Tag Archives: iceland

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Knitted Projects 2019 – Part 2

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The majority of the year was taken up in doing much more substantial knitting. This cardigan had been on my knitting queue for awhile, so it was great to be able to see it to the finish. It’s made with a combination of two thin-ish yarns held together (one variegated and one solid). The buttons were bought at the op shop in the tiny NZ town of Granity by a local maker (not sure who).

Cardigan

This vest was actually completed in early 2020, but the bulk of the work was done in 2019. The wool was actually bought by Mum while she was in Reykjavik, Iceland (thanks Mum). The buttons were bought in Hobart, Tasmania, but was machine-made, I think. It’ll be a cosy garment mid-winter, worn underneath my coat.

Icelandic vest

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A gig at the Opera House

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At the beginning of May we saw the Icelandic folk/pop/alt band Of Monsters and Men in the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House. The Opera House opens its doors to contemporary artists pretty often as I’ve seen a few bands there over the years. We were seated in the stalls for the first time, which gave us a real close up view.

Of Monsters and Men

Listening to their albums, I’m aware that the band is a large one, having two lead singers, but I wasn’t quite prepared for 9 to 12 people on the stage!

The audience was a real mix, from under 20’s to over 60’s – a real surprise given that the group is only 5 years old and doesn’t get a lot of mainstream radio play. I guess these days people can discover new music in all sorts of ways.

Of Monsters and Men

They played the content of their two albums, and a few odds and ends, and their music sounded grander on stage than on their album. To me, they are one of those bands that sound better live than on their recordings. It even brought the crowd to their feet every now and then!

Of Monsters and Men

And yes, the smoke machine and strobe lighting was in use. Not surprising given the atmospheric nature of much of their songs.

Of Monsters and Men

All in all, a good night out.

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Icelandic Sounds

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Ever since I bought Bjork’s 90’s classic album, Post during my uni years, I’ve had a fascination for Icelandic music and Iceland in general. One of my dream holidays as a photographer would be to go to Iceland, but while that remains a pipe dream (for now) I have gotten closer to that mystical island through the music of Bjork and Sigur Ros.

Today I discovered the music of Sigur Ros’s lead singer, Jonsi. My first listen of Jonsi’s first solo album, Go left me so joyful that it lifted me out of the slump I’d been in for much of the morning. It’s a heady combination of Jonsi’s falsetto, lush orchestration, and a sense of optimism that I really rarely hear in modern music nowadays. While I describe most of Sigur Ros’s music as optimistic melancholy, the music of its lead singer is positive and joyful.

Just have a look at this:

I might have only listened to this album once, but for me this will end up being my ‘album of the year’. Which makes me glad to have bought tickets to Jonsi’s show at the Enmore Theatre in early August. Judging by what’s on the album and the reviews of the album and his gigs online, it’s going to be stupendous.