Kentuckyseven

Hjaltalín
Reykjavík Art Museum

This band has earlier specialized on music that could be described as chamber pop. Having a minor orchestra helps but their music combined classical elements and pop in a superb way that made them stand out.

During their gig at the Art Museum though they played new material that moved away from that heavenly mixture.

My heart ached for a bit and I nearly put on a frown but when the crowd seemed to love it at least a little stone was lifted of my chest.

Hjaltalín manage to put on a great stage show and the dynamic within the band functions perfectly. The voices of the two singers melt together so nicely but there should be more room for the female voice.

A resource like that should never be kept back.

The band seemed to have moved on though, and they have developed for sure but there is still that unique and odd twist that set them apart that finally drives the audience crazy. When they play the hit songs Suitcase Man and Feels Like Sugar the show is brought to another dimension and we can’t help but to wonder were they hid all that magic up until that moment.

Maybe I haven’t been able to take their new material to heart yet but I am slightly worried that it doesn’t meet the same standards as their debut album. Which is always the risk when you have an debut album that strong, unique and captivating.

Kentuckyseven is looking forward to seeing where the future takes Hjaltalín. Or where Hjaltalín takes the future.

With the help of Feels Like Sugar this is a 5/7 but was dangerously close a 4 to begin with.

/Maja, K7 correspondent

Young Galaxy
NASA

Feathers and face-paint seems to be a recurring theme here on Airwaves. Last seen on the singer of Young Galaxy sporting the persona of a bird matching their song B.S.E.

Young Galaxy put on a show that the crowd won’t forget anytime soon. With fierce stage presence, excellent execution and great connection with the audience they soon had everyone in the house in extacy. Even the otherwise so stiff press people. The photo pit in front of the stage was filled with photographers singing along, shaking their derrières and smiling like kids in a candy shop – which was a very unusual sight indeed.

There is no wonder even the stiff professionals lost their mask, the entire NASA was over the moon. Jumping, dancing and making the most of the Canadian visit. Whenever you would make eye contact you’d be met with an ear to ear-smile and a face of pure glee.

Young Galaxy’s latest album Shapeshifting is a brutally well made album that leaves you missing nothing. These albums are difficult to come by and to be honest there was this nagging question in my mind wondering if they could live up to my astronomically high expectations of their live show. But they did.

Off venue though they were crowded and slightly uncomfortable. The tiny gig on Reykjavik Downtown Hostel was packed, but not a performance to remember. K7 decides to put that aside and instead continue to be in awe of the full scale gig at NASA.

This is a Kentuckyseven, without a doubt. Magic. Heartfelt. All out.

7/7

/Maja, K7 correspondent

Mammút
NASA

These kids started their music career early and they were no wonderchilds early on but to my surprise, and great joy, they have developed into a force to be reckoned with. The singer has a strong stage presence, mighty voice, bare feet, fur legwarmers and warpaint on her face.

The flirt with the wild and the untamed force of nature is really clear but it’s a fine line to walk between it being a joke and for it to work.

For most of the time it works but much thanks to the fact that they seem to live in the stage show every second of it and never lose character.

The venue looks like a small and quite house from the outside but inside it turns into a big venue that packs a lot of people. And it’s sweaty. The crowd is enjoying the performance for sure and there is no mistaking just how synced Mammút have become over the years but the next big question is if they are ready to be exported abroad.

And will this work outside of Iceland? I’m not entirely sure, it could literally go either way. Though there is nothing wrong with their music, the audience must be ready for Mammút because there is no compromising. Which is good, a band like Mammút should never make compromises.

There is some developing for Mammút to do, at least I don’t think that this is their peak. I’d like to think that there are still more to come from this group.

One problem is that when I walked away, I still had those fur legwarmers and bare feet on my mind, and not the music. Which worries me. Aren’t the songs more memorable than that?

This is a 4/7

/Maja, K7 correspondent

The übergreat festival on the volcanic island has opened up its glorious field of music. Airwaves, featuring tons of Icelandic bands as well as international acts will be something to remember.

Kentuckyseven is represented by the most competent and super talented Maja Sigfeldt. Her first report, from the island of indie music.

For a Minor Reflection

KEX (off venue)

It’s time to introduce the Kentuckyseven listeners to some Icelandic post rock galore. This weekend there’ll be reviews from the Iceland Airwaves festival i Reykjavik. This is a Mekka for indie lovers from all over the world.

Airwaves opened strong with For a Minor Reflection who treated the audience on a 4 song teaser in the early afternoon. The old biscuit factory turned into a hot, packed shelter from the rain and wind outside. It became evident that this band is something extraordinary and had people on their toes and the press were crazy.

And with all right. These guys have something that other post rock bands seem to lack. There is no simple way of explaining just what that something is but the audience can’t seem to get enough of it.

One way of trying to explain it would be to say that most bands try to put emotion into the music that they’re making. Icelandic bands seem to make music out of emotion.

It’s the sound of emotion. And with FaMR this especially evident. When these guys mangle their instruments everything around you stop. Nothing matters, you just know that your heart is aching and there is no way to deny it. And you know that everyone else in that venue feel it too.

FaMR just released their new EP, that’s actually named EP, with the help of pledgers. It’s an idea built on devoted fans paying for the EP and some exclusive material before the music is even recorded. For this to work you need fans that actually believe in what you do.

There is no doubt that FaMR is among Iceland’s finest. All the fuzz about Icelandic music as something exotic, as the sound of volcanoes, grand nature, harsh winters and so on is so irrelevant. This is music that is beyond those clichées and deserve to be compared to music outside of Iceland. And in that perspective they hold their own very well.

Be sure to catch these guys live if you have the chance. It is truly an experience that you don’t want to miss out on.

This teaser of a concert get 5/7, mostly because we don’t get enough after just four songs.

/Maja, K7 correspondent