Photos & Stories

18.10.2009

You: Why are you wearing these dorky running shoes at Airwaves, man? Me: Because my feet hurt from watching all your shitty bands.

Klink, Reykjavik!, Mammút, Weapons are witnessed by our raving, roving reporter. Saturday night, alright.
18.10.2009

Saturday: Airwaves Photos

17.10.2009

There Will Be Klink

At the point where Coalesce and Brutal converge, the almighty Klink prey mercilessly on aural assault aficinados of the most radical stripe.
Fresh from five years in hiatus all manner of pent-up aggression so long dormant within the band teeters on the brink of eruption, and at the ungodly hour of 2 AM Saturday night at Sódóma, where Klink is headlining the Kerrang sponsored showcase, the boys are set to unleash a metalic onslaught of dire proportions.

17.10.2009

Friday: Airwaves Photos

17.10.2009

Thursday: Airwaves Photos

17.10.2009

Airwaves Goes Wild!

"Well, when lions have sex, there’s something really great about it."
17.10.2009

Blue Lagoon, Fuck Yeah!

Two Grapevine interns defy the repercussions of the previous Airwaves night and head out to the Blue Lagoon and it's hangover party. And what a party!
17.10.2009

Ólafur Arnalds

“I am Ólafur Arnalds. You can expect pretty much the same as at any other concert of mine: Piano, string quartet and some glitchy electronica.”
17.10.2009

GHOSTIGITAL

“What am I? Einar Örn, the other half Ghostigital. Also kingpin of grapewire.net but also: Fit and really working again. Out of breath! A bit harder, wiser and out of pocket! Dirty dancing.”
17.10.2009

FM Belfast

“General nonsense, civil disobedience and dancing friends with blinking lights and loud music in 4/4.”
16.10.2009

Check Out The Grapevine Off-Venue At Lost Horse Gallery Tomorrow

So this has been a pretty great festival thus far, all things considered. And it still has a bunch of greatness left, too. One of the great things that are left is the Grapevine sponsored off-venue show at Lost Horse gallery tomorrow (Saturday). At the Lost Horse, Grapevine's very own photographer, Julia Staples, is hosting a show entitled 'No Man's Land' along with GV art writer Lana Vogestad, and that is well worth visiting in itself. But add some gnarly free ice cream from Ísbúð Vesturbæjar...
16.10.2009

Word on the Street

After the fingers and toes I’d start with the head, because I couldn’t bear him watching me as I eat the rest.
16.10.2009

Crystal Antlers

“You should come to the show because it's our first time ever in Iceland, and we may never make it back again. We've also been working on new music for the past month and Reykjavík is going to be the first place we play our new songs.”

16.10.2009

Dikta

“We‘ve been playing together since we were small children, always with the same line-up, so we‘ve been friends for a long time. People can expect a powerful and lively performance from us at Airwaves, as usual.”

16.10.2009

Bárujárn

“Our Airwaves appearance will be probably be surreptitious in the clatter and commerce, nonetheless we will hopefully blow some minds and eardrums. In general, you can expect flag burnings, haddock fucking and hopefully a record soon from us.”

16.10.2009

Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Make Me A Match

A musky aura of suspense hung in the air as Lucas (Austrian) and Tobias (Swiss), winners of our Win a Date Frímann Frímannsson contest, waited anxiously for the arrival of the man of the hour. Fifteen minutes later, Mr. Frímannsson himself glided into the bar, looking hip (as always) in an elegant trench coat and fancy hat. A few formalities, introductions, warnings, and instructions later, I pulled Frímann aside for a little interview.
15.10.2009

Wednesday Airwaves Photos

Click for more.
15.10.2009

Like A Bat Into Hell…

Cancer Bats have been making music as dark as their name suggests—angry, post-punk, post-hardcore metal that just raises just an occasional eyebrow to more mainstream rock—since 2004
15.10.2009

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Share with Us Your Tidings, Good Airwavers!

Chew on this: Attending Airwaves is, in many regards, like working a 9-5 job. Okay, just bear with me for a second and consider the facts.
15.10.2009

Eberg

“I´m Eberg, and you can expect me in more electric mood than usually at Airwaves. In general, you can expect a soft, tipsy guy who barks occasionally.”
15.10.2009

You’ve got to hoooold on!

