Iceland review - 2016, Síða 42

40 ICELAND REVIEW
M U S I C
self-released his first album, Sweaty
Psalms, in 2008. In 2010 he toured as a
bassist for Jónsi, the guitarist and vocal-
ist in Sigur Rós, who had just released
his debut solo album Go. Úlfur’s second
album, White Mountain, came out in
2012 with Western Vinyl. In 2013, he was
awarded first place in the International
Rostrum of Composers for the track
‘So Very Strange’ from White Mountain.
While engineering circuits to produce
music is one of Úlfur’s passions—he’s
even built an electromagnetic harp,
called Segulharpa, with support from
Icelandic technological innovation fund
Rannís. He also composes the old-fash-
ioned way; that is, writing scores for
instruments with pen and paper. “Each
different approach is just a tool, and you
can use many different tools at the same
time,” says Úlfur.
NO COMPROMISE
When we meet in Reykjavík, Úlfur lets
me listen to the first and last tracks of the
new album on headphones. When I close
my eyes, it feels as if I’m in the presence
of a live symphony orchestra. “I started
out by making something that moved
me. Chord progressions and melodies.
Then, I juxtaposed that with abstract
micro-clusters, which are a bit weird and
out of tune. The relationship between
those two things makes the music strange
but familiar.” The idea was to combine
many divergent musical ingredients and
give them a platform to work together in
a multilayered, multi-textured way. The
title track encompasses both the sweep
of a melodic symphony and the sharp
focus of a rapid drumbeat with an overlay
of crackling sounds, which happen to be
water falling. Úlfur states: “I like having
the chords and melodies and the abysmal
drumming with the water sounds right
next to each other. It gives you a chance
to enter either world, even though you
might only relate to one of them. It pro-
vides many access points without making
any compromises.
“There are a lot of firsts on this
album,” says Úlfur, referring not only
to the blurring of distinctions between
classical and electronic genres, but also
to the fact that he sings on three of
the tracks—something he’s never done
before. This was the greatest challenge
he faced in the entire recording process.
“Everything has to be right because
you’re very exposed,” he says, laughing.
“I decided I wouldn’t hide behind pro-
cessing or a huge orchestra or noise or
distortion. I can’t hide behind anything
because it’s just my voice.” But the vocal
element was important because it added
yet another dimension to the album,
affording another entry point for the lis-
tener. “The vocals tap directly into what
we use to communicate to each other as
human beings every day,” says Úlfur.
TRANSLATING ELECTRONS
As a performer, Úlfur is fascinated by the
interplay between himself, the tools of
composition, and the audience. Especially
in the case where he’s on stage with just
a computer or a modular synthesizer, he
wonders, “How do you embody on stage
in front of an audience what is happening
between you and a flow of electrons? It’s
difficult to make that apparent and it’s
a classic dilemma for electronic musi-
cians.” Úlfur is interested in finding new
ways to perform his music. There should
be no prerequisite for relating to music:
some pieces just appeal to you and others
don’t, he says, arguing, “A lot of people
struggle with the idea that if you make
something simple and pleasing, it’s not
smart enough and it’s not relevant. If
it’s simply beautiful, it’s not important. I
think that’s a huge mistake.”
Arborescence is a testimony to this idea,
as well as the idea that generic bounda-
ries are arbitrary and shouldn’t restrict
the life of the music or the musician. To
underscore the importance of multiplici-
ty in his work, Úlfur states that he’s wary
of genres and pigeonholing, especially
when it comes to identity and expression.
He explains that he needs to express
the interrelationships of many different
things. “So I cannot view myself as being
solely an electronic musician, a classical
composer, or a metal dude—I want to be
all of that.” u