Of Monsters and Men is an amiable group of day dreamers who craft folkie pop songs. But last year, the normally mild-mannered six pack transformed into total rock stars after stomping out their competition during Músiktilraunir, a yearly battle of the bands in their native Iceland.[read more]
This four-piece band is known for sensational live shows, their captivating melodies and powerfully crafted brand of electronic music. Having released one of the very best albums of 2009 in Iceland according to critics and others alike, Bloodgroup have risen from making simple electro pop in run-down houses in East-Iceland to something much bigger. [1] Their music can be described as a mix of electro, pop and dance music, sometimes compared to The Knife and CSS. Their songs can be as nostalgic as Iceland, as energetic as the best rock and roll and as beautiful as the vocalist Sunna. All this is accompanied by a dance rhythm which will drag on the danceflooreven worst stiff. The word has been spread from Iceland to the rest of the world, that it is definitely worth to attend their concert, because very few bands give such great live shows. [2] They proved it also in my country - Poland - and received lots of positive reviews after this year's show. Now Poland is eager for more of their music! I think this short introduction should be followed by song, which has been hypnotizing me for a veeery long time - "My Arms", in which Janus Rasmussen took up the reins of lead singer and it was spot on! Just find out for yourself...
"My Arms"
CONTENTS:
BAND NAME (etymology)
FORMATION YEAR
GENRE
HOMETOWN
RECORD LABEL
MEMBERS
HISTORY
DISCOGRAPHY
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEOS
LIVE PERFORMANCES
I was lucky enough to get this firsthand information about Bloodgroup name etyomology - from Raggi, who came up with the idea for bandname very spontaneously:
"the story behind the name is a bit lame. We were doing a live interview just before our very first show, and the reporter asked us what our band name was. I opened my mouth and blurted out 'Bloodgroup'. Weird hah?"
I think the story isn't lame at all, it confirms that first thought is best thought, maybe better than long and complicated thought process in a search for commercially catchy name with assigned deep, deep meaning...
Three of the members are siblings, Raggi, Lilja and Hallur. So making music together was an easy choice. Bloodgroup was formed in 2006 by Hallur, Lilja, Raggi and Janus during some chilly winter days on the east coast of Iceland. After a few months of writing noticeable and catchy electronic dance pop, the group played at Iceland Airwaves festival. They received praise for a great live show, along with their terrific melodies and beats that seemed to get even the harshest metal heads to do the dance. The group evolved and got even better each time the went on stage, and are now considered one of the best live acts in Icelandic music. [1] Bloodgroup released their debut album, Sticky Situation, in November 2007. The album was very well received, and Bloodgroup were considered as one of the most interesting bands in Iceland following its release. The next two years were spent mostly on touring, playing festivals like SXSW in Austin, Texas, NXNE in Toronto, Canada, Roskilde festival in Denmark, CMJ in New York, Eurosonic in the Netherlands and Iceland Airwaves. Bloodgroup's second album, Dry Land, was released in Iceland on December 2nd 2009. It has been one of the most successful albums in Iceland since its release, praised by critics and the first single, My Arms, has done extremely well on Icelandic radio. Dry Land received the Icelandic independent "Kraumur" Album awards and has been called "the best album of the year" by most critics in Iceland, and has been described as a big step forward for the band. [2]
Albums:
'Sticky situations' (5.11.2007)
1 Moving like a tiger 2 Ain't easy 3 Hips Again 4 What I mean 5 Red Egypt 6 Try on 7 The carpenter 8 Chuck 9 Human qualtities 10 Masterplan11 Rain
'Dry land' (2.12.2009)
1 My Arms 2 This Heart 3 Wars 4 How Do We Know 5 First To Go 6 Buried In Sand 7 Overload 8 Pro choice 9 Moonstone 10 Battered 11 Dry Land
Dry Land - Album sampler
"Overload"
"Hips Again"
(Bloodgoups first music video of their debut record Sticky Situation. Directed by Finnbogi Erlendsson)
Dikta is a four-piece indie rock band from Iceland, formed in 1999, and soon gaining a large following for their unique, heavy yet soulful haunting sound.
Media Quotes:
"Dikta is musical magic ... one of the most intriguing albums of the year, a forerunner in the race for top honors ..." DecoyMusic.com, USA 2006
"The sultry tones of lead singer Haukur's vocals are striking and could capture the attention of the female population of the planet ... a potential classic." Salvo Magazine, UK 2007
"... Dikta ... ended its set with a Nirvana-like blowout, "Chloe", from its latest Smekkleysa album, Hunting For Happiness." David Fricke, Rolling Stone Magazine, USA 2006
"Icelandic pop sensation Dikta ... we love them to death, check them out!" Metromix L.A., USA 2008 source
CONTENTS:
BAND NAME (etymology)
FORMATION YEAR
GENRE
HOMETOWN
RECORD LABEL
MEMBERS
HISTORY
DISCOGRAPHY
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEOS
LIVE PERFORMANCES
'Dikta, an Icelandic verb meaning “to compose or make something up,” remains immersed in the same passionate and soulful atmosphere it was formed in, inspiring their melodic alternative rock sound.'source
1999
Rock/Pop/Indie
Reykjavik
Smarten-Up Records , Kölski
Haukur Heiðar Hauksson
(vocals, guitar, piano)
Jón Bjarni Pétursson
(guitar, backing vocals)
Skúli Z Gestsson
(bass, backing vocals)
Jón Þór Sigurðsson
(drums)
“Dikta has been our creative outlet for 12 years, we've been a band since high school, friends since kindergarten… music is a shared passion for all of us so it just made sense to do it together.” Starting in a garage in Garðabær, Iceland, and inspired by bands like Radiohead, Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins to name a few, Haukur, Jón, Skúli, and Nonni released their first album, Andartak, in 2002 under their own label, Mistak Records. Andartak’s singles topped Icelandic charts and were constantly played on Iceland's rock stations.
They followed up with their first English language album, Hunting for Happiness, in 2005, expanding their European audience. Dikta filled every venue and played every festival in Iceland and opened for The Kooks during their 2010 European tour before releasing their third album, Get it Together, through their recent union with German record label Smarten Up. Prior to releasing the album in Germany, Get it Together, also sung in English, reached Platinum in their home country. Dikta is poised to make 2011 a good year, kicking off with a European and US tour, making a stop at the SXSW music festival in the US and Spot festival in Denmark.
1 Enn einn ósigur
2 Engin orð
3 Augnablik
4 Andartak
5 Fimm ára
6 Xanthias
7 Taminóra
8 Hugmynd
9 'Easy, Jack!'
10 Fullkomið herbergi
11 Góða nótt
12 Í síðasta sinn
13 Fráhvarf
'Hunting For Happiness' (2005)
1 Losing Every Day
2 Breaking the Waves
3 Chloë 4:35
4 This Song Will Save the World
5 Remember Me
6 Someone, Somewhere
7 WM3
8 My Other Big Brother
9 Greater Good
10 Flies Don't Tell
11 My Favourite Friend
12 A Way Out
'Get It Together' (2010)
1 Warnings
2 Thank You
3 Hotel Feelings
4 Final Call
5 Let Go
6 Start To Finish
7 Blonde Brunette
8 Goodbye
9 The Story Of Roscoe Gray
10 Just Getting Started
11 Lost In The Light
12 From Now On
