Reykjavík Grapevine - 06.01.2017, Page 24

Shout Out
Hið Myrka Man
/ Myrkramakt
Words ÞÓRÐUR INGI JÓNSSON
During the last Iceland Airwaves
festival, people heard talk of a
secret music gathering in Reyk-
javík’s harbour area of Grandi. It
turned out to be true: there was a
mysterious private music festival
going on called MYRKRAMAKT,
that was "private" in the sense that
the festival was explicitly not ad-
vertised in the media. Until now.
Because: what's so ooky-spooky
and “kvlt" about self-promotion,
anyway?
Myrkramakt was organized by
Hið Myrka Man, a new Icelandic
indie label focusing on young and
up-and-coming musicians mak-
ing tunes in the more shadowy
realms of music. People like Sk-
rattar, Dulvitund, Kuldaboli and
myself, being the only hip-hop act,
performed and wilded out in a se-
cret location, surrounded by many
strange and like-minded indi-
viduals. The atmosphere toggled
between violent and satanic to
give that thrilling, almost utopian
feeling you sometimes get when a
party is going really, really well.
And the pigs didn't show up either!
Myrkramakt is a great project
because they’re very good at pick-
ing up on young underground art-
ists in Iceland you’ve never heard
of, who tend to be on the darker
side of the spectrum. Peep their
two compilations on their Band-
camp for everything from cold-
hearted post-punk to jaded electro
and depressive darkwave. So far
the only projects or festivals in
Iceland dedicated solely to dark
and heavy music are either heavy
metal-related, like the Andkristni
festival, or neo-classical, like Dark
Music Days. However, metal and
classical heads can definitely find
something here to their liking,
as Myrkramakt’s roster is pretty
eclectic.
So, put down the sunshine pop
and positive waves for 2017 and ab-
sorb some real dark shit instead. It
goes better with the seasonal de-
pression!
WHY THEY WON
Hið Myrka Man are the cool-
est girls at school. You’re so into
them and they’re so not into you.
That’s why they win our shout-
out category. We came up with the
category last year to basically do
whatever the hell we want with it,
to give credit somehow to some-
one or something that doesn’t
quite fit into the other six catego-
ries, and haven’t been around long
enough to “be remembered.” And
that is exactly what Hið Myrka
Man are. They’re the perfectly
imperfect non-conformist record
label that doesn’t really give a shit
about press, or what you think. So
we’re here to drool all over them.
They’ve released two compilation
albums called 'Myrkramakt', and
threw a festival by the same name
this year that coincided with Ice-
land Airwaves.
Musically, they encompass “a
whole DIY scene that isn’t one
particular genre. They overlap
with bands like Naðra and Hatari,
they have electronic and hip-hop
influence,” one panellist said, go-
ing on to describe a Perturbator/
Mysþryming/Hatari gig. “It could
be anywhere,” the panellist noted,
“but it was in that scene. So it was
bizarre and it was brilliant.”
Hið Myrka Man
/ Myrkramakt
24 The Reykjavik Grapevine Music Awards 2016
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Þingholtsstræti 5 • 101 Reykjavík
Tel. 568 6600 • sushisocial.is
Our kitchen is open
17.00–23.00 sun.–thu.
17.00–24.00 fri.–sat.
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