“Everything is live! No playbacks, no karaoke, great musicians and me in pink outfit with a lot of energy! It can’t fail!”
15.10.2009

Kimono

 “At Airwaves we will focus on new material off EM4DP and people can expect to be blown to smithereens. That is all.”
14.10.2009

Airwaves Revisited

Photographer Ojay L'eroe has come to Iceland Airwaves almost as long as the festival has existed. He has seen the festival grow in size and scale and captured the progression of some of Iceland's most notorious acts as they flourished.
14.10.2009

Dynamo Fog

“There seems to be this weird hype that we're some kind of fist fighting britpop-esque supergroup that does mountains of drugs and sleeps with celebrities, and I guess that's partly true in some ways, but more often than not, we're just three guys in a band.”
14.10.2009

Moto Boy

“Let’s just say I’m the greatest singer since Julio Iglesias, and better looking, taller, handsomer, the works.”
14.10.2009

Agent Fresco

"As a band, we promise you the most energetic and musically tight concert at this Airwaves."
14.10.2009

Weapons

What you can expect from our appearance is that we will give it our best. And I will give it my best in general.    
13.10.2009

There’s Also Icelandic Metal! Check it out!

The Airwaves festival is a good thing. Bunch of bands, amalgam of styles and genres. Couple of great bands, bunch of good ones, healthy dose of meh-bands and then there are the selected annoying, pretentious and pathetic bands.
13.10.2009

The Jet Korine Guide To Buying Fashion During Airwaves

Jet Korine is a Reykjavík based fashion designer, stylist and costume designer. She hails from the Netherlands, although she has been in Iceland long enough for folks to call her an Icelander.
13.10.2009

One With The Wolves

I first came across Ben’s music right around when Theory of Machines was released. Like most genres, electronic/experimental music can be very dull at times.
13.10.2009

Squeegee enthusiast

I bought Tim Hecker’s LP Harmony in Ultraviolet off the shelf at NYC’s Other Music in 2006. Frankly, I nearly pissed myself when the album opener, Blood Rainbow, tore through my speakers for the first time.
13.10.2009

Kasper Björke

I’ve been DJ-ing and making music for the past ten years – Icelanders might know me from one of my numerous DJ sets in Reykjavik for the past five years, or my collaboration with FM Belfast, Back & Spine, on my last album.
Its really important to come to my DJ sets this year, ‘cause there’ll be a fire-show and a juggler, and a snow-mountain builder!
13.10.2009

Casiokids

Casiokids! Give us a short introduction of yourself! Why should the uninitiated check out your show?
13.10.2009

High Fidelity

If you’re a serious musicologist you’ll know that vinyl is the ultimate form for experiencing music.
13.10.2009

Got A Thing For Them

Since playing the Iceland Airwaves festival in 2005, Joseph Mount and his outfit Metronomy has gone from being a solo project to a full-blown electro-pop band.
13.10.2009

The Young Composer’s Guide To Reykjavík Dining

Reykjavík is a funny town for food: the cheap places aren’t always fabulous and the fabulous places aren’t ever cheap.  However, there are a few ways to construct a soothing itinerary. There is one that I usually do alone, and another is better in pairs.
13.10.2009

Endless Summers – Now In Iceland!

One of the most interesting international acts to play Airwaves this year is without a doubt New York [via Florida] transplants The Drums. The band was founded earlier this year (!)
12.10.2009

Airwaves Survival Guide

It’s been a long journey, but here you are! You got through the treacherous Leif Eiríksson Air Terminal and braved the FlyBus into Reykjavík and made it in one piece. Congratulations! Now what?
The CD The Printed Version

Daily updates

23.10.2009

It's Over - It's Finally Over!

