Category: Music in Iceland

Articles About Music in Iceland

For a country of fewer than four hundred thousand people, Iceland produces an extraordinary amount of music — and an extraordinary range of it. Björk and Sigur Rós put the country on the map, but they were only the beginning. The scene today ranges from indie and electronic to jazz, choral, metal, and a deep classical tradition, and it punches far above its size.

There are reasons for that. Music education is taken seriously here; nearly everyone seems to play in a band or sing in a choir at some point, and the long dark winters give people good cause to make something. The result is a creative community that’s unusually close-knit, where the same musicians turn up across wildly different projects.

For experiencing music in Iceland firsthand, timing helps. Iceland Airwaves, each November, is the flagship festival, filling Reykjavík’s venues and turning the whole city into a stage. Summer brings festivals around the country, and Reykjavík has a steady run of live music year-round in venues large and small. Harpa, the concert hall on the waterfront, is worth a visit for the building alone — and well worth it for a concert.

This is also a subject we know well. Our archive of interviews includes conversations with Icelandic musicians about how the scene actually works and where to hear it at its best.
In this section, you’ll find our guides to music in Iceland: the artists worth knowing, the festivals worth planning around, the venues worth seeking out, and the stories behind the scenes — the honest, practical advice we’d give a friend who wants to hear the real thing while they’re here.


Music in Iceland

New Video From the Icelandic Band Valdimar

Our friend and director Bowen Staines has released yet another cool music video featuring Icelandic artists and Iceland itself. We featured his article on creating his epic video from Solstafir´s song Lágnætti and he wrote a great piece on the 2014 Iceland Airwaves music festivals. This...
Music in Iceland

Welcome to Sonar Reykjavik 2015!

Our friend Asgeir continues with his Vlog project, Do More Asgeir and this time he is attending the Sonar 2015 Reykjavik music festival. On the first night of the festival Asgeir goes to the Harpa and catches some tunes by Dj Yamaho and Todd Terje.  
Music in Iceland

ICELAND AIRWAVES 2014

Words & photos by Bowen Staines. Make sure you check out his article about making a video with Sólstafir in the Westfjords of Iceland. Iceland Airwaves 2014 was definitely a standout year for me; this was my ninth time attending Airwaves, and I haven’t had...
Music in Iceland

Last Ticket for Flaming Lips at Iceland Airwaves

On the last night of Iceland Airwaves 2014 Ásgeir is feeling pretty good about himself as he catches the last ticket for the totally sold out Flaming Lips concert. Impossible? Well not for our guy.  He concludes his Vlog from Iceland Airwaves with a few lessons...
Music in Iceland

Power Performance by FM Belfast on Iceland Airwaves

It is night 3 for our friend Asgeir who is recording his experience of attending Iceland Airwaves. Ásgeir starts out his third evening of Iceland Airwaves by checking out the Icelandic legend Mugison who really rocks out at his Iceland Airwaves concert at the Reykjavik Art gallery. He...