bits and pieces from the northern island.
Many months ago, my friend Fish, who was staying in Iceland to complete his book, told me about a shop where music was cheaper than anywhere else in Reykjavík. I had seen the shop in question, but I still hadn’t visited it. I had passed its windows many times going to my guesthouse to the … Read the full article →
On December 8, 2008 a group of protesters forced their way into the Icelandic Parliament. A years after the incident, nine of these protesters were made scapegoats for the tumults that contributed in bringing the Government down; these individuals risk to be condemned to spend up to sixteen years in prison. The final hearing of … Read the full article →
The announced karaoke marathon for Icelandic natural resources is taking place as programmed at the Nordic House. It opened today and it will be going till January 8, 2011. Despite all the early mediatic hype, the karaoke so far appeared to be an initiative far from any mindless sensationalism. Admirable as ever, Icelanders seem to … Read the full article →
In case you didn’t notice, year 2010 is over. It’s the truth, believe me! Look at your computer’s calendar if you don’t trust me! Are you convinced now? Good. I feel I was betrayed by most of the releases in my “greatest expectations for an unforgettable 2010 in music” list. Hmm, I shall restrain myself … Read the full article →
I could find many excuses not to write an entry about Jónsi’s concert at Laugardalshöll. Excuses like I didn’t really go because: it was too mainstream after all, I had a bellyache — which is the case today but it wasn’t yesterday –, I was kidnapped by a squad of enraged puffins. But I did … Read the full article →
To understand the extent of the Apparat Organ Quartet phenomenon, you should have been present at NASA yesterday night, in the occasion of the release concert for Pólýfónía, their second album. Pólýfónía, containing material that was composed and recorded over a period of three years, emerges after an eight-year-long wait: quite a long time according … Read the full article →
Last Friday, with a couple of friends, we attended Amiina’s concert at the Þjóðleikhúskjallarinn, located in the complex of the National Theatre in downtown Reykjavík. As I didn’t enjoy much the previous big event in occasion of Puzzle‘s release, I was somehow concerned. However, the Þjóðleikhúskjallarinn is not the NASA with its impersonal dispersiveness; among … Read the full article →
Amiina played yesterday at Eymundsson bookstore for admirers, friends and casual bystanders. I got to the bookstore just in time for the show to start, after a walk in the wind that almost defeated me. Eymundsson by that time was crowded enough to force me to find a spot next to the trash bin, near … Read the full article →