location: Klapparstígur 30
Lifespan: 1999-2008
peak: 2003-2005
Clientele: Artists, foreigners, heavy drink-
ers, a melting pot of hipness
Painted in turquoise and green with palm
trees on the front entrance on Klap-
parstígur, Sirkús looked like a tropical hav-
en in the middle of an urban desert. The 40
square metre ground floor supported steel
tables, old chairs of various kinds and only
two toilets. This was the place where a big
chunk of the Icelandic creative task force
gathered any day of the week, musicians,
writers, visual and performance artists.
Frequent guests were the whole krútt-
scene, like the kids from múm, Sigur Rós
and Seabear. “I've never known a bar that
had so much good music. Bodies explod-
ing on the dance floor, sweat dripping from
the walls, people cheering for their songs.
High on life, high on love,” Helga Þórey
Jónsdóttir, former doorwoman, describes
the atmosphere to me.
It hosted a moustache competition be-
fore they became fodder for cancer aware-
ness campaigns. When Sirkús closed, over
200 musicians, from Sigur Rós to Páll Ós-
kar, performed a music marathon in the
bar over a whole weekend to protest the
planned demolition of the house (which
never happened, mostly because of the
economic collapse). The bar on the other
hand was closed but the legacy lives on.
As a testament to its influence the whole
bar was recreated as an art installation
at London’s Frieze Art Fair and a bar with
the same name was founded in Þórshöfn
in the Faroe Islands with the intention of
preserving its heritage.
KAFFI THOMSEN
Location: Hafnarstræti 17
Lifespan: 1996-2002
peak: 2000
Clientele: Club kids, dance music enthu-
siasts, people who didn’t want to go to
sleep
There has never been a strong club culture
in Reykjavík. Many attempts have been
made but one of the few successful ones
was Kaffi Thomsen which was located in
Hafnarstræti. It started as a small café on
the upper floor but as a result of the boom-
ing dance music craze of the mid to late
‘90s it slowly morphed into the decadent
monster of a club on two floors it was dur-
ing its peak around the turn of the century.
It had a massive sound system and the
finest DJs in the country spinning techno,
drum ‘n’ bass, deep house and whatever
sub-genre of electronic music you can
think of every weekend. During the sum-
mer of 2000, the Reykjavík city council was
experimenting with free opening hours for
bars and Thomsen was the place where
everybody went when other bars closed.
Walking out from a nightclub at 9 AM and
stepping into the morning sun feeling like
a vampire is an experience I haven’t en-
joyed since.
The Bars Of
Weekends past
Some 101 legends revisited
Reykjavík | Bars