Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.02.2016, Blaðsíða 20

8
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at Mímir
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Höfðabakki 9 Entrance to
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Höfðabakki 9, 110 Reykjavík
Bus line no. 6 from city centre and
bus line no. 12 from Breiðholt
Öldugata 23, 101 Reykjavík
Vesturlandsvegur
EAST
CITY
CITY
CENTRE
Quality - Experience - Dedication
Offering fresh Icelandic cuisine in a
stylish and casual atmosphere in the heart
of down town Reykjavík.
isafoldre s t aurant . is
Þingholtsstræti 5 - tel: 595 8535
Tasty food, fine wines and fancy cocktails with
spectacular views from SKÝ
skyrestaurant.is
Top floor CenterHotel Arnarhvoll - Ingólfsstræti 1 - 595 8545

RESTAURANT
ÍSAFOLD
Have a sip of our fresh & fine Mountails; our
feature cocktails inspired by the mountains
visible from our restaurant.
R E S T A U R A N T & B A R
It’s been three years since seminal
Reykjavík metalcore band Celes-
tine hung up their gloves after play-
ing a final show in the late Faktorý.
Since then the scene has changed,
with new faces and new bands step-
ping up to fill the void. Much like
Mínus, Celestine’s influence runs
deep, and it is only appropriate that
two frontrunners from the grassroots
join them for their reunion concert.
The audience is equally composed
of long haired rockers and buzzcut
punks, with a refreshingly equal mix
of genders. The vast majority is com-
posed of twenty-somethings, but a few
older geezers sip their beer patiently,
waiting for the main show to start.
Grit Teeth start playing a few
minutes after they said they would,
and get a mosh pit started from the
very first song, with the singer saying
at one point: “if nobody gets knocked
out in this mosh pit, I’ll be disap-
pointed.” They earn their applause
with dynamic guitar riffs and heaps
of volatile energy. And they tell the
police to fuck themselves. For me,
however, the show is eerily reminis-
cent of the one they put on last week
with ITCOM. Also, I get a lot of
beer spilled on me. Oh well, rock on.
Great Grief, formerly Icarus, give
a good contrast to Grit Teeth, offering
a more measured tempo and layered
instrumentals. The live performance
also matches the music, with band
members bouncing around the stage
with reckless abandon as the pace
picks up. Singer Finnbogi Örn Ein-
arsson throws his full body into the
performance as he screeches away,
gasping for air in between howls, and
banging the microphone on his head
until he starts bleeding profusely.
Then he bangs it some more. There
are fewer mosh pits, and their lifes-
pans are shorter, but there is plenty of
headbanging. The final song is a heavy
and sombre one about disappoint-
ment, dragging you down into the
undercurrent until you can’t breathe.
Speaking to Finnbogi after their set,
he tells me it’s inspired by a friend of his
who came out of an abusive relation-
ship that had a religious element to it.
When Celestine step up, the audi-
ence has peaked—they’re warmed up
and ready to go, and Celestine do not
disappoint. Right from the get go, their
loud and aggressive music gets sweaty
bodies clashing violently. They carry
hardcore history on their shoulders,
and it is on full display. “Lots of new fac-
es, lots of old faces, we welcome them
all,” says the singer in between songs.
The show is an absolute monster,
with ample heavitude, thumping and
booming riffs, pounding drums, and
plenty of screechy shouting; heck,
there’s even a cover of Nirvana’s
“Negative Creep” in there for good
measure. When the band pauses
for an encore, the crowd all but col-
lapses from exhaustion, muster-
ing up a feeble attempt at clapping
them back up on stage. The night
ends with 66-second whirlwind of
a song “Speaker Bomb,” with guest
vocals by Krummi (of Mínus fame).
One by one, the crowd stumbles
out into the cold and dark night,
hopefully as filled with inspiration
and gratitude as I am.
Hard-
core
Time
Machine
Celestine Returns
By Gabríel Benjamin
Photos by Art Bicnick
MUSIC
CONCERT REVIEW
CONCERT:
January 21
Húrra