Bjork says:

the 10-show biophilia residency in new york is an historic musical event, with a full icelandic choir and a 4-week children's educational program. you can watch a video about the latter [below].

to help support this effort, björk is offering a limited number of vip packages designed to deliver the most intimate biophilia experience.

** please note** vip packages must be picked up at the door. you must bring your id and the credit card you used, and they must match. vip packages cannot be gifted unless the credit card owner is present at the door. presale for all tickets and packages begins january 10 at 10am EST.

Kids video below...

Continue reading "Bjork tickets & VIP packages on fan presale today; watch a video about the education program"

Not only is Bjork playing those four shows at Roseland, but they are in the round, and she's also playing six more at The New York Hall of Science in Queens in February. That's 10 NYC shows total! More details and exact dates below...

Continue reading "Bjork playing 10 NYC shows! Six at the New York Hall of Science! (four at Roseland) (in the round!)"

photos by Matt Eisman

Recorded and shot over two nights at London's Alexandra Palace at the close of the 2008 world tour around their fifth full length album, Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, Inni sees the band at the peak of their powers, captured on film for the first time as a core four-piece since they were joined by string section amiina at the start of the century. Directed by Vincent Morisset (Arcade Fire's Miroir Noir), with film manipulations by Godspeed You! Black Emperor visual collaborator Karl Lemieux, Inni is Sigur Rós' second live film following 2007's hugely-celebrated tour documentary Heima.

If you prefer to view Inni early or somewhere other than the plush folds of your couch, then look for it in a theater near you. It comes to NYC on 11/5 at midnight (11/6) at IFC Center. Tickets are on sale.

The film premiered at Club NASA as part of the Reykjavik International Film Festival in the band's home country of Iceland last week. The RIFF (best name ever) kicked off on 9/22 and came to a close yesterday. BV photographer Matt Eisman happened to be in Iceland at the time and took some pictures at the premiere where various people spoke along with the film. Those pics are in this post. Check out more of them with the release details and a video preview, below...

Continue reading "Sigur Ros's "Inni" movie premiered in Iceland (pics), coming to a theater in NYC (tix on sale)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Bloodgroup - My Arms (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Megaphonic Thrift - Candy Sin (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Lines - El Matador (MP3)

The Megaphonic Thrift

This year's SXSW festival is a month away and some of you may be sick of hearing about it already. Especially if you're not going. One nice thing about New York is a lot of the international acts play here either on their way to or from Austin, and usually doing longer sets than you'd get at the fest.

In that spirit, like last year, we're gonna bring a little of the SXSW spirit to Brooklyn -- minus the inability to find a cab at midnight. The BrooklynVegan & Tiger Mountain pre-SXSW Party will be at The Rock Shop on Monday, March 14 with Bloodgroup, The Megaphonic Thrift and The Lines. Tickets are only $8 and on sale now.

Bloodgroup

Iceland synth pop collective Bloodgroup headline the night. Maybe you saw them at CMJ last year. The band's 2009 LP, the slinky, seductive Dry Land, drew favorable comparisons to The Knife. KEXP's blog wrote of their 2010 CMJ performance, "Bloodgroup could be this year's The xx, if enough people take the time to stop and listen." Stop and listen to Bloodgroup's single "My Arms" at the top of this post.

The Megaphonic Thrift (who share members with Casiokids and The Low Frequency in Stereo) played in NYC last March on their way to SXSW as their new album, Decay Destroy, had just come out in their home country of Norway. It's taken a year for the album to get an American release -- out next month on Sonic Union -- but it's probably good timing as their sound fits in well with the '90s indie rock resurgence we're experiencing right now.

Check out the "Candy Sin" -- part Sonic Youth, part Swervedriver -- at the top of this post. I've seen them a couple times. If you dig loud, shoegazy rock The Megaphonic Thrift do it very well. If you can't make the Rock Shop show, the band plays the night before (3/13) at Mercury Lounge where they'll play with Endless Boogie and Arboretum.

The Lines

Openers are The Lines who hail from Wolverhampton, UK (home of Slade, Goldie and Ned's Atomic Dustbin) and, like Bloodgroup, were here last in October for CMJ. Check out their single "El Matador" at the top of this post which should appeal to fans of Two Door Cinema Club, Bloc Party, and other danceable UK indie.

Should be a fun night, especially because we're giving away Strongbow Cider to those who get there early (while it lasts). Videos and all tour dates for all three bands, below...

