Reykjavík Grapevine - 19.07.2019, Side 35

to not see her or any of the other
locals amongst the crowd later on.
A forgotten place
While Hátiðni momentarily boost-
ed Borðeyri’s population, even
the joyous rapture of young peo-
ple enjoying music and sunshine
and pals couldn’t distract from a
town that has clearly seen a drastic
change in fortunes over its histo-
ry. In the 18th Century, Borðeyri’s
natural harbour made it a thriving
port and commercial centre for the
surrounding area. In more recent
years, the town obviously stayed
significant enough to have a shop,
cafe, slaughterhouse and various
other facilities. But even these are
now gone, most likely due to the
rapid reduction of farming com-
munities and depopulation as peo-
ple seek different opportunities in
larger towns.
It was hard not to feel deep
sadness about all the derelict
buildings and other remnants of
a once-thriving small community.
As lovely as it is to see Hátiðni fill
the village, one weekend of visitors
is not going to turn Borðeyri’s for-
tunes around.
The (new) sound
of music
Later on, full of new Post-Dreif-
ing knowledge and innumera-
ble waffles, we made our way up
to the school to see some of the
bands. The lineup for Hátiðni was
impressively extensive, running
from 4pm on Friday to 3am on
Sunday. Producing a programme
of more than 12 hours of live mu-
sic is quite an achievement. The
quality of the acts was high and
bands were well-received by an un-
surprisingly supportive audience.
They performed in a small theatre
space in the school with curtains
and other material duct-taped
over the large window behind the
stage—this set up proved to be not
entirely reliable, but was fixed in
true ‘D.I.T.’ (Do It Together) style.
Highlights included Captain
Syrup, who played a dynamic and
energetic set so loud that we even-
tually had to listen
f rom outside the
building. In the car.
Note to self—nev-
er forget to bring
earplugs to a music
festival. MSEA—all
pink ruffles, effect
pedals and ambient
vo c a l s — c apt iv at-
ed the crowd. I was particularly
blown away by Saturday’s opener,
Salóme Katrín. Impossibly togeth-
er and cool for her age, she and her
two band members wove a tapes-
try of utterly enchanting sound.
In particular, a semi-improvised
piece stuck in my mind for days.
She is one to watch for sure.
It takes a lot of energy to make
anything happen and to create
something out of nothing. For
that something to
be a three-day event
featuring 30-odd
bands and catering
to almost 200 peo-
ple is a testament
to the hard-work-
ing nature of the
Post-Dreifing clan.
W h e r e e x a c t l y
Hátiðni will go next, both phys-
ically and metaphorically, is un-
clear—but I think that’s just how
they want it.
35The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 12— 2019
“Salóme Katrín
wove a tapes-
try of utterly
enchanting
sound.”
Fun in the old school
Fun on the the campsite
The tiny town is home to 16 people
Fun in the lupin field
Bus 1, approx. 30 minutes
from Downtown Reykjavík
Open 12–5 p.m.
Closed on Tuesdays
Free entry
Strandgata 34
220 Hafnarfjörður
Iceland
www.hafnarborg.is
hafnarborg@hafnarfjordur.is
(354) 585 5790
Hafnarborg
The Hafnarfjörður Centre
of Culture and Fine Art
In Transition
Hafnarfjörður as Seen by
Eight Contemporary Photographers
Kjarvalsstaðir
Flókagata 24
105 Reykjavík
+354 411 6400
Open daily
10h00–17h00
artmuseum.is
#reykjavikartmuseum
25.05.–
06.10.2019
Sölvi
Helgason
Floral
Fantasy