Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.02.2019, Síða 23

The Call Of The Night
In 2019, Dark Music Days is traveling back to its roots
The Dark Music Days festival started
unassumingly in 1980, but in the 38
years since, it has taken the contem-
porary Icelandic composition world by
storm, becoming a well known festival
of unusual and inventive Icelandic and
international composers. This year, it’s
bigger than ever, presenting everything
from new works by former Grapevine
cover star Daníel Bjarnason to experi-
mental sound masses.
Exploratory origins
“The festival started out as a way for
the Society of Icelandic Composers to
present the music of its members,” ex-
plains Gunnar Karel Másson, the artis-
tic director of the festival. “It’s always
been embedded into the musical life
here because the big
ensembles, the sym-
phony orchestra and
the chamber orchestra,
have all been a part of
Dark Music Days since
the beginning.”
While the festival was originally a
two- to three-week affair, the last few
years have seen it moved to Harpa for a
more concise three-day extravaganza.
For the 2019 iteration, Gunnar decided
to journey back to the festival’s roots,
adding off-venue shows at Mengi, IÐNÓ,
Húrra and more, and extending the cel-
ebration over one week.
“It’s a good step forward to go back-
wards,” he says of the shift. “You have
to have time to contemplate what you’ve
heard. When it was only three days, you
were running between concerts and
you didn’t have the time to really know
what you were listening to.” He pauses.
“There will be some hectic moments,
of course, particularly on Friday and
Saturday night, but it’s more relaxed
now.”
Finding new footing
While Dark Music Days might have
started as a somewhat niche soirée, it
has since gained an international pres-
ence in the contemporary scene, with
composers from all over Europe flying
in to present their works, as well as an
increasing amount of Icelandic artists
vying for spots.
“See, in the beginning, the composer
society was probably one third of what
it is today,” Gunnar explains. “But now
we are seeing younger generations go
into composition, which I’d connect to
the Iceland Academy Of The Arts of-
fering composition classes. It’s a huge
boon for the festival, but that’s only the
tip of the iceberg.”
The rest of the iceberg, Gunnar re-
iterates, comes from Iceland’s unique
geographical position. “Iceland is a
meeting place between Europe and
North America and we
should capitalise on
this.” But, that said,
Gunnar emphasises
that, for him, the joy
of the festival is still
about musical innova-
tion. He gives a small smile when asked
about this year’s programme. “Well,”
he teases, “you’ll never know what to
expect here.”
Words:
Hannah Jane
Cohen
Photo:
Jana Černá
Words:
Alexander Jean
de Fontenay
Photo:
Svanhildur
Gréta
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Get your dark on, experimental weirdos... of the NIGHT
Clubbed Up
Cross-genre electronica duo
ClubDub’s refreshing musical menu
ClubDub are an intriguing duo whose
star rose quickly last summer with
the release of their first album “Juice
Menu, Vol. 1”. Each song thereon is a
refreshing beverage for listeners to
enjoy. Get it?
Aron Kristinn Jónasson and
Brynjar Barkarson’s music marries
elements of hip hop and R’n’B with
electro pop and trance sounds on hit
tracks like ‘Clubbed Up’ and ‘C-3PO.’
Collaborations with Aron Can and
Auður followed, and the duo have
also cemented their live reputation
by playing numerous concerts around
Iceland.
Info:
Listen to ‘Juice
Menu, Vol. 1’
on Spotify, and
follow ClubDub
on Instagram at
@klubbasigur.
ClubDub will
perform at Sónar
Reykjavík 2019.
Festival
The last two days
of the Dark Music
Days festival are
on February 1st
and 2nd. You
can check out
the programme
online at www.
darkmusicdays.is/
Aron and Brynjar met in high
school and collaborated on humour-
ous, often tongue-in-cheek, videos
and songs at “12:00,” the school’s
audiovisual club and comedy show.
“We were lucky to get first hand ex-
perience of performing live, and our
songs and videos became very popu-
lar,” Brynjar explains. “Now we fo-
cus on making music as ClubDub in
collaboration with our beat-making
brothers in Ra:tio.”
“We’ve set out to fill a gap in the
Icelandic party music scene,” says
Aron. Their songs are aimed firmly
at lighting up the dancefloor, with a
faster BPM than many of their con-
temporaries. “We initially wanted to
go in a rap and R’n’B direction,” says
Aron. “But we decided in the studio
to go for faster beats with more bass
and clearer lyrics. We like to dance
and party so it seems like the perfect
fit for us.” Brynjar agrees: “Electron-
ic music is the best! It hits you hard,
and makes you dance and forget your
worries.”
ClubDub have secured a slot at
Sónar Reykjavík 2019 this coming
April, with a number of things on
their plate in the meantime. “In Jan-
uary we’re releasing a documentary
about finding our place in the Icelan-
dic music scene,” says Aron. “After
that we’ll go into album mode.”
“Every day above ground is a great
day, remember that!” concludes
Brynjar.
Be S.A.D. If You Want To
S.A.D. Festival
Feb. 1st - 21:00 - Paloma - Free!
If you ever, in any way, wanted to
experience the Icelandic rap scene
in Reykjavík’s dirtiest basement
surrounded by people looking to
assuage their seasonal depression
with substance abuse, put on your
best reflective pants, sis. The
supergroup lineup of the
#sadfestival includes kef LAVÍK,
CYBER, Floni, Elli Grill, ALVIA, and
more. Maybe, if you’re lucky, Ja Rule
will show up with pieces of bread
and cheese. HJC
Light ‘Em Up
Winter Lights Festival 2019
Feb. 8th - Various Times & Locations
Brighten up these darkest days of
Reykjavík by taking part in the
(mostly) free admission Winter
Lights Festival. There’s free museum
and pool visits, six light installations
around the city, concerts, lectures,
parties, and the strong of heart can
participate in the 5K Northern Lights
Run. There’s also, for some reason, a
Fortnite dance class. Good frugal
times! AF
Iceland vs. LA
From The Edge Of The World
Feb. 2nd-16th - Ekkisens - Free!
Iceland meets LA this month at
the vibrant basement arts space
Ekkisens. Curated by Freyja Eilíf
and Max Presneill, the artworks
come from two different “edge
of the world” locations: Iceland’s
black coastline, and the Pacific
metropolis of Los Angeles. Works
by Alison Woods, Carlos Beltran
Arechiga, Davíð Örn Halldórsson,
the two curators and more will be
on show. Throw on some sunblock
and your parka and roller skate to
Bergstaðastræti 25B to check it
out. JR
“It’s a good
step forward to
go backwards.”