Continue reading "The Megaphonic Thrift, Bloodgroup & The Lines are playing the BrooklynVegan pre-SXSW party in Brooklyn (and other dates)"

by Alex Lewis

Sam Amidon @ Big Ears Fest (more by Andrew Frisicano)

Sam Amidon sung the very first note at the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville on Friday. Overshadowed on the festival's bill by the likes of famed rock bands (The National, Vampire Weekend) and legendary composers (Terry Riley), many of the badge-wearing festival attendees didn't know what to expect when the tall, flannel-wearing Vermont-native's strange voice filled the Knoxville Museum of Art. But they were soon won over.

In retrospect he was perfect for the role. As a musician who has illuminated elements of Americana, past and present, through his re-imaginings of traditional Appalachian songs Amidon has become a vital member of the contemporary folk community. In the spirit of Big Ears, his music relies on collaboration. Along with Thomas Bartlett (also known as Doveman) and composer Nico Muhly he is a member of the 802 tour, whose performances are beautiful syntheses of three varied musical minds. Amidon had three scheduled performances at the festival. I caught up with him backstage at the Bijou Theater.

--

How did you end up at Big Ears?

Sam: It was through the 802 Tour. We [Nico Muhly, Thomas Bartlett, Nadia Sirota, and I] had done a tour about two summers ago and it was a total blast. So we are always looking to do, not necessarily another tour, but some more shows because we love playing together. While we're all pretty busy, it's usually hard to find a time. But this weekend worked out. Another factor was Bryce [Dessner], someone who we all encounter in different capacities and there are so many people here who we know and play with. For instance, Thomas plays keyboards with The National. There were just so many wonderful musicians so we were totally happy to come play.

continued below...

Continue reading "an interview with Sam Amidon (at Big Ears)"

DOWNLOAD: Seabear - Lion Faced Boy (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Soley - Theater Island (MP3)

Seabear @ by:Larm

Seabear was one of the bands I made sure not to miss when I ventured to Norway for the by:Larm festival in February, but I came away with mixed feelings about the band whose leader Sindri Már Sigfússon has been called the Icelandic Beck. Maybe I had jet lag and was sleepy or they were sleepy or they just make sleepy music. That's not to say the 7-piece band completely scared me away. If they had, I wouldn't be writing this post to point out that you can download the perfectly pleasant track "Lion Faced Boy" above (and listen to more like it at their MySpace), and that you can see them when they make their NYC debut at Mercury Lounge tonight (3/25) and when they play their 2nd NYC show at Southpaw on Friday (3/26). Both shows are with their tour-mates, Chicago's Via Tania, and Friday (and most of the tour) also includes a set by Soley aka Seabear's Sóley Stefánsdóttir. Check out an MP3 from her up there too.

Naturally, the band is visiting from Iceland for a trip that included SXSW where they played a bunch of shows last week. The trip was also timed to coincide with the release of their new album We Built A Fire. It's out now on Morr Music which is also the label that will release a new Soley EP on the day of the Southpaw show (both MP3s above are from those records).

Some live videos from SXSW, more pictures from by:Larm (where they performed at a club called John Dee), and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Seabear is here from Iceland w/ a new album, Via Tania & Soley, played SXSW & by:Larm - pics, video, MP3s & tour dates"

photos by Vincent Cornelli

FlavorPill: So you don't have any plans to move Stateside?

Olof Arnalds: Not now. Maybe in a few years it would be great. I have a son who's one and a half years old, and there's so much life quality in Iceland when it comes to having children because it's so safe. It's such a good environment for kids to have the freedom to play. I have a big family, and I wouldn't want to raise my kids anywhere else than Iceland.

FP: Can you talk a little bit about the music scene in Iceland?

OA: It's a very tight scene. Everyone's friends and help each other out. It's really vibrant because you can make things happen really quickly. It doesn't take a long time to make it happen. It's a gutsy environment. People just do things.

FP: How did you meet Kjartan Sveinsson from Sigur Ros, who produced your first album?

OA: His wife, Maria. We're friends from youth. She's from the quartet Amiina that played with Sigur Ros for many years. It's just a small scene of musicians. It's friendship. Sigur Ros and Mum, who I used to play with, are good friends.

Continue reading "Olof Arnalds played the Whitney, Rockwood Music Hall (pics)"

photos by Vincent Cornelli

Mum

Like Broadcast and Atlas Sound, Mum and Sin Fang Bous were on a larger national tour that happened to hit NYC during CMJ. To be specific, the Icelandic groups played Le Poisson Rouge on Saturday night (10/24). More pictures from that show below...

Continue reading "Mum & Sin Fang Bous @ Le Poisson Rouge in NYC - pics "

Iceland Music: When did you start recording this album - and who was involved this time around?