So, this is it. No more Airwaves 2009. As I type this, we are just uploading the last review here on your special Grapevine Airwaves site, and we're about ready to close up shop for the year and not think about Airwaves and that whole inspiring beersoaked joyous up-to-no-good vomit-stained frat party soon-to-be forgotten music festival business for at least another couple of months...
22.10.2009

Sódóma - Sunday

A wave of nostalgia swept over me as I watched Seli, leader of the veteran rockabilly outfit Langi Seli og Skuggarnir, strap on his beautiful Gretsch Black Phoenix Brian Setzer signature guitar.
21.10.2009

NASA - Sunday

NASA provided a venue for the grand finale of Airwaves this Sunday night, the festival in turn duly offered up the goods in the form of a line up of DJs and live electronic acts apparently designed to bring the roof down.
21.10.2009

Jacobsen - Saturday

All I kept hearing was a continuous wall of “DOOF- DOOF- DOOF.”
18.10.2009

NASA - Saturday

It was a particularly incestuous Saturday night, even for Airwaves, even for Iceland.
18.10.2009

Jacobsen - Friday

The awkward fact that the room was completely empty didn’t stop the fellow from sporting his best licks, but the cliché 80s samples were often a bit too much.
18.10.2009

Iðnó – Saturday

They are so dorky that they end up being super cool. Same goes for their music. I’ve decided to vouch for Norway tonight.
18.10.2009

Grand Rokk - Saturday

When I showed up at Grand rokk, I was dealing with some heavy repentance from the previous night. The final night of Airwaves was starting, and I was situated at Grand Rock, at that time the emptiest bar in the entire Northern hemisphere.
18.10.2009

Sódóma - Saturday

Ten Steps Away did have moments in their set that were good. Bordering on great, even.
18.10.2009

Reykjavík Art Museum - Saturday

The perfection of Árstíðir is apparent throughout their entire show, just as all their performances.
18.10.2009

Hressó - Saturday

To save myself and the reader precious time in our short, fleeting lives, I have decided to forego the standard procedure of taking an account of a nihilistic drinking binge set to live music and dressing it up with florid prose in an attempt to make it look like a life-changing experience.
18.10.2009

Batteríið - Saturday

I mean, screaming “TROUSERS!” fifty times during a song surely indicates the presence of some form of greatness, although as a lowly mortal I’m not supposed to get it.
17.10.2009

Sódóma - Friday

I was hoping this night would suck but it didn´t.
17.10.2009

Hressó – Friday

This night at Hressó was a Trúbatrix night. All female artists, troubadours. I must admit, I’m not walking through the door all over excited about the prospect.
17.10.2009

Batteríið – Friday

With lines stretching into a soppy horizon, would-be Reykjavík Art Museum patrons balked and stumbled to join the packed crowd at Batteríið.
The first half of the night wasn’t that great, the second half exploded into its own.
17.10.2009

Reykjavík Art Museum – Friday

This is basically the best high school crush music ever. Like that scene in the movie when the girl walks down the hall and the boy she likes is walking towards her and they lock eyes and it‘s all hormones and fear – IN SLOW MOTION!!! I love that part.
17.10.2009

Iðnó – Friday

I am happiest in my bedroom when I share it with my community.
17.10.2009

NASA - Friday

Toggi, Ingi and Monotown were the same classic-rock singer-songwriter fronted band at three different stages of competence, skill, progress and popularity, all of them infinitely more enjoyable live than on record, which may not be saying much, but I found them to be enjoyable enough in a good natured, ‘chummy’ sort of way.
17.10.2009

Grand Rokk - Friday

This is the first of “Iceland’s three noisiest bands in existence” playing tonight. For a duo they play their noise rock impossibly loud. So loud in fact, that my nipples start to bleed in pain.
17.10.2009

Fríkirkjan – Friday

I’m just going to come right out and say it: All you folks out there that didn’t manage to get a ticket to Kings of Convenience show – boy do I feel sorry for you.
16.10.2009

Grand Rokk - Thursday

Grand Rokk has to be one the most press-friendly places these Airwaves. When I arrived, I was greeted by bartender Gunni, who directed me to the only chair in the house. It had been reserved for me. Conveniently enough, it was situated next to the bar. This was looking good.
16.10.2009

Kaffibarinn – Thursday (off-venue)

When I feel, my words muddle and press, compress, express.

