Reykjavík Grapevine - 21.09.2012, Blaðsíða 30

Reykjavík Grapevine - 21.09.2012, Blaðsíða 30
30 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 15 — 2012MUSIC B O O K I N G S : T E L . : + 3 5 4 5 6 2 2 3 0 0 W W W . L I F E O F W H A L E S . I S Whale-Watching Tour Duration: 3 hours The tour includes a stop by Puffin Island 15th May - 20th August APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV-MAR 08:55 08.55 08:55 08:55 08:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 12:55 16:55 16:55 16:55 ADULTS: 47€ / 7.500 ISK CHILDREN: 7-15 22€ / 3.500 ISK CHILDREN: 0-6 FREE Other Tours Puffin Island Tours Duration:1-1,5 hours 15th May - 20th August Every day 10:00 | 12:00 | 14:00 ADULTS: 3.800 ISK• CHILDREN: 1.900 ISK • CHILDREN: 0-6 FREE Sea Angling and Grill Duration: 3 hours May - September Every day 17:00 ADULTS: 10.500 ISK • CHILDREN: 5.000 ISK • CHILDREN: 0-6 FREE RIFF US A NEW ONE RIFF—The Reykjavík International Film Festival—is looking super interesting this year. Commencing on September 27, the fest will as usual screen lots of nice flicks and offer novel surprises (and hopefully none of the “technical difficulties” that plagued last year’s affair). One of the most interesting things on the horizon is the scheduled appearance of one-time CAN singer Damo Suzuki, who’ll perform music to a screening of Fritz Lang’s ‘Metropolis.’ Wow. Oh and check this out: he sought out a local drummer and bassist to perform alongside him and join “Damo Suzuki’s Network.” The legend hand-picked none other than Magnús Trygvason Elíassen (of Moses Hightower and several thousand other bands) and Gunnar Jónsson (of 1860 and Coral) for the job. Congrats, guys! Read more about RIFF and its schedule all over this issue. NEW MUSIC ALERT! As per usual for this time of year there are lots of exciting new releases around the corner, all the local artists working hard to have something fresh and clean to present at the upcoming Airwaves festival. Ojba Rasta’s self-titled debut is surely among this year’s more anticipated records, as the dubsters have been steadily conquering the hearts and ears of local audiences all year with hit single upon hit single. Check out Davíð Roach’s informative interview with bandleaders Arnljótur and Teitur, then head to their record release gig at Faktorý on October 4. Lovable troubadour conspirator Svavar Knútur also dropped a new one the other day, and it’s reportedly a scorcher (one of his many collaborators is lovely Czhech singer Marketa Irglová). It’s called ‘Ölduslóð’ and you can sample it at www.svavarknutur.com. Everyone’s favourite noisegirl is Kira Kira, and her new record ‘Feathermagnetik’ definitely lives up to her reputation as Reykjavík Noise Royalty. Her release show is held in conjunction with RIFF and sports visuals from animator Sara Gunnarsdóttir, a backing band featuring Skúli Sverrisson and Pétur Hallgrímsson, and an opening set from Úlfur. Make sure to be at Harpa on September 29 at 21:00 to catch the the event. September WHAT THE EFF IS GOING ON???Echoes Of The White Ark Ojba Rasta gives birth to its first album I plan to meet up with Oj Barasta frontrunners Arnljótur and Teitur at reggae home base Hemmi & Valdi for an interview. However, when I get there Teitur isn’t diggin’ the vibe. He feels it is too noisy and is quite ada- mant about relocating the interview to his apartment so he can get into his element. When we arrive, Teitur has really slipped into his zone and also something a bit more comfortable—a red silk robe, checker trousers and a cowboy hat. “Our next album is gonna be a country record!” he declares, getting up to light some incense and placing a Black Uhuru LP on the record player. BIRTH, UPBRINGING AND LETTING GO When the mood had been established I turn on the recorder and ask how they felt about the album being re- leased. “Like we have given birth to child,” Arnljótur responds. “I think it’s more like watching your kid leave home when it’s grown up,” Teitur says. “The forming of the band was the birth and the recording session was the upbringing and now our child has been released into the world and has to stand on its own.” Arnljótur disagrees. “I’m not on the same metaphorical page as you. For me it was like a birth. Period. It was in my system. Now it’s out.” The band recorded the album in spurts over a period of two years with producer Gnúsi Yones, the singer of reggae band Amaba Dama and former rapper/producer of pioneer Icelandic hip hop group Subterranean. His stu- dio, History, is located in his garage. “I sometimes like to call it his ‘White Ark’ to contrast Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s ‘Black Ark’” Arnljótur says. “Gnúsi has this amazing ability to cre- ate huge and expansive sound in this tiny garage,” Teitur adds. They both agree that working with Gnúsi was very rewarding and it often seemed as if he was reading their minds. “If I said ‘you should delete this…’ he was already in motion doing exact- ly that before I had even finished the sentence,” Arnljótur tells me. Bringing the studio to live perfor- mances With eleven musicians in the group the process was quite chaotic and time-consuming. Up to 90 tracks were recorded for some songs before Gnúsi and dub master Hjalli, who mixed the album, went at the takes with razor blades. “We want- ed it to be a proper studio album. Dub music was created in the studio and there are certain things you can achieve on a recorded al- bum that are not possible in a live setting,” Arnljótur says. Some bands try to catch a live feeling on their albums, but Ojba Rasta takes the opposite route, bringing a studio feel to their live shows with a special dub master. His instrument is the mixer and his job is to cut out instruments at certain points and manipulate sounds, often piling on loads of echo. “It’s a lot of work, we always have to show up extra early for the sound check,” Arnljótur says. “When you book us, you always get the full Ojba Rasta experience,” Teitur adds. He then leaves the room and comes back with two hard-boiled eggs. As he breaks the shells and be- gins eating them Arnljótur asks “You don’t want salt to go with it?” “No,” Teitur replies. “I like them pure.” A DUB CONVERSATION Ojba Rasta was formed a little over three years ago. In the beginning, the band mostly performed cover songs, slowly writing more songs, adding musicians and finally morph- ing into the eleven-mem- ber monstrosity that it is today. Recently, several of their instru- mental pieces have gained vo- cals. “For some reason I stopped singing when I was nine years old,” Arn- ljótur tells me. “Then just recently I started se- cretly singing a backing vocal here and there until I finally found my voice, which had been muted for 15 years, through Ojba Rasta.” But are they the next Hjálmar? “We’re not the next anything,” they both agree. “Not at all. I don’t look at it as a competition but rather as a con- versation,” Arnljótur says. “And we want to encourage Icelanders who are making dub or reggae music to step up and join this conversation.” - DAVíð ROACH GUNNARSSON Reggae/dub big band Ojba Rasta released their debut album last Tuesday and it’s quite phenomenal. Sporting eight songs, hair-metal guitar solos, rapping, sci-fi syn- thesizers, Icelandic poems from the 19th century and a whole lot of echo, it’s one of the most adventurous albums to come out of Iceland for a long time. The songwriting is strong, the lyrics stand out and it’s loaded with layers of sounds without ever feeling cluttered. INTER VIEW “we want to encourage Icelanders who are mak- ing dub or reggae music to step up and join this conversation„

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