Reykjavík Grapevine - 12.12.2016, Page 14

The R
eykjavík G
rapevine
Iceland A
irw
aves Special 20
16
14
Iceland Airwaves is, by and large, located in downtown Reykjavík. For
first-timers, part of the fun whirlwind of the festival comes from discov-
ering the variety of venues on offer, whether it’s wandering into a quaint
wooden-floored music hall, marvelling at a high-ceilinged cinema with
long spotlights and a huge backdrop, going dizzy looking up at Harpa’s
mirrored lobby ceiling, or finding yourself jumping up and down in a
cramped and dingy club.
Also, you might occasionally find that a concert you were planning on
seeing is full. It’s no fun queueing in nasty weather, and if there’s nothing
circled on your schedule or starred in your app, it can be worth taking a
punt on a venue you haven’t been to yet, just to check it out. So here’s
a handy guide to some of the places you might find yourself drinking,
dancing and hangover-haunting over Airwaves week.
Nasa
Warming Up
With An Early Show
Different venues have stag-
gered starting times this year.
Whilst some might be pacing
themselves at home until a
strategic moment, there’ll also
be plenty who are raring to go.
On Wednesday night, NASA
opens proceedings with Tómas
Jónsson at 19:10. Thursday, Ein-
arIndra starts the ball rolling at
Kaldalón at 19:20. Everything
starts at 20:00 on Friday, but
we recommend seeing KRELD
at Reykjavík Art Museum. On
Saturday, unless you have a Björk
ticket, both rooms of Valhöllin
start at 19:30, and there’s music
there from 19:10 on Sunday.
Harpa
Hide From
The Weather In Harpa
Harpa is the glittering jewel in
the crown of Reykjavík’s music
venues. All four of its spaces will
be used for Airwaves: the grand
seated concert hall of Eldborg,
the multi-purpose concert room
of Norðurljós, the massive Sil-
furberg, and the dark and cosy
Kaldalón theatre. You can wan-
der between the rooms pretty
easily, checking out different
bands and bumping into others
doing just the same thing. If it’s
shitting down with rain, it could
be a smart choice.
Gamla Bíó
Catch An Icelandic
Headliner At Gamla Bíó
One of the things that makes
Airwaves is unusual is the de-
gree to which it draws on local
acts. As such, Airwaves cel-
ebrates Iceland’s grassroots
scene as much as the big-name
headliners. The cavernous the-
atre venue Gamla Bíó has a
stellar range of closing acts
each night, all of them Ice-
landic. On Wednesday, it’s the
brand new all-star choir Kórus;
on Thursday it’s alt-pop mae-
stro Sin Fang; on Friday you get
the 80s-retro double-header of
Berndsen and Hermigervill, and
on Saturday it’s the turn of ex-
plosive electro-pop band Sykur.
Gaukurinn
Stop For A Pick-Me-Up At
Gaukurinn
Gaukurinn is a classic grimy
Reykjavík rock venue. While it
hosts many fine bands year-in,
year-out, there’s rarely a queue
to get in. So if you’re running
between venues or find yourself
stuck in the queue at popular
party spot Húrra, you could
drop by for a beer from their se-
lection of Icelandic brews, or see
which Icelandic liquorice shot
you prefer from rival brands
Opal and Tópas. And who knows,
you might get converted to a new
band, too.
Fríkirkjan
Gotta Catch ‘Em
All: Fríkirkjan, Mengi, NASA
and Eldborg
Many of the most popular fes-
tival venues, such as the beau-
tiful wooden concert hall Iðnó,
Reykjavík Art Museum and
the Húrra party bar, are open
every night. But with others, you
only get one chance. MENGI is a
tiny, tucked-away concert space
that’s in the official programme
for the first time, and will host
two intimate performances
by sóley on Thursday evening.
Fríkirkjan is a beautiful church
venue that’s only open on Satur-
day night, for a blockbuster bill
of Árstaðir, Mugison and Ólafur
Arnalds. Harpa’s Eldborg hall is
an impressive space that’ll host
three shows for which you’ll
need a extra ticket, by múm,
Björk and Bedroom Commu-
nity. Finally, classic Reykjavík
concert hall NASA has a full pro-
gramme—but it’s scheduled to
be torn down in the near future.
So see it while you can.
Meet The Venues
Words John Rogers Photos Art Bicnick