Reykjavík Grapevine - jan. 2023, Blaðsíða 9

9The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 1— 2023
nating as a modern take on the punk
movement, where everything they put
out includes a satiric mirror to our soci-
ety,” they said. “It’s like activism with a
twinkle of humour in its eye. This unique
flavour lends itself particularly well visu-
ally, so it’s no surprise that ‘Jelly Belly’
— a video where the two members are
mirrored in child actors portraying a
younger version of themselves having
fun but also dressing like grown-ups and
playing with gender norms — is a great
example of their work, and makes this
video worthy of this recognition.”
Honourable Mentions: Neonme - “The
Flower Phallus”, Björk – “Sorrowful Soil”,
Jae Tyler - “Give Me That (Yeah Yeah Yeah
Yeah)”
BEST LIVE ACT:
Flaaryr
"Flaaryr really takes you on a journey in
his live performances,” our judge said.
“He navigates time, sound and space like
some kind of magical octopus.”
If that’s not enough to get you
intrigued, we’re not sure what is. The
truth is that Flaaryr — real name Diego
Manatrizio — might not be well-known
to all of our readers, despite being a
familiar face and regular community
organiser within the Post-dreifing scene.
But those who have been lucky enough
to witness one of his performances first-
hand know exactly how fun, captivating
and engaging he is to see on stage.
“My daughter said it sounded like he
had a whole band with him — she was
amazed that one person could make all
of these different sounds,” one panel-
list laughed. And it’s true: Diego’s use of
loops, pre-recorded and sampled sound
and different musical — and non musical
— instruments makes for a set that’s just
as visually entertaining as it is sonically.
From mirrors to alarm clocks, it’s never
easy to predict what might show up on
stage. Diego even runs regular impro-
visation nights, ‘Allt er hljóðfæri,’ or
‘everything is an instrument’ — a name
that pretty much sums up his approach
to music-making.
To that end, in 2022 Flaaryr
performed one of his most ambitious
sets yet. As part of the RUSL sustain-
able design festival, the artist didn’t play
guitar at all, instead creating all sounds
through interacting with different items
on stage (including a flamingo garden
ornament) that were rigged up with
contact mics. In the spirit of the festival,
all of the objects were discarded house-
hold items, really proving the old adage;
one man’s trash is another man’s trea-
sure. Only in this case, Flaaryr’s treasure
is ours to share.
Honourable Mentions: BSÍ, Bjarki,
gugusar
YOU ShOULD hAVE hEARD ThIS:
Sævar Jóhannsson
There’s a neo-classical movement
sweeping Iceland these days. And yet,
for every Grammy-nominated, interna-
tionally touring Ólafur Arnalds, there’s
a Sævar Jóhannsson: quietly putting out
beautiful music, but only receiving a
fraction of the glory. For now, that is. “I
think he has a bright future ahead,” one
panellist said, confidently.
While Sævar has previously released
a couple of albums under the artist name
S.hel, 2022 saw him deliver his first
release under his own name. ‘Whenever
You’re Ready’ is a sparse, emotional and
hauntingly beautiful collection of instru-
mental pieces. The main focus is Sævar’s
delicate piano playing, supported by
electronic elements and strings.
“The title is apt,” one of our judges
mused. “It’s as if he’s acknowledging
himself that you might not know him
yet, but whenever you’re ready: he’s
there for you to discover. His mastery
of his craft is sure to bring his name to
the forefront of the world of Icelandic
composers in years to come.”
The You Should Have Heard This
award is intended to acknowledge that
sometimes the media doesn’t always
get it right, and an excellent artist slips
under the radar. Do yourself a favour
and make sure that Sævar Jóhannsson
doesn’t pass you by.
Honourable Mentions: Final Snack,
Bucking Fastards
ONE TO WATCh:
Neonme
Salka Valsdóttir is not an unknown
entity in the Icelandic music scene. A
member of the mighty all-female hip hop
collective Daughters of Reykjavík, as well
as gritty, experimental rap duo CYBER,
Salka has already firmly established
herself as a significant player in the field.
With a CV as impressive as this, it’s
no wonder that when rumours started
to swirl that Salka was set to launch
her solo career under the stage name
Neonme in 2022, people were hyped.
“Neonme is one of the most excit-
ing projects to watch develop, as
Salka already has a brilliant career as
a performer and producer. She’s on
track to become one of the most excit-
ing producers in all the land,” said one
panellist enthusiastically. “It’s thrilling
to see her work on a solo project and I
can’t wait to hear how it’ll continue to
develop.”
Salka released two singles last year
as Neonme (our panellists in particu-
lar praised the music video for her track
“The Flower Phallus”), and performed
her first live solo show as part of the
INNI showcase during Iceland Airwaves.
Such was the excitement for her debut
that the building was stowed out. Those
who managed to squeeze themselves in
were well rewarded.
“As Neonme, Salka artfully pairs
dreamy melodies, mythical soundscape
and eerie, sometimes violent Aphex
Twin-ish beats into a lush universe we
all want to live in,” a judge described.
Honourable Mentions: Sameheads,
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“Árni is one of these
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already know who
he is, you’ll almost be
embarrassed when you
find out you didn’t.”
Flaaryr was in Argentina during the photo-
shoot. Archive photo by Art Bicnick
Salóme
Katrín
Neonme
Ugla ←→ BSÍ