Örvar Þóreyjarson Smárason of múm: I guess we started recording last summer, maybe before that. Actually one of the songs we wrote and started recording while doing Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy, we've been playing live for a couple of years. It's pretty much the same group of people as on the last albums. Róbert Reynisson, the son of beast who has been touring with us since Ólöf went on hiatus, plays a big part on this album with his guitar shreds. And who knows when Ólöf comes back? But the only real rookie on this record is Högni Egilsson from Hjaltalín. He toured with us for a bit and brought some fresh winds, arranged the choirs and got lost in an airport.

múm will be supporting the new album referenced above, Sing Along to Songs You Don't Know, which comes out August 24th on Morr Music. Sing Along will be their first record since the band's 2007, Fat Cat released Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy.

Another múm alum (those don't rhyme btw) Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttire (aka Kría Brekkan) just played July 1st at Brooklyn spot Sycamore. It was the last show of a short NYC tour -- hopefully there'll be more on the way.

múm album art, track list and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "múm - new album, 2009 North American tour dates (LPR)"

Jóhann Jóhannsson...

Iceland's Jóhann Jóhannsson was scheduled to play a free River to River show at the World Financial Center last summer, but he had to cancel.

Instead, Jóhannsson is making his US debut this year, on Thursday, June 25th at (Le) Poisson Rouge. The Wordless Music show will also feature the ACME String Quartet. Tickets for the show's early set (6:30pm) and late set(9pm) are on sale.

All tour dates and a video of his song "Sun's Gone Dim," below...

Continue reading "Jóhann Jóhannsson - 2009 tour dates (2 NYC shows) "

photos by Chris La Putt

Iceland Review: Your sound on that album is acoustic, folksy and quite unique. Is that a style you're going to stick with?

ÓA: When I was making and writing the songs I wasn't thinking in styles. That comes afterwards. The recording style was very determined; I wanted to use tape and wanted to set the rules up against me a little. I recorded both singing and guitar at the same time to make it as live and immediate as possible. I like the danger of whole takes. In the future, the style of my recordings might change because I want to add more musicians and to deal with different things, but I think that the core is the singing and the storytelling.

Continue reading "Olof Arnalds - Scandinavia House pics, Bjork tonight "

DOWNLOAD: Ólöf Arnalds - Við og Við (MP3)

Ólöf Arnalds @ South Street Seaport (more by Chris La Putt)

Ólöf Arnalds has just finished recording her second solo album which was once again produced by Kjartan Sveinsson from Sigur Rós. This time round Kjartan also plays on the record along with his wife María (of Amiina), Skuli Sverrisson (Laurie Anderson), Shahzad Ismaily (Tom Waits, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy), and Davíð Þór Jónsson (Mugison). [press release]

Ólöf will again be in New York and sharing a talent-laden stage. She's one of two acts opening the sold-out, May 8th Housing Works benefit headlined by fan and fellow icelander Bjork, and Dirty Projectors. (Kurt Weisman is the other opener.) At the show, Ólöf will be "showcasing tracks from [her new record] as well as [songs from] her award-winning solo debut, Við og Við." The MP3 above is the title track off that debut.

She'll also be playing three nights of NYC shows leading up to the benefit. The first is at Union Hall on Tuesday, May 5th. Tickets are on sale.

The second and third are at Ditmas Park venue Sycamore on Wednesday, May 6th and the Scandinavia House on Thursday, May 7th. A reception will follow the latter.

All tour dates with a video of Ólöf Arnalds on music-doc show Dig For Fire, below...

Continue reading "Ólöf Arnalds - a new album, an MP3 & 4 NYC shows "

The Icelandic environmental documentary Nattura-Summer 2008 [was] released exclusively on iTunes on March 10 (One Little Indian) via an exclusive digital distribution partnership with E1 Entertainment Distribution U.S. The film focuses on the current environmental issues that face Iceland and includes interviews with Björk along with many other well-known Icelandic figures. All proceeds from the documentary will benefit the Nattura Campaign.

Directed by Charlie Lightening, Nattura-Summer 2008 focuses on the proposed plans to increase the use of aluminum smelters as a means to harness Iceland's natural energy. As an alternative to these industrial practices, the documentary offers innovations and attempts to reinvigorate a larger discussion and debate on these key issues. In addition to Björk's commentary, the film features interviews with well-known Icelandic politician and environmentalist, Ómar Ragnarsson, as well as Andri Snaer Magnason. Magnason is the author of the award-winning, best-selling book, Dreamland: Self-Help Manual for a Frightened Nation, which offers a detailed critique of the Icelandic government's current energy-harnessing practices.

