This warms my heart…

Via 18 Seconds Before Sunrise: *earlier this month kjartan and his wife maría got their BA degrees from the the music department of the iceland academy of the arts. over the past few years the couple has been making time in between their work with sigur rós and amiina to hit the books and take exams in the university’s music composition / new media program.

kjartan’s final project was a piece called credo, written for a 40-piece ensemble of choir, strings and piano. according to kjartan, the piece “includes themes that have been heard in past sigur rós material, and themes that will be heard in future sigur rós material”. maría’s final project was a piece called þorri, written for strings, saw and marimba.

…the couple says that university’s been an enriching experience but they’re glad to now have more free time to write new music.*

MP3s: Amiina – Skakka + Sigur Ros – Leit Af Lifi

Regular readers of this site already realize that I have a strange fascination with all music stemming from Iceland. I’ve been a fan of Amiina, Sigur Ros, Bjork and Mum for as long as I can remember and have everything they’ve ever put to record displayed flamboyantly all over my iTunes library. When Screaming Masterpiece, a DVD highlighting the current state of the Icelandic music scene, arrived in my mailbox earlier this week, I was elated.

After watching the documentary, it became impossibly clear to me that one of the strongholds of the Icelandic music scene, that sets it apart from all others, is its strong sense of camaraderie. Whether it’s the country’s burgeoning punk, hip-hop or electronic circles, all bands love, respect and admire each other’s work. As mutliple artists explain throughout the film, they are truly out to create music that they enjoy playing, because they don’t anticipate a major record deal or mainstream radio attention. With a total population just over 300,000, it’s rather mindblowing to think that so much powerful, unique and heartfelt music is coming out of such a (relatively) small country.

While the DVD does a fine job circumnavigating the entire scene, there is undoubtedly a focus on Iceland’s most successful musician to date. Of course, I’m referring to Bjork. In addition to an in-depth interview with the star, there are two live videos from her visit to Brooklyn’s Keyspan Park in 2003 highlighted on Screaming Masterpiece. ‘Pluto’ and ‘All Is Full Of Love’ are included in their full glory on the documentary, as is a stellar performance of ‘Untitled #8′ from Sigur Ros, dating back to that same glorious evening (I was there and can vouch that there was magic in that air that night).

In summary, the film is a must-have for both the musicologists and curious music aficionados amongst you. Even as someone, like myself, who dares to claim that he or she has a vast knowledge of Icelandic music, will honestly learn a great deal more about the scene after watching Screaming Masterpiece. Further details on the film, alongside purchase info, can be found HERE!

The full list of artists featured on Screaming Masterpiece is as follows: Múm, Slowblow, Apparat Organ Quartet, Eivör Pálsdóttir, Björk, Mugison, Odin’s Raven Magic, The Sugarcubes, Ghostigital, Quarashi, Amiina, Sigur Rós, Singapore Sling, Vinyl, Mínus & Nilfisk.

Would you like to attend Iceland Airwaves 2007, all expenses paid? Of course you do! Enter the contest to win a pair of tickets plus hotel stay and airfare via this link as arranged by Milan Records. Good luck!

MP3s: Bjork – Pneumonia + Sigur Ros – Untitled #8 + Amiina – Blafelder + Reykjavik! – All Those Beautiful Boys + Mugison – 2 Birds

I’ve been waiting for this album for approximately five years.

It’s been just shy of a decade ago that I first fell in love with Sigur Ros. As most Sigur Ros aficionados already know, Amiina, an all-female Icelandic experimental quartet, supports and performs with the band on most of their tours and in the studio, as well. Ever since I first saw Amiina and Sigur Ros together back in ’02, I wanted more.

Over the last few years, the band has released two stellar EPs totalling just seven tracks. When news broke earlier this month that their first full-length was complete, I was glowing with excitement. Luckily, after listening to Kurr extensively over the last week, I am thrilled to report that it was well worth the considerable wait for the album.

Amiina incorporates the use of laptops, bells and even (my personal favorite) the saw into their work. The result is a beautifully painted landscape of sound, unlike anything you’ve ever heard before. Attempting to describe individual tracks on the LP would be fruitless, as the album demands your full attention, at once and as a whole. That said, this album can serve as the perfect soundtrack to a children’s lullaby or a walk in the park or a film about the dangers of environmental pollution, alike. It’s a pretty, cohesive and glorious fifty minutes.

