In this edition I'm compelled to return to Iceland by a band who eschew the stereotypical sentiment of contemporary Icelandic music. There are no visions of glaciers and lava plains here, just a whole-hearted band giving it their all to make joyously melodic indie music.
Who Knew have been a fixture on my iPod the last couple of days, and worthily so. My listening habits tend to revolve around albums. I can easily listen to one album repeatedly for a period of time, to the extent where I may hear nothing else for well over a week. Since returning from Iceland last month, Who Knew have slowly ingrained themselves in me, and I now find myself turning the jog wheel to W at least a couple of times a day.
These are seven Reykjavik lads plugged straight into the heart of Apologies To The Queen Mary Wolf Parade. At times it's almost as if frontman Ármann Ingvi Ármannson was taught to sing by Spencer Krug himself, and there are even echoes of Krug's more progressive works in their subdued numbers.
Delve a little deeper, however, and you unearth subtle hints at the kind of Afro beat rhythms you would usually associate with Yeasayer; the opening to the first single from debut album Bits and Pieces of a Major Spectacle, "We Do", being a case in point. "We Do" is an immense track, backed by an immensely brutal video. This is where any thoughts of mid Atlantic rift landscapes are truly put to bed, bloodied and desperate.
Delve a little deeper, however, and you unearth subtle hints at the kind of Afro beat rhythms you would usually associate with Yeasayer; the opening to the first single from debut album Bits and Pieces of a Major Spectacle, "We Do", being a case in point. "We Do" is an immense track, backed by an immensely brutal video. This is where any thoughts of mid Atlantic rift landscapes are truly put to bed, bloodied and desperate.
With shows in Germany already under their belts, perhaps Who Knew are about ready to bring their show - including immaculately synchronised headbanging - to a town near you...
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