Reykjavík Grapevine


Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.01.2018, Blaðsíða 24

Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.01.2018, Blaðsíða 24
sjavargillid.is SKÓLAVÖRÐUSTÍG 14 | 101 REYKJAVÍK | +354 571 1100 | SJAVARGRILLID.IS THE SOUNDSCAPE OF LIFE EinarIndra finds his rhythm Words: Alice Demurtas As years go, 2017 was an exciting one for EinarIndra—although per- haps not as prolific as he would have liked, music-wise. After the birth of his baby girl, Einar has in fact had very little time to focus on his art. “So the fact that I’ve re- ceived an award for my music feels quite nice,” he laughs. It wasn’t until his latest album ‘Stories’ that Einar captured the attention of the public and critics alike with his dreamy electronic beats and high-pitched vocals. He has often been likened to James Blake and even The XX for his soft, intimate songs. Yet, Einar prefers to distance himself from such comparisons; what he does is purely his own thing. JUST LIKE PAINTING Despite the success of his songs, Einar only recently started jux- taposing lyrics with his music. “I used to play piano in Húsavík when I was in high school and then I got a CD filled with music software,” he says. “That’s when I really start- ed focusing on making music. It was sort of glitchy electronica.” Focusing on melodies and beats always came naturally to Einar. “I have always been interested more in beats and sound design,” he explains. “The vocals came later. Lyrics are more or less like a paint- ing—you have these words, and they have to be right for the direc- tion they’re going.But they also have to fit into the melody and the song as well.” What makes this task particu- larly hard, he explains, is making the synthetic nature of electron- ics and the analogue sound of his voice fit together. “It’s quite a headache,” he laughs. KEEP IT SLOW Perhaps because of this atten- tion to detail, Einar seems to have found his sound. ‘Stories’ has a Sunday morning vibe with its slow tempo, but it also succeeds in be- ing a sensual experience, keep- ing its pace all the way through. “Sometimes you can make things just too complicated, when a sim- pler version of it can flow much better,” Einar explains. Simplicity, however, is not all there is to it. These hushed melo- dies come so naturally to Einar that even when he tries to veer away from his downtempo sound and speed things up a little, he al- ways ends up hitting the brakes. “I’ve landed in a comfort zone, and I like the soundscape of it,” he says. “I’ve tried doing faster songs but, in the end, they always feel off compared to my life rhythm.” Headed to Portugal to take time off from his job, Einar is deter- mined to go back to working on his music in 2018. Whether the south- ern sun will slow his tempo down or speed it up, the future looks bright for EinarIndra. Meet The Panel Andrea Jónsdóttir A well-known and widely re- spected veteran broadcaster and DJ, Andrea Jónsdottir can often been found spinning vi- nyl in downtown Reykjavík bar Dillon, or championing new music on the radio via Ice- land’s state broadcaster, RÚV, where she has worked since 1984. With her open-minded taste, sense of adventure, and keen eye for emerging talents, Andrea was pivotal in helping us decide these awards. Takk fyrir, Andrea! Cheryl K. Ang Cheryl is the newest arrival at the Iceland Music Export agency, also known as IMX. Her mission on a day-to-day basis is to comb through reams of new Icelandic releases, pro- moting them to the music industry and the public alike via newsletters, blog entries, playlists, and social media. As such, few people listen to more Icelandic music than Cheryl, making her a perfect panellist for the 2017 awards. Cheers, Cheryl! Egill Tómasson As the longest serving mem- ber in the production team behind Iceland’s most re- spected music festival, Egill is a true expert on the local scene. Every year, Iceland Air- waves receives hundreds of applications from homegrown bands, and it’s a major part of Egill’s day-to-day work to stay on top of which bands have recently emerged, found their stride onstage, broken new creative ground, or dropped the album of their career. Skál, Egill! JR Special Thanks: We'd like to thank Reykja- vík Excursions, Dogma and Tónastöðin for providing priz- es to our winners. Also, special thanks to the Grái Kötturinn café at Hverfisgata 16 for hosting the photo shoot. Artist To Watch: EinarIndra The soft vocals of EinarIndra are what dreams are made of. His sound has been compared to that of The XX or James Blake, but what he does is purely his own work. “It’s kind of on-trend, but with a beautiful voice and an ex- perimental edge,” one panelist said enthusiastically. “He could be huge.” Despite having made music for a while, EinarIndra worked mostly on making beats until only recently, when he decided to experiment with his voice by in- troducing it into his most recent release, ‘Stories.’ The result is new, yet oddly familiar, like recognising someone in a crowd who you’ve never actually met before. Einar is an emerging artist, but his poten- tial is undeniable. Remember his melancholic gloom, because he is definitely here to stay. People's Choice: Hórmónar This year, we decided to give our readers a say, running a Face- book poll from the panel's short- list of 30 artists. With over 1000 votes cast, the winners were feminist rock 'n' roll quintet Hór- mónar. Read our interview with Hórmónar at gpv.is/horm. 24 The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 01 — 2018
Blaðsíða 1
Blaðsíða 2
Blaðsíða 3
Blaðsíða 4
Blaðsíða 5
Blaðsíða 6
Blaðsíða 7
Blaðsíða 8
Blaðsíða 9
Blaðsíða 10
Blaðsíða 11
Blaðsíða 12
Blaðsíða 13
Blaðsíða 14
Blaðsíða 15
Blaðsíða 16
Blaðsíða 17
Blaðsíða 18
Blaðsíða 19
Blaðsíða 20
Blaðsíða 21
Blaðsíða 22
Blaðsíða 23
Blaðsíða 24
Blaðsíða 25
Blaðsíða 26
Blaðsíða 27
Blaðsíða 28
Blaðsíða 29
Blaðsíða 30
Blaðsíða 31
Blaðsíða 32
Blaðsíða 33
Blaðsíða 34
Blaðsíða 35
Blaðsíða 36
Blaðsíða 37
Blaðsíða 38
Blaðsíða 39
Blaðsíða 40
Blaðsíða 41
Blaðsíða 42
Blaðsíða 43
Blaðsíða 44
Blaðsíða 45
Blaðsíða 46
Blaðsíða 47
Blaðsíða 48
Blaðsíða 49
Blaðsíða 50
Blaðsíða 51
Blaðsíða 52
Blaðsíða 53
Blaðsíða 54
Blaðsíða 55
Blaðsíða 56

x

Reykjavík Grapevine

Beinir tenglar

Ef þú vilt tengja á þennan titil, vinsamlegast notaðu þessa tengla:

Tengja á þennan titil: Reykjavík Grapevine
https://timarit.is/publication/943

Tengja á þetta tölublað:

Tengja á þessa síðu:

Tengja á þessa grein:

Vinsamlegast ekki tengja beint á myndir eða PDF skjöl á Tímarit.is þar sem slíkar slóðir geta breyst án fyrirvara. Notið slóðirnar hér fyrir ofan til að tengja á vefinn.