16.10.2009

Iðnó - Thursday

At Iðnó, the festival's second night started, proceeded and ended at a very relaxed pace. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, although those looking for the place to cut loose on the dance floor would have been left a bit disappointed.
16.10.2009

Reykjavík Art Museum - Thursday

Due to some unforeseen problems, I showed up as Rökkurró were almost done with their set. What I caught, I liked, as is to be expected when this band is involved.
16.10.2009

Jacobsen - Thursday

Another example of the proliferation of new electronic crews in Iceland, we saw local crew I [heart] RVK teaming up with London event crew ATG to promote their DJs and producers upstairs, and Breakbeat.is in charge of the downstairs line-up.
16.10.2009

Hressó - Thursday

Sometimes instinct is everything. When I put my hand up to take the job of reviewing Hressó, I thought I was going to see some crap noise/punk bands.
16.10.2009

Batteríið - Thursday

The Swedes are taking over The Battery! Thursday night boasted three of the festival‘s Swedish hotshots, and the energy in the place was electric.
16.10.2009

Fríkirkjan - Thursday

Most languages in the world are comprised of both a visual and an aural component, so it was with intrigue that I entered S.L.Á.T.U.R.'s congregation to see a set-up featuring instruments and a video-projection screen. Noticeably missing from the list of bios in Airwave's brochure, S.L.Á.T.U.R. is a collective of composers who devise and perform non-traditional music and conduction techniques.

16.10.2009

NASA - Thursday

Jesus Christ. For the first time ever people are actually in time for a show in Iceland. And there are even shitloads of people stacked in NASA although it’s as insanely early as 19:30. The crowd didn’t come for nothing, that’s for sure. Not with Fjallabræður, the big-ass man’s choir doing their thing.     
16.10.2009

Sódóma - Thursday

What‘s the deal with Soundspell’s singer‘s weird pantomime guitar move? Soundspell were very ‘cutting edge’ and ‘experimental’, but I won’t hold that against them. They were quite innovative, in their own oblivious way, and the fact that they managed to make their kind of music interesting to watch is pretty remarkable. Cool.
15.10.2009

Batterííð - Wednesday

Word. Or whatever. Batteríið was the place to be for hiphop fans (particularly Icelandic hiphop) on the opening night of Airwaves, boasting a full line up of local street poets.
15.10.2009

Grand Rokk - Wednesday

Yes. Clarinet. Single most awesome instrument of the type you blow through. I was impressed by the clarinet.
15.10.2009

Jacobsen - Wednesday

The electronic music scene in Iceland has probably never been stronger. It seems every night a new band, a new collective or a new club night is born. It’s simply the most promising scene in Iceland right now and, hey, the kids seem to like it.
15.10.2009

NASA - Wednesday

Except for a hive of photographers up front, NASA was largely empty as Me, the Slumbering Napoleon took the stage. I know 19:30 is early people, but this is a festival, and sometimes the real diamonds are hiding in the rough.
15.10.2009

Sódóma - Wednesday

 Led by Icelandic folk star Þórir (of My Summer as a Salvation Soldier, Gavin Portland, Deathmetal Supersquad) , melancholic trio Bummer started the night, striking some intensively sentimental tones. In some ways, the band bore a rather righteously coined moniker, ‘cause what they boasted tonight was a slight bummer opposed to anything else. 
15.10.2009

First Night Down

So our first night of music and mayhem is behind us, pretty much. It's been good. We've been around. We went dancing at Retro Stefson (Sódóma - KIMI night), we moshed through Me, The Slumbering Napoleon, we slack-jawedly gazed at Pascal Pinon and their bracy-goodness.
14.10.2009

Airwaves Blog #1!

O.M.F.G. you guys!!!
13.10.2009

Moto Boy

Mozzer—were you in Sverige 20-odd years ago? We think you were…
13.10.2009

Casiokids

Oh yes! Dubby, poppy, swinkly basslines, Mr Oizo-esque bubbly farty electro-kazoo noises! Jaunty drums!
13.10.2009

Metronomy

Who’d have thought that being in debt would make you famous these days? For the sake of five grand owed to a car scrappers’ yard, Pip has been forever immortalised in bleeps, beeps
13.10.2009

Iceland Airwaves 2009 Venues

Your guide to the venues at this year's festival!

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