Reykjavík Grapevine - 06.01.2017, Blaðsíða 40

40The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 01 — 2017
The ultimate & final say on 2016's best musicMusic
relatable feeling of the year is
laid over this banging production,
only greatness can come of it. STR
GKR - Slæmar Fréttir
“Meira” does it big and “Morgun-
matur” has had its time to shine,
but it’s the first track from GKR’s
EP that I kept going back to. It’s not
a breakfast cereal rap—it’s a dark
rap with a beat that keeps you light
on your toes. It’s the brand of rap
that I grew up with, something that
stirs feelings of anger and disil-
lusionment (even without having
any fucking idea what he’s saying).
For me, on this one GKR says some-
thing without having to say it. PY
Góðkynja – Andi
Andi means “spirit” in English,
and there is a whole lot of that in
the best cut from Andi’s glorious
debut album. Bright and breezy
synth chords bounce off each other
in a track that morphs outwards
and inwards over the course of its
short running time. STR
JFDR - White Sun
“White Sun” is a song based
around a haunting looped key-
board melody. But also, it’s about
other kinds of loops: the cycle of
the seasons, the opening and clos-
ing of relationships, and the cos-
mic waymarkers of the calendar.
By weaving the theme of the track
into both its lyrics and structure,
Jófríður displays the kind of imagi-
nation that catapulted her to the
forefront of Iceland’s music scene
in 2016—and onto the cover of
Grapevine, in November. JR
Jón Þór - Frúin í Hamborg
“Frúin í Hamborg” is an indie-rock
anthem taken from a four-song
EP with the same name. Jón Þór is
channeling the likes of Pavement,
Blur, Weezer and Built to Spill,
with great results. STR
Kilo - Magnifico
If you’re reading this, there’s a
chance you don’t speak Icelandic.
In that case, Icelandic rap might
not be your cup of tea—or at least,
a type of tea you worry you won’t
understand. Thank God then, for
the arrival of Kilo’s magnificent
masterpiece “Magnifico.” This
is a proper full-on hip-hop party
anthem that even the stodgiest
tastemaker couldn’t deny is effing
catchy. It’s the song you’ll catch
yourself humming in the car. It’s
the song you’ll catch yourself danc-
ing on a table to. Whether or not
rapping about snapbacks and kicks
is your thing, you can indulge your
00s-gangsta side a little here. HJC
Kosmodod - Komets
I was living in Berlin when I was
introduced to time travel. The man
who built the machine housed it in
an out of commission U-Bahn tun-
nel just beyond Frankfurter Tor.
We wore electric yellow vests and
entered the hollow tunnel entrance
without trouble. It breathed secre-
cy. He asked me what song I wanted
to listen to while I traversed space-
time, and I told him “Komets” by
Kosmodod. PY
KRELD - Way Low
It might not appear on many end-
of-year lists, but Sykur mainstay
Kristján Eldjárn quietly began an
exciting new collaborative solo
project in 2016. “Way Low” was the
first track to be released, and it’s a
slow, pulsing masterclass in down-
tempo electronica. His live sets at
Airwaves showed that he’s sitting
on a treasure trove of equally good
material. One to watch. JR
Ólafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm
- 23:52
When Ólafur stretches his legs a
little—as he does in his techno
project Kiasmos, and on this col-
laborative album—his intuitive
sense for melody combines with
a playful imagination. “23:52” is a
looping synth instrumental that’s
imbued with an expansive sense of
wonder. It builds beautifully, and
echoes around the mind long after
the five minutes are over. JR
Pascal Pinon - 53
‘Sundur’ was perhaps Pascal Pi-
non’s most intimate album to
date, which is saying a lot. The first
single, ”53,” is a searingly personal
song that describes the suicide of a
friend’s mother, and then proceeds
to try and sooth away his pain with a
gentle, empathic, cooing chorus. JR
Samaris - Wanted 2 Say
‘Black Lights’ by Samaris is our Al-
bum of the Year, on the basis that it
was so full of good tracks that re-
warding just one didn’t feel right.
That said, first single “Wanted 2
Say” set the bar high for what was
to come. It was their first song to
be sung in English, and with its
uptempo rhythm and catchy cho-
rus, it opened new doors for one of
Iceland’s top bands. JR
Snorri Helgason - Einsemd
Snorri released his first album in
Icelandic last year and ‘Einsemd’
is one of its strongest tracks. Por-
traying solitude in a bright light,
it captures perfectly the “grass is
always greener” mood many feel
whilst in relationships. A refresh-
ingly honest track. JB
Spítali - You
“You” is a high-quality house
number with a romantic ambi-
ence. It grinds and builds higher
and higher over the course of its six
minutes, with hard-hitting drums,
80s synth pads and fractured vocal
snippets that hypnotise you on head-
phones and dance floors alike. STR
JR: John Rogers, PY: Parker Yama-
saki, SP: Sveinbjörn Pálsson, JB:
Jón Ben, HJC: Hannah Jane Cohen
STR: Straumur (Davíð Roach & Óli
Dóri)
SHARE: gpv.is/lst01
Grapevine's End of
the Year Playlist
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