66 Degrees of Sound – Details, episodes & analysis

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Coming back from our last holiday of the summer (verslunarmannahelgin) and slowly coming back to life / back to reality, we bring you another replay of one of our classics. This time we bring you a re-listen of our artist spotlight with genre-bending and self-described “boy band” Xiupill.

With members hailing from Iceland, Spain and the US, the three-piece create a blend of production, performance and artistry that looks firmly to the future of music production while embracing diverse elements of the past. Two thirds of the band — Juan M. Melero and Jón Múli, missing Oliver Devaney — joined us in our studio at GV HQ to talk about their sophomore album MYTHOLOGY  (released on March 28), as well as touring, pop essentialism, and the importance of caffeine in production.

Listen to MYTHOLOGY on Spotify
Buy the album on Bandcamp
Xiupill on Instagram: @xiu_pill

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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We have reached Verslunarmannahelgi, aka Merchant's Day Weekend, the unofficial "end of summer" in Iceland which is marked by a long weekend full of festivals and parties all over the country. The newest addition to the festival roster is SAMANFEST, presented by Slacker Events & Iðnó, who are coming in hot and poised to become a yearly standard in Reykjavík.

Joining us to talk about this brand new event are besties of the pod Agnes Hlynsdóttir from Iðnó and Alfreð Drexler from Slacker Events, who take us through the upcoming party while checking out some of the artists on the roster.

More information about SAMANFEST on Instagram at @samanfestid
Tickets for SAMANFEST available on tix.is and cost 5.000 - 8.990 ISK

Episode tracklist:
Lottó — I'd die to be his wife (2022)
Nicola Gaea — Home (r. March 12)
Spacestation — Í Draumalandinu (r. June 7)
Una Schram — It's My Party (r. June 14)
IZLEIFUR — ANDVAKA (feat. Daniil) (r. August 1)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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Very few places in Reykjavík have endured or garnered such a unique reputation as downtown institution Prikið. Known today as the beating heart of Iceland's hip hop scene, the cultural icon goes back way further than many people — including us! — even know.

On this episode, Prikið's co-owner and well-known local character Geoffrey Þór Huntingdon-Williams joins us in the studio and gives us a deep dive into Prikið's past, present and future, offering us a glimpse into a rich and storied history that continues to this day as a living breathing saga of its own.

Prikið is posted up at Bankastræti 12, 101 Reykjavík. If you're strolling through downtown for the first time, you'll recognize it from the iconic "cock on a stick" above its corner entry.

Opening track: XXX Rottweiler hundar — Þér er ekki boðið (2001)
Closing track: Spacestation — Fokking lagið (r. March 1)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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Our guest today is Guðmundur Ari Arnalds, aka slummi & many other monikers, experimental artist, producer, and sound engineer who has been active for many years. He released two albums this spring — Idiot Flower on April 26 and Bastard Flower on May 31 — his first solo releases under the moniker slummi. He has also been working at the beloved venue Mengi since 2014 in many capacities and is involved with a lot of activity at the Hafnar.haus studio space. An overall well-known and admired person in Reykjavík's live music scene for both his own output and his sidehustles, Guðmundur is one of those people who is just always involved in something.

Links to Guðmundur:
Instagram: @gummiarnalds
slummi on Bandcamp
glupsk
SODDILL

Opening track: slummi — TTT (r. April 26)
Closing track: sideproject — swamp merchant (r. May 30)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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We are fresh as the lupins in full bloom and quoting The Cure on this fine Saturday morning! Coming at you with a tangent-heavy introspective episode, this week's mix is full of darkpop gems, cool summery bops and eighth grade mallgoth perfection (it is not  a phase, mom.)

We also remembered that our sweet new mixer has a soundboard so we go full ham on the airhorn. Let us know in the comments if you want more or less airhorn.

Episode Tracklist:
KUSK – Sommar (r. May 10)
gugusar – Merki (r. May 31)
Zetra & Sólveig Matthildur – Shatter The Mountain (r. June 25)
SiGRÚN – Monster Milk / Thirst For First (r. June 20)
Krassoff – Hlýja Mér Sjálf (r. June 30)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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Over the past months, almost every guest on our show has brought up the state of the live music landscape in Reykjavík in terms of the lack of midsize venues to play. This being a huge subject for all of us over at Grapevine HQ — contributor Ish Sveinsson Houle tackled just this topic in an article in our 8th issue this year.

One young booker who is throwing caution to the wind and doing things her way is Agnes Hlynsdóttir, manager and booker at LEMMY and events and culture booker at Iðnó. She has notably created the Upptakarinn concert series at LEMMY (aka Up & Coming), that gives artists who have never played live a platform to perform their first gigs. Over at Iðnó, she has been making the historic, city-funded theatre a space for better known "midsize" names and more blowout gigs.