The documentary continues Björk's close involvement with the Nattura Campaign, which was founded in an effort to generate alternative, sustainable and eco-friendly ways to utilize Iceland's natural resources. In Björk's own words, "It is now more important than ever before to emphasize a respect for nature...I believe that profits, technological advances and working together with nature can all go hand in hand. None need to be sacrificed at the expense of the others."

In related news, Dave from Dirty Projectors will NOT be performing with Bang on a Can on April 2nd.

Sigur Ros & Bjork - June 28, 2008, Iceland (olikristinn)

Continue reading "Bjork playing with Sigur Ros! (videos)"

Coney Island, August 23, 2003 (via Bjork gigography)

I'll never forget showing up late to the Bjork / Sigur Ros in Brooklyn five years ago. I was upset that I was missing it, but hearing the unmistakable music of Sigur Ros pouring out of Keyspan Park on to the streets (and boardwalk) of Coney Island completely made up for it. It's what I remember most about the show.

Bjork and Sigur Ros just announced another show together, but this time it will be in their shared home-country of Iceland....

Continue reading "Bjork is playing with Sigur Ros again....in Iceland"

by Avi Roig

DOWNLOAD: Reykjavik! - Flybus! (MP3)

Can we start the noisepop revival already? Please? There's not nearly enough bands making raucous music like this. Reykjavik! videos and tour dates (TONIGHT INCLUDED) below.....

Continue reading "Reykjavik! from Reykjavik (ICELAND) - playing NYC & SXSW"

Continue reading "'Wanderlust' screening @ Deitch, Bjork, Tibet, Iceland, video"

Tickets are on sale for a Mum show at the Gramercy Theatre in NYC on April 22nd, and for one the next day at Brooklyn Masonic Temple in Fort Green. Both shows are right before they play Coachella, and they have a few more shows after that....

Continue reading "Mum - 2008 Tour Dates (Coachella, Brooklyn, Manhattan)"

Olof Arnalds

1. The National - Boxer
2. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
4. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
5. Feist - The Reminder
6. M.I.A. - Kala
7. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
8. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
9. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
10. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
11. Radiohead - In Rainbows
12. Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
13. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black

Ólöf Arnalds, Múm's collaborator for the past three years, recently released her debut solo album, Við og við, on 12 Tónar. The release was produced by Sigur Ros' Kjartan Sveinsson and is avalaible here. [getecho]

Continue reading "Paste's Top 100 Albums of 2007 (includes Olof Arnalds)"

Amiina locked away in an Iceland attic

Sigur Ros announced they're coming, just as their Icelandic friends Amiina announced they aren't. Highline Ballroom, Osheaga, and all Amiina's other upcoming shows aren't happening. More below...

Continue reading "Amiina cancel U.S. Tour"

DOWNLOAD: Sigur Ros - untitled #8 (a.k.a. popplagið / the pop song) (MP3)

You already heard of this band called Sigur Ros, and you know about the NYC show, but maybe you didn't hear all about the new Heima DVD and Hvarf / Heim Double CD....

Continue reading "Sigur Ros - new DVD, CD & NYC show"

As previously mentioned in an Iceland post and a "Tickets on sale" post, Mum are playing some shows. Mum are also playing the 2007 Iceland Airwaves Festival (October 17 - 21, 2007).

Since the first show held in 1999 (in an airplane hangar), Iceland Airwaves has become one of the premier showcases for new music – Icelandic and otherwise – in the world. It's been called "the most innovative music festival since CMJ" and "as responsible for all of Reykjavík's recent positive press as Björk herself".

Continue reading "MUM - updated 2007 Tour Dates + ICELAND AIRWAVES"

DOWNLOAD: Benni Hemm Hemm - Snjórjljóssnjór (MP3)

* Screaming Masterpiece is a new DVD about Bjork, Sigur Ros, Mum and other Icelandic music.

* Milan Records is offering people the chance to win a trip to Iceland.

* Video of Bjork's recent appearance on Jools Holland is on YouTube. M.I.A. is opening for Bjork in France.

* There's a new book called In a Frozen Sea: A Year with Sigur Ros.

* I missed singer-songwriter Lay Low's recent NYC debut at Midway, Pianos, Lakeside Lounge and Zebulon respectively, but she will be back for CMJ. Video below.

* Dance to Lauren Flax's 'Iceland'.

* Tickets are on sale for two Mum shows happening in NYC in November. More tour dates and details on a new album below.

* Tickets are on sale for a July 5th Benni Hemm Hemm show at Mercury Lounge in NYC (w/ Casiotone for the Painfully Alone). All tour dates below...

What else? All that promised stuff, and more, below....

Continue reading "What is up with Iceland? Benni Hemm Hemm, Mum, etc"