Reykjavík Grapevine - 10.05.2019, Blaðsíða 8

Ever seen ‘Scarface’? Fantastic film,
right? Well, imagine that for every
minute of that 170-minute movie
featuring guns, mountains of cocaine,
and greed, a real life greedy Icelander
was there, making bank, stacking it
up and burying their face in it, before
promptly dumping it abroad in off-
shore accounts.
A true utopia
Yes, Iceland was blessed with the high-
est number of people per capita in the
Panama Papers, with 170 individuals
getting busted by the report. It was
a proud achievement for the county,
second only to the numerous times
they’ve been named the country with
the most gender equality. Yes, welcome
to Iceland, the place where people
think not of your genitals while they
rob you blind. Truly a utopia.
Those outed by the International
Consortium of Investigative Journal-
ists (ICIJ) database included, “inves-
tors, CEOs and company board
members, merchants, wholesalers,
attorneys, and fishing industry lead-
ers,” according to RÚV’s coverage from
2016.
Paradise lost
Iceland’s citizens, though, were not
as fond of this win as you’d expect. In
fact, they reacted with protests, which
included about 7% of the country,
demanding that then prime minis-
ter Sigmundur Davíð—who was also
named in the papers—resign. These
protests were so lively that they even
included throwing skyr at the Parlia-
ment building. While Sigmundur
originally said he would not resign,
he eventually did. See? Peer pressure
does work.
Unfortunately, Iceland learned its
lesson and years later, when the Para-
dise Papers were released, Iceland lost
its spot as the number one country. It
was a stunning defeat for the country,
second only to when Björk lost Best
Music Video at the Grammy’s to Korn’s
‘Freak On A Leash.’ That was certainly
a doozy.
Smiting The
Panama Papers!
Socialists HATE them! You’ll never guess what happened next!
8 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 07— 2019
LÓABORATORIUM
When it comes to hiding money in tax shelters, no one beats Iceland.
Listen, watch & hear
more tracks:
gpv.is/play
Hildur -
Woman At War
How do you like
emotional ballads?
What about Robyn?
Well, mash ‘em both
together and you
get “Woman At War,”
the newest effort
from pop princess
Hildur. Her stunning
voice is put front
and centre here,
and we’re grateful
for it. HJC
Of Monsters & Men -
Alligator
The first Icelandic
act to reach a billion
plays on Spotify are
back. “Alligator” is
a standard-issue
pop/rock single
that strains to be
anthemic, and while
the crunchy guitars
are slightly too hard
for it to be momcore,
the trite lyrics
definitely aren’t. JR
Vintage Caravan -
On The Run
The Vintage Caravan
might be known for
their psychedelic
‘60s-retro sound,
but “On The Run”
proves the band
can easily take
on the ‘80s as
well. With an old
school Americana-
metal sound, it
personifies the
sentence “Are you
ready to rock?!”
Think Whitesnake.
HJC
Shelter On Wax &
Jónbjörn - Statues
Lagaffe Tales label
head Jónbjörn is
taking off lately,
quite literally: his
2019 live dates
have included
slots in Helsinki,
Vienna and Tbilisi.
The claustrophobic
flatline of
this techno
collaboration
strikingly spikes
around the four
minute mark. JR
Countess Malaise
- KASH
A bright star in the
Reykjavík rap scene,
Countess Malaise has
charisma to spare.
The languid, bassy
thrust of this new
track, produced by
Lord Pusswhip, hints
at great things from
her forthcoming solo
album. It’s coming
soon: keep refreshing
Soundcloud. JR
KARÍTAS - Wear
Somebody Else
Trap intersects
with delicate
pop on KARÍTAS’
debut single
“Wear Somebody
Else.” With a light
touch, she muses
about her desire
to be somebody
else, all while the
quiet harmonies
surround
the listener,
enveloping them
in the sensation of
wanting. We want
more. JR
THE
GRAPEVINE
PLAYLIST
The must-hear tracks of the issue
M
eð
ill
u
sk
al

ill
t ú
t r
ek
a
JUST SAYINGS
We ask: Is it justifiable to use evil to
cast away evil? Well Icelanders have a
saying about that, ‘Með illu skal illt út
reka,’ and the answer is yes, you can. In
English, the idiom goes like this: Cast
away evil with evil. That is, of course,
the main plot summary of all of the
80s and 90s action movies, meaning
that shit is gonna go down and nobody
is going to turn the other cheek. That
said, the philosophy is flawed. Evil vs.
Evil just makes more evil. But, we must
add, if some family member is suddenly
possessed by a demon, that would be the
time to use this idiom: Cast away evil
with evil! VG
WHAT HAVE
WE WON?
Words:
Hannah Jane
Cohen
Photo:
Art Bicnick
First
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