We sat down with Agnes for a candid and hopeful conversation about her work and the live scene. If you are a new performer interested in playing the Upptakarinn series, you can contact Agnes at info@lemmy.is.

LEMMY: @lemmy_rvk
Iðnó: @idno.rvk

Opening track: Ultra Magnus — Enginn Heima (r. May 2023)
Closing track: Ari Árelius — Look At The Clown (r. June 26)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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This week kicked off with truly Garfield vibes in GV HQ Studios, with your dear hosts Rex and Jói just needing naps and lasagna. Our spirits were immensely lifted by our guests, Allie Doersch and Árni Þór Árnason of longstanding punk band Tófa.

Tófa has been around the Reykjavík music scene since their debut album Fleetwood Max in 2015. Ferocious and poetic, Tófa consists of singer Allie Doersch, bassist Andri Freyr Þorgeirsson, guitarist Árni Þór Árnason, and drummer Jóhannes Ólafsson. With two albums under their belt, Tófa is set to release their third LP, Mauled, on July 25.

Links to Tófa:
Instagram: @onlytofa
Facebook: tofatofatofa
Bandcamp: tofa.bandcamp.com

Opening track: Tófa — Clogging (r. May 16)
Closing track: kimono — Get Ready (For Some Pain to Have) (2009)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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After nearly a full month of grey fake-summer in Iceland, it's hard to believe that the sun has finally come out for this last weekend of June! We aren't getting too excited — lest we jinx it — so instead we will just enjoy these sunny new tunes no matter what the sky does. Jói and Rex are still deep in brain-rot mode, so it's a fun one. Enjoy!

Episode Tracklist:
Una Schram — 1999 (There You Go) (r. June 14)
Supersport! — fingurkoss (r. June 14)
Silva & Steini — I Ought To Stay Away From You (r. June 20)
Young Nazareth — Bara Vera (r. June 21)
Davidsson — On Thin Air (r. June 6)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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On today’s Hot Happenings we will be previewing the upcoming Hátiðni Arts Festival, which takes place July 5 — 7 in Borðeyri, North Iceland. Originally a brainchild of the Post-dreifing collective, this will be the sixth edition of the independent grassroots music and arts festival that thrives on a Do-It-Together community model and entirely volunteer run.

Artists on the lineup this year include Áslaug Dungal, MC Myasnoi, K.Óla, Snowed In, Diamond Dolls, Skelkur í Bringu, and so many more. The festival also includes a huge visual art facet that highlights works from artists across pretty much every discipline.

With the festival's organising team coming down the wire a week before the event, team member Einar Karl Pétursson joins us in studio to chat about its importance in the grassroots music and arts scene.

For tickets to Hátíðni 2024, register with their official form right here.

Full lineup and more information about Hátíðni on their Instagram and Facebook.

Opening track: Amor Vincit Omnia — Do You (r. June 8)
Closing track: Laglegt — Brennur Aftur (r. June 17)

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine

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On this week's artist spotlight we welcome musician, artist, organiser and friend-of-the-pod Ólöf Rún Benediktsdóttir, a long-time member of Iceland’s grassroots music and art communities. This is her second time joining us in the studio, as she stepped in as guest co-host on an episode with us last summer in our old digs at 101 Útvarp, and we are very happy to have her back.

Ólöf is a member of the ethereal-doom band Svartþoka, where she plays theremin and sings. She is also prominently involved with Læti a platform for young girls and gender non-conforming kids to get involved in music at the ground level. Ólöf is also a visual artist and most recently broken off into doing solo electronic music under her own name, Ólöf Rún. We get into all of this and so much more on this episode.

Catch Ólöf Rún live at the Nordic House on Sunday June 30th at 15:00, as part of the PIKKNIKK concert series. More information about the show right here.

Links to Ólöf Rún:
Website: olofbenedikts.com
Instagram: @olofbenedikts
Svartþoka on Bandcamp

66 Degrees of Sound is a podcast production by The Reykjavík Grapevine, hosted by music editor Jóhannes Bjarkason and listings editor Rex Beckett.

Editing and intro music by Rex Beckett.

All tracks played on the show are in accordance with STEF, the Composers’ Rights Society of Iceland.

Check out grapevine.is for the full magazine coverage and events.grapevine.is for more upcoming events.

• Instagram: @rvkgrapevine
• Facebook: The Reykjavík Grapevine
• Youtube: The Reykjavík Grapevine