Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.01.2015, Qupperneq 19

19
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 1 — 2015
The Year In | Music
Óbó
Words by Ólafur Björn Ólafsson, Musician
We asked Mr. Óli Björn Ólafsson to write us a letter and talk little bit about the
year 2014 as it pertained to him, since it was kind of monumental in his life.
Yup, the local legend-slash-player of instruments for many of your favourite
Icelandic bands (there’s a Tumblr dedicated to him out there) finally managed
to release a solo album, ‘Innhverfi’. And it’s pretty goddamn wonderful (see, for
instance, the Straumur list of 2014’s best releases elsewhere in this issue).
You should read Óbó’s letter and then go like his Facebook page (facebook.
com/obotheband), and then check out the delightful ‘Innhverfi’!
A year in the life
In contrast to the year 2013, I mostly spent 2014 at
home, in the land of ice and snow.
Early in the year, I decided to finally release the
solo album I had been working on (on and off) for
about eight years. Considering that it takes less than
half an hour to listen to, and that it has only seven
songs, I must ask myself: What took me so long? (Or
rather: What was I thinking?)
Other projects included designing the sound-
scape for the inside of a stranded whale in a gigantic
devised theatre show by the harbour called Fanta-
star, as part of the Reykjavík Arts Festival.
I felt privileged to play percussion in Valgeir Sig-
urðssons’s ”Wide Slumber” project alongside a cast
of great musicians, also a part of the Reykjavík Arts
Festival.
Then I made music for a hilarious comedy at Bor-
garleikhúsið. I had a lot of fun with that one.
My favourite concert was seeing Pekka Kuusisto
play a mixed bag of Bach and Steve Reich in the great
Midsomer Murders Festival at Harpa. When I grow
up, I want to play like him. I was very impressed!
I finally managed to finish Mo Yan's ‘Life And
Death Are Wearing Me Out', a wild and funny novel
and my favourite book of the year (although it was
published in 2006).
Fríkirkjan has been one of my favourite concert
venues, ever since I saw Bill Callahan and Joanna
Newsom perform there almost a decade ago. I was
thus very excited to stage my album release concert
there, as part of Iceland Airwaves. That huge altar-
piece with JC on it was the perfect backdrop for my
stuff.
Most of all, I was very glad to spend most of the
year at home with my family, after having spent
so much time abroad in the preceding ones. Some
might even call that the comeback of the year.
My favourite
concert was seeing
Pekka Kuusisto
play a mixed bag
of Bach and Steve
Reich in the great
Midsomer Murders
Festival at Harpa.
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