Reykjavík Grapevine - jul 2022, Qupperneq 11

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North West we go!
HÁTIÐNI
July 1st - July 3rd - Borðeyri - 3,000 ISK
Returning for the fourth time,
Post-dreifing is once again hosting
HÁTÍÐNI in the northwest village of
Borðeyri with an extensive lineup
of DJs, post-punk bands, indie art-
ists, and more. You are bound to find
something up your alley. Promising a
weekend of friends, both old and new,
HÁTÍÐNI is the perfect place to bond
with other music heads. AE
Pride the Icelandic way!
Reykjavík Pride
August 2nd until August 7th - Down-
town Reykjavík - Free
Acclaimed as one of the biggest little
Pride Parades in the world, Reykjavík
Pride regularly attracts thousands of
people—locals and tourists alike—to
celebrate and show support for the
LGBTQ+ community. So, don your rain-
bow regalia, recruit some friends, and
run to the streets of Reykjavík for this
event. It features a dance, parade and
various festival activities, so there is
plenty for everyone to enjoy. EL
Iceland's greatest hits!
Icelandic Sagas
July 4th until August 11th - Harpa -
5,900 ISK
With two of Iceland's finest actors
leading the charge, this comedic per-
formance is sure to be a rollercoaster
ride showcasing Iceland's fantastic—
and surprising —Viking history. You'll
learn about Vikings' practical con-
cerns, from how to get your wife to
stop killing your neighbour's slaves,
to what to do when someone calls
you a horse-ass-eater, with some
moments in between that are too
unscrupulous for even us to print. EL
With three days of music from under-
ground Icelandic artists and several
favourite foreign bands, Norðanpaunk
is the place not only to get your punk on,
but to experience Iceland’s “DIY” culture
at its finest. Here—at a cosy venue in
North Iceland—event organisers, musi-
cians and festival goers unite under the
belief that if you want something done
right, you should do it yourself.
Anti-consumer mindset
“If you sit around to wait for things
to happen in Iceland, there wouldn’t
be much happening,” says festival
co-founder Árni Þorlákur Guðnason.
Norðanpaunk exists because music
lovers decided to take things into their
own hands, stepping beyond the all-
too-common commercialised festival
scene. “We wouldn’t have those special,
unusual acts without people commit-
ting to the inherent value in that
happening. There are certain things
that are only possible when people are
engaged because of passion.”
The people who do the work make the
decisions, which is extremely empower-
ing, Árni says. The crew members are
extremely dedicated, returning year
after year, because of this.
When it comes down to it, Árni
believes DIY-ers are creative problem
solvers and community builders. “It’s
a school for learning important skills.
There’s a different atmosphere that
grows out of it,” he says.
At Norðanpaunk, if you aren’t part
of the DIY community when you arrive,
you will be when you leave. On the first
day of the festival, people often have
what Árni dubs the “consumer mind-
set,” littering at the campsites and not
taking responsibility for their surround-
ings. But after seeing organisers and
musicians—who don’t get paid for their
work—picking up trash between shifts,
their attitude changes. “By the third
day, they’re fully integrated into this
way of living and partying together,”
Árni says.
With this culture of responsibility,
Norðanpaunk may well be one of the
cleanest festivals…ever. “It made me
very happy to see the woman who owns
the venue and campsites taking pictures
and posting them on Facebook, asking
people, ‘Does it look this clean at your
festival? I don’t think so!’” Árni says.
Welcome to the
underground family
With around 400-500 people attending
each year, the event delivers a strong
sense of community. About half of the
attendees during any given year are
returning from a previous time, while
the other half are new—friends of
friends, welcomed into the “family of
underground,” Árni explains.
The bands are hand-selected, and
many are considered too unconven-
tional for other venues, resulting in
an event that’s truly all about the art
and the community surrounding it.
“Nobody wants to listen to standard
stuff,” Árni says, “and the different
scenes are constantly enriching each
other.”
Despite the name, the line-up at
Norðanpaunk spans a broad range of
genres—from death metal to electronic
to techno—because, as Árni says, “The
Icelandic scene is too small for people
to become entrenched in only one.”
The result is a family celebration of the
“year’s harvest,” where everyone can
gather to witness the art created in
the last twelve months. Whether that’s
drawings or paintings created in the
‘art corner’ and hung around the venue,
or music performed during the event,
there is a place for it all at Norðanpaunk.
The social experiment
Norðanpaunk is a social experiment and
creative process, evolving each year to
become what the community wants.
“It’s kind of like a flower,” Árni says.
“You can’t tell it what to do, you can only
tend to it and hope the wind and sun are
in your favour. That’s how we approach
Norðanpaunk each year, with liberty
and art as our objective.”
Be careful, Árni cautions, lest you
miss some of the excitement. One of
his favourite memories, oddly enough,
was missing a surprise show from one
of his favourite bands. He was called
away to deal with an issue, and when
he came back, he had already missed
the performance. Árni believes this is a
reminder to live in the moment and an
important lesson about DIY values.
“If you missed it, it’s gone. It’s not
replicable,” Árni says. “It’s a series of
special moments—you can’t buy that.”

Norðanpaunk will take place July 29-31
in Laugarbakki. Tickets are available at
nordanpaunk.org; no tickets will be sold
at the door. Bring your own food, alcohol,
and supplies.
CULTURE
NEWS
School Of DIY
Some things are just better when you do them yourself
Words:
Emma Ledbetter
Photos:
Joanna Pianka
&
provided by
interviewee
Festival goers gather at Norðanpaunk 2019
Árni Þorlákur