Reykjavík Grapevine - 03.02.2017, Blaðsíða 26

25The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 02 — 2017
Once the darkest and dullest month
on the Icelandic calendar for music
and culture, February was forever
transformed in 2013 with the arrival
of Sónar Reykjavík, that annual shin-
ing beacon of modern sonic delight.
The festival will take place in Harpa
for the fifth time February 16-18,
and the final acts have just been an-
nounced.
BEA1991 is the new stage name of
the Dutch musician formerly known
as BEA, who is playing SónarComplex.
She makes groovy, hazy electronica
that’s smooth as silk. Also playing that
stage is her countryman Kai Hugo,
aka Palmbomen. He’s a producer who
makes dreamy electro with Italo disco
basslines. We highly recommend both
those artists. In other Sónar news, the
members of Moderat will take part in
an exclusive Q&A session ahead of Fri-
day's live performances and their own
show at SónarClub.
Two of the artist performing
at Sónar, Sindri Már Sigfússon of
Sin Fang and Seabear fame and the
múm member Örvar Smárason, have
teamed up with Morr Music label-
mate sóley for a new electro-indie
super project. Though not an official
“band,” and currently without a name,
the group have committed themselves
to releasing one song together every
month over the next year. All the songs
will then be compiled and released as
an album after twelve months. The
first song dropped last week, and it
bears the impenetrable title “Ran-
dom Haiku Generator.” But don’t let
the artsy title scare you, because the
song is at its core a bittersweet and
beautiful power ballad, though with
the experimental electronic edge the
people behind it are known for. Each
of the three singular voices manages
to shine through, and the song is like
an artfully woven sonic carpet.
With the whole record business in
disarray and everything up in the air
when it comes to releasing and distrib-
uting music, it’s nice to see Icelandic
artists experimenting with the form in
such a playful way. We now have at least
one thing to look forward every month,
and for that we are thankful to Sindri
Már, Örvar and Sóley.
SHARE: gpv.is/str02
“I still have two weeks, don’t I?” smiles
múm founding-member Örvar Smára-
son, coming out of a daze as he quietly
contemplates his imminent first-ever
solo performance. He’s right: when
we talk, Sónar Reykjavík is a fortnight
away. But as the festival draws nearer,
Örvar still has little idea of what his
show will consist of.
He booked the slot almost as a way
of cajoling himself, he explains. Dead-
lines are a good way to force oneself
into action, lending a welcome sense
of urgency and focus. But there must
be a seed of an idea, right?
“There’s always a sound in my mind,
I guess,” he admits. “But I’m still real-
ising what this is going to be. I don’t
know if I’ll be singing or not. I’ve been
writing these songs using computer-
generated voices to help write vocal
lines. They were just supposed to be
a tool, but now I’m stuck with them...
I need to figure out if I like them. But
I ordered a vocoder online, that’s due
to arrive today. So maybe I’ll sing the
computer lines...”
His voice peters out, and his eyes
relax focus into the middle distance.
Örvar has slipped back into the world
of his imagination.
Weird stoner music
It seems almost strange that, in his
twenty-year career, Örvar has never
really made any solo music. He re-
calls one collaborative teenaged tape
release, which he describes as “weird
stoner music,” and some early experi-
ments that were lost forever when his
first computer was thrown away. But
since then, múm has been his primary
creative focus.
“We’ve been lucky to have all these
different kinds of projects,” he says. “We
work on classical music, or do weird DJ
sets, or radio theatre. There hasn’t been
much need to do my own stuff. But sud-
denly, I felt the need to do it.”
Bringing those imagined sounds
into the real world isn’t always easy.
“I’m right down at the bottom of the
creative process,” says Örvar. “It brings
you to a deep, dark place sometimes.
I’m right there, right now. I can’t see
the way forward yet.”
Not completely human
Örvar, like many creatively inclined
people, goes through the mill when he’s
beginning something new. Creativity
is difficult, and can be personally chal-
lenging. “There comes a point where
everything you touch seems like shit,”
he laments. “A few months ago I had a
moment where I was writing songs, and
I needed to pick my kids up. I sat down
in my car and realised I couldn’t even
drive. I was lucky I’d walked to the car
without falling over. I get tense and not
completely human… I forget everything
and when I leave the house I need to go
back in three times because I’ve put on
different shoes, or something.”
But it’s also intentional, to some
degree. Despite the difficulties in-
volved, there’s a part of Örvar that’s
revelling in the writing process, and
intentionally trying not to let any ideas
settle. “It’s fun to be in that moment.
But ideas never come out as you imag-
ine they will,” he explains. “Like when
múm performed with Kronos Quartet
at Airwaves, we had two years of think-
ing how it would be. You could be see-
ing it front of your eyes, imagining it
for hours while you’re walking or doing
the dishes… but it’s never like that.”
“Maybe I should just spend less time
thinking, and more time actually doing
things,” he smiles, drifting off into the
echoes in his mind once again.
See Örvar’s performance at Sónar
Reykjavík on February 16th.
Words
DAVÍÐ
ROACH &
ÓLI DÓRI
Photo
ALBUM
COVER
Straumur,
Iceland's premier
indie music
radio show, airs
on X977, Mon.
at 23:00. Daily
music news in
Icelandic at
straum.is
Words
JOHN ROGERS
Photo
ART BICNICK
It’s been a few years
since you’ve tried to
hit that catchy high
note from Ásgeir’s pop
favourite “King and Cross”—five years
if you’re singing in Icelandic, three if in
English. On January 24 the 24-year-
old debuted “Unbound,” a single off
his forthcoming album, ‘Afterglow’.
Just like his first album, ‘Afterglow’ is
a family affair. The lyrics of “Unbound”
were written by his brother Steini
and other lyrics on the album were
written by his father, the poet Einar
Georg Einarsson. NPR said the single
is a move “toward laptop electronics,
something like the shift Bon Iver made
and that James Blake has been pio-
neering.” It’s still catchy, and you still
won’t be able to hit those high notes.
‘Afterglow’ will be released by One
Little Indian Records on May 5.
Speaking of strong debuts, East of
My Youth, the dark pop project of
Herdís Stefánsdóttir and Thelma
Marín Jónsdóttir, just released a self-
titled debut EP. Their second single,
“Only Lover,” was quickly picked up
as “Song of the Day” on KEXP shortly
after release three years ago. Since
then the girls have danced around the
world, making festival appearances
at Eurosonic, SXSW, and, of course,
Iceland Airwaves, picking up interna-
tional attention along the way. Their
six-track EP is now available to stream
or buy on iTunes and Spotify.
And while we’re visiting the land
of debut EPs, meet another recent
inhabitant: Danimal. Danimal is the
project of Daníel Jón, a local kid-
who’s-not-a-kid-anymore; having
played in bars around Reykjavík since
age sixteen, the twenty-five-year-
old singer-songwriter released
“People Like Me,” a single and video
off his forthcoming debut EP.

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Mind Echoes
Örvar Smárason “right at the bottom” of the creative process