Spearheading the Future: Young musicians
Translation: Jakob Regin Eðvarðsson
Young people can do anything. They can run for office, move to Hveragerði, or even form a band. It is without question that young people's actions matter and affect all of society. We can make a difference, each in our own way. If it weren't for young people, there would be no renewal in the arts, and so I would like to introduce you to some promising new bands. Coming from all walks of life and embracing a diverse range of music genres, the common denominator of all these bands is the ambitious young people who form them.
Photo: Ástarpungarnir
Ástarpungarnir (The Love Balls)
Ástarpungarnir formed in relation to the 2020 Icelandic Junior Colleges Singing Contest with the participation of Menntaskólinn á Tröllaskaga (Tröllaskagi Junior College). When the band formed it had four members: Hörður, Júlíus, Mikael and Tryggvi who were soon joined by Guðmann and Rodrigo after a marvelous victory in the competition, completing the line-up. The band specializes in junior proms, dances, and similar venues and usually performs covers. The group has also released two songs, Aleinn á nýársdag (All Alone on New Year's Day) and Komdu með að dansa (Come Dance), both of which make great additions to party-playlists, since it's impossible to listen to them without your hips wiggling along. The band's covers are characterized by progressive rock and Brazilian melodies due to the influence of its drummer, Rodrigo dos Santos Lopes. Ástarpungarnir plan to continue on the same path and release even more songs.
Members:
Guðmann Sveinsson - Guitar and singing
Hörður Ingi Kristjánsson - Keyboard and singing
Júlíus Þorvaldsson - Guitar, Keyboard and singing
Mikael Sigurðsson - Bass
Rodrigo dos Santos Lopes - Drums
Tryggvi Þorvaldsson - Singing and guitar
Inspector Spacetime
To most, the spring of 2020 marked the beginning of a difficult period in the face of the Covid pandemic, economic hardships, and the general malaise of lockdowns. But in the summer of 2020, a ray of light broke through the gloom when Inspector Spacetime's first song, Hvað sem er (Anything), brought them into the limelight. According to the band, they have since been playing sets all over the place, despite the band having been formed a day before the first lockdown. Their songs' rhythm and melodies are invigorating but the band especially recommends the songs Dansa og Bánsa (Dance and Bounce), Bára, and Hvað sem er (Anything), real bangers in this author's opinion. According to traditional genre classifications, their music would likely be classified as electropop, but they purposefully range between styles in order to get people moving on the dancefloor. The band won an award from Kraumur Music Fund as well as being named Artist of the Year by The Reykjavík Grapevine last year, but they are setting their sights high and intend to kick off the Superbowl Halftime Show within a few years.
Members:
Egill Gauti Sigurjónsson - “Producer” and songwriter
Elías Geir Óskarsson - “Singer lady“ and songwriter
Vaka Agnarsdóttir - “Singer man“ and songwriter
Photo: Hafsteinn Snær Þorsteinsson
Piparkorn (Peppercorn)
Piparkorn is one of those bands that makes music to fit all occasions. The band mainly plays jazz and funk, but also composes jazz-inspired pop music, usually in Icelandic. The collaboration began at Listaskóli Mosfellsbæjar (Mosfellsbær Art School) in 2015 and developed further from there. Piparkorn released their first album, Kryddlögur (Marinade), in 2020 and won the MÍT and FÍH Song Writing Competition. The author of this article, who also organized the competition, can attest to their professional and energetic performance and recommends unhesitatingly that readers go see the band live. Following this the band was joined by Emma Eyþórsdóttir who replaced María Gyða Pétursdóttir. The bass player Viktor Veigarsson and trumpet player Sigurrós Jóhannesdóttir also lent the band their talents and in 2021, Piparkorn again won the MÍT and FÍH Songwriting Competition as well as being voted the People's Band at Músíktilraunir (Battle of the Bands). These days the band is working on their second album, which they plan to release later this year, and perform regularly at the various music venues in downtown Reykjavík. Piparkorn is eager to continue making music and uses its social media to connect with listeners, @piparkornmusic (Instagram) and Piparkorn (Facebook).
Members:
Emma Eyþórsdóttir - Singing
Magnús Þór Sveinsson - Keyboard
Gunnar Hinrik Hafsteinsson - Guitar
Sigurrós Jóhannesdóttir - Trumpet and singing
Ragnar Már Jónsson - Tenor saxophone
Viktor Veigarsson - Bass
Þorsteinn Jónsson - Drums
Photo: Tær
Tær (Limpid)
Tær developed from the collaboration of Menntaskólinn við Hamrahlíð's (Hamrahlíð Junior College's) house-band and the MH choir, initiated by Arvid Ísleifur. Originally the goal was to take part in the 2020 Músíktilraunir but after it was canceled due to the Covid epidemic the band spent a year composing their first EP, Hreiður (Nest), which they released in the summer of 2021. Among other songs it includes Hvert sem ég fer (Wherever I Go), Mistur (Mist), and Geng (Walk).
The band could be classified as indie and country but taking the instrumental arrangement into account their style might equally be called chamber-pop. The aim is to have more diverse music in the near future, and they are currently working on a new album expected to be released this coming autumn. For those interested in their new material, they recommend attending their concerts, which they host regularly in various places, as they have a lot of great material yet to be published and waiting to be heard.
Members:
Arvid Ísleifur - Guitar and singing
Ásgeir Kjartansson - Electric guitar
Dagur Bjarnason - Double bass and electric bass
Sigurrós Jóhannesdóttir - Flugelhorn, trumpet and singing
Þórarinn Þeyr Rúnarsson - Drums
Photo: Forsmán
Forsmán (Shame)
Forsmán is a black metal band that first started in the spring of 2019 but has been composed of the current line-up, which will not be revealed here, since the autumn of 2019. The band's music is characterized by fast and heavy black metal intermixed with melodic prog metal. Forsmán began with the aim of adding a new shade of color to the Icelandic black metal scene but they are well connected to the international scene as well. The band's first single, Dönsum í Logans Ljóma (We Dance in the Flamelight), was released by the German record label Ván Records last spring and was well received internationally. The band plans to continue its expansion towards international audiences and release a full-length album that will hopefully have as good a reception as their previous album.
Ólafur Kram
Ólafur Kram, or Óli as the band's friends call it, was formed in November 2018. The band's music is chaotic while the vocals flow smoothly, however its members don't want to identify with any one specific genre. Pop, punk, rock, jazz, and disco are just a few among the different styles to be heard in their music. Not taking themselves too seriously, humor and irony can be found in everything they do, especially their lyrics. The humor and joyfulness is clearly seen in songs like Ómægad ég elska þig (Ohmygad, I Love You), Fjárhagslegt öryggi (Financial Security), and Horgemlingur, among others, and a new album is expected to arrive in late summer or early autumn. Within the band’s first three years of life, Óli came, saw, and conquered Músíktilraunir and was awarded for its lyrics in the same competition. The band has mainly performed at grass-roots events and the band's main goals are to get Dominos and 105 koffínvatn (105 energy drink) to sponsor them, but only time will tell whether their dreams will come true.
Photo: Rakel Ýr Stefánsdóttir