Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.11.2018, Síða 18

The R
eykjavík G
rapevine
Iceland A
irw
aves Special 20
18
18 Solo artist SiGRÚN—aka Sigrún
Jónsdóttir—is a fascinating
presence on the Icelandic music
scene. She first appeared in 2016
with the ‘Hringsjá’ EP after an
early career spent as a touring
musician with Björk, Sigur Rós
and Florence and the Machine.
“It’s been so freeing for me to
make my own music,” she says,
her eyes glimmering. “It's more
responsibility, but I get some-
thing completely different out
of it.”
A call to
consciousness
Two years later, SiGRÚN’s debut
album is imminent. ‘Onælan’ is
told from the female perspective,
and is about knowing oneself and
being soft enough to allow for
growth. “The ideas behind the
album are built on the learning
period when I went from being a
link in the chain of other produc-
tions, to becoming the creator,”
she says. “It’s like when you’re
transitioning from being a teen-
ager to an adult—the album is
similarly a call to consciousness,
and knowing what you want.”
The first single from the al-
bum is “Anneal Me.” “I found that
word when I was preparing for
a recording session and fell in
love with it,” says Sigrún. “It’s
the act of heating metal so you
can bend it however you like. The
song is about creating your fu-
ture and pushing to continuously
learn about yourself.” This title
also inspired the name of the al-
bum—‘Onælan’—which means
“to anneal” in Old English.
Nex t came “Vex,” which
means “Growing,” in English.
“It’s about realising that if you’ve
decided on growing and you keep
working at it, then it is possible,”
says Sigrún. In the chorus you’ll
hear the words “Hún er þú,”
meaning “She is you.” The “She”
in the song is a figure that Sigrún
invites listeners to connect to
and discover through the album.
Red
threads
There is a subtle narrative on
the album with two main story-
tellers—She and The Empress.
Sigrún elaborates on the signif-
icance of the Empress: “In the
process of writing the album I
drew the Empress card from my
tarot deck,” she explains. “She
stands for making something
without knowing exactly what
it means, and trusting your in-
tuition.”
The album’s artwork was
made in collaboration with Viðar
Logi and Jón Albert Méndez. The
imagery is a series of warped
portraits depicting Sigrún as an
otherworldly figure. “I raided
all the crafts stores in Reykjavík
for slime and goo and they were
constantly slathering me in it,”
she says. The figure becoming
an embodiment of the Empress,
and another place.
Her world
Sigrún first played Airwaves
in 2016. “I remember being so
stressed to perform my materi-
al I began trying to calm myself
three months beforehand,” she
recalls. “It was the first time I
was playing live without an in-
strument in front of me, which
has always protected me, like a
shield.”
This time around, SiGRÚN
will premiere her new album at
her Airwaves concert. “It took
me a long time to learn to take
space and find the feeling I had
when writing the music, in front
of other people,” she laughs. Two
years later, not only has she found
her space and her sound, but she’s
bringing us with her into another
world. “‘Anneal me’ came out on
a full moon, ‘Vex’ on a new moon
and the whole album will be re-
leased on the autumn equinox,”
she finishes. And indeed, it seems
the stars aligning for a new chap-
ter in her career.
SiGRÚN
FRI 9th, 19:10, Harpa Floi
SiGRÚN invites us into her debut album
Words: Tara Njála Ingvarsdóttir Photo: Viðar Logi
“The album is a call
to consciousness,
and knowing what
you want.”
Empress
Apparent
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