As the song titles are all in Icelandic, some may be curious as to what exactly they translate into and you’re in luck! The fine folks over at Amiina’s message board have done an amazing job with translation and song meanings. Take a look here.

Amiina just began their US tour this week, click here to check out all those dates! Lastly, you can purchase Kurr here! It is only available online at this point in time and gets The Music Slut seal of approval.

MP3: Amiina – Lupina

It’s about damn time!

I’ve been waiting patiently for this one. Kurr, Amiina’s first LP, can be pre-ordered (no official release date set just yet but I’m guessing June-ish) via Sandbag.

Tracklist: 1. Sogg/2. Rugla/3. Glamur/4. Seoul/5. Lupina/6. Hilli/7. Sexfaldur/8. Kolapot/9. Saga/10. Lori/11. Blafeldur/12. Boga

Amiina’s upcoming tour dates can found here.

MP3: Amiina – Hemipode (via Workers Institute)

As does My Brightest Diamond, Amiina, Clogs (National side project) and a ton of others!

All of the acts I just listed will be playing Cincinnati’s very own Music Now Festival this April! I gather it’s like a midwest Coachella. Err, maybe.

Anybody wanna fly us out there? Is this some sort of subliminal hint that Sufjan’s next state will be Ohio??

MP3: Sufjan Stevens – Holland

I’ve been wanting to get my hands on this one for quite some time. Happy to hear it will finally get a DVD release.

‘Screaming Masterpiece’, the documentary based on the Icelandic music scene, is set to be released in March.

Written and directed by Ari Alexander Ergus Magnusson, the 85-minute movie features interviews with and footage of some of the country’s biggest bands including The Sugarcubes, Bjork, Sigur Ros and Trabant, and follows the artists from their Iceland homes to tours around the globe.

Released initially in February 2005, the film was also shown at over 20 international film festivals including the Berlin, Athens, Warsaw, Helsinki and Melbourne International Film Festivals. ‘Screaming Masterpiece’ is released March 6. (via NME)

In related news, would you like a pair of Amiina slippers? I’ll take those too if you’re treating!

MP3: Sigur Ros – Olsen Olsen

Yay! Amiina is back! I pray that the Lincoln Center show is at The Allen Room but there’s no confirmation/info just yet. That room is stunning.

Can you believe it was a year ago that Sufjan introduced us to that gorgeous space (with a 16-piece orchestra at his side)? If the show is there, that will surely make up for the fact that I missed their Halloween show at Joe’s Pub a few months back…. Oh yeah, those Amiina tour dates… here they are!

march 21 Madison (Café Montmartre )
march 22 Minneapolis (Varsity Theatre)
march 23 Chicago (Lakeshore Theater)
march 25 Cleveland (Cambridge Room)
march 26 Detroit (Magic Bag)
march 27 Toronto (Music Gallery )
march 28 Montreal (National)
march 30 Philly (World Café Live)
march 31 Boston (The Remis at Museum of Fine Arts)
april 1 DC (9:30 Club)
april 2 NYC (Lincoln Center)
april 5-7 Cincinnati

I love the gals in Amiina dearly, but can they really fill up the 9:30 Club (1200+ capacity)? Hmm…

MP3: Amiina – Boga

If you are around your computer tonight about 6pm (EST), I highly suggest tuning into KEXP’s in-studio performance from the one and only Amiina. The long-time Sigur Ros contributors (and frequently, opening acts) just released a new EP entitled ‘Seoul’ (sorry all, seems like it’s only available on import) which you can purchase here!

For those unfamiliar with Amiina, the 4 ladies that comprise the band rely greatly upon laptops, xylophones and saws (it’s true!) amongst other atypical instruments to complete their otherworldly sound. Tune into their performance tonight by following this link, you won’t be disappointed!

Over the course of their last tour, Sigur Ros were supported by the ethereal and quirky AminA (who also play with Sigur as their string backing). Similar to Sigur Ros in that their music has a completely unearthly quality, AminA are compelling and strange, beautiful and innovative; using a unique set of instruments, AminA create an enchanting soundscape.

Yet their live quality doesn’t quite pay off with their recorded material; the Animamina E.P. doesn’t quite reach their live heights, which is strange because I for one would have thought that their music would be even more compelling in an isolated, quiet setting rather than in the crowd of a live venue. It’s still more than worth a listen, however.

Here’s the haunting Hemipode.

AminA -Hemipode