There is something to be learned
from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and
run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of
houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will
not be perplexed, though you still get the same soaking. This understanding
extends to everything.
Tuesday, 24 November 2015
Monday, 23 November 2015
'The Mistake' reviewed by Craig Sisterson.
THE MISTAKE by Grant Nicol (Number
13 Press, 2015)
Reviewed by Craig Sisterson
A mutilated body is found on a
lonely street in Reykjavík. Detective Grímur intends to see that justice is
done. Kjartan Jónsson vows that his daughter’s killer will be punished. And
that the punishment will fit the crime. Prime suspect Gunnar Atli desperately
needs to prevent his own dark secrets from coming to light. And he’s not the
only one.
THE MISTAKE was the first story
from Iceland-based Kiwi author Grant Nicol that I've read. It won't be the
last. Diving into this novella on a train journey in the UK, I found myself
completely absorbed by Nicol's prose and storytelling. Hooked early, intrigued
throughout.
Set in Nicol's adopted hometown of
Reykjavik, THE MISTAKE has a simple but very effective set-up. There's been a
brutal murder. There's a clear prime suspect - the very troubled man prone to
blackouts who claims he just stumbled across the body. A cop and a bereaved
father both want justice, but of vastly different kinds. Several people, all
with secrets, collide.
Nicol does a superb job taking this
premise and layering in a lot of complexities and intrigue. Beyond the
"just what really happened - did Gunnar Atli do it or not?" hook, we
are taken down a number of rabbit holes, as Nicol guides us into the darker
parts of Icelandic society. Prostitution, treatment of the mentally ill,
domestic troubles, crime and justice. Nordic Noir with a strong emphasis on the
NOIR.
This is a very good crime tale.
Part of Number 13 Press's monthly
series of high quality crime novellas, THE MISTAKE is small but perfectly
formed. 150 pages that pack quite a punch, and leaves the reader reeling at
times.
Being a novella, there isn't room
for a massive amount of character development, but I felt that Nicol did a good
job bring some depth to those involved; they were more than ciphers or
caricatures, even if it is a very plot and atmosphere-focused tale. There's a
real creepy sense to THE MISTAKE, a story of things going badly wrong in a
world where bad things happen, beneath the snowy and peaceful veneer of Iceland.
Reading THE MISTAKE almost reminded
me of those classic horror movies, which were brooding and creepy more than
bloody and slasher-like. Absorbing, atmospheric, and suspenseful - powered by
dark situations getting even darker as events unfold. Where the worst things
happened off-screen, and were left to our imaginations, fuelling that
gut-clenching psychological fear rather than blood-filled splatter and visuals.
Nicol is a talented storyteller who
takes us on a short, but very good, ride.
Saturday, 7 November 2015
ICELAND AIRWAVES 2015: Looking back fondly on some very nice days of music.
This year’s ‘Airwaves’ really
started with a bang and a wallop. The first night alone was so good it was hard
to believe although my feet sure had no trouble believing it the next day.
On my way down to the Media Centre
at Harpa on Wednesday to pick up my wristband I stopped in at Bíó Paradís on
Hverfisgata to listen to the off-venue performance of Rythmatik. I had never heard
of these guys before but was really pleased I took the time to check them out.
They formed in 2012 but things have only just started happening for them much
more recently. They were the winners of the Icelandic Music Experiments 2015 which
is a competition that promotes young and up and coming local talent that many
consider will be the ‘next thing to erupt’ on the Icelandic scene.
Check out the I.M.E website here: http://www.musiktilraunir.is/english
One of the reason there are so many
super-talented bands here in Iceland is because of the level of support that
musicians receive here compared to many other places I’ve lived. That also
applies to writers and artists of all types. If you want a thriving cultural
scene you need to put in the hard work to nurture the talent you have available
within the community.
Not only do Rythmatik play cool and
highly enjoyable indie rock but the lead singer is one of the funniest guys you
will see on stage here or in any other country for that matter. Seriously, the
guy should do stand-up. On the way back from Harpa with my funky purple
wristband now firmly around my wrist I dropped into the foyer at Hlemmur Square
to catch Börn play their intense style of feminist punk. I had been reading
about these girls for quite a few years now and was seriously happy that I
finally got around to seeing them. With the huge number of bands that play
Airwaves every year it can be a struggle to see every one you want to see first
time around. ‘Bara hrós’ by Börn:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCqsABla8r8
The first night of the official
programme started for me at Gaukurinn with Sinmara, a local death-metal band
followed by the almighty Icelandic punk phenomenon, Muck. It was Muck’s first
performance with their new drummer Gylfi Freeland Sigurðsson and their last
before heading to the UK and hitting the road with Superheaven and Every Time I
Die. Getting some exposure in the UK will be fantastic for these punk rock
heavyweights. Each time I see them it’s staggering how good they are. I would
defy any band in the country to better them on any given night. They are
ridiculously fast, unbelievably tight and write great raw energetic punk rock
songs. Anyone catching them in the UK won’t forget them in a big hurry.
‘Provoke Me’ by Muck: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYGFCPH71Yg
That awesome performance was
followed by two brilliant shows in quick succession at Harpa that were almost
worth the price of the festival ticket on their own. First up was Airwaves
perennials Dikta with their friend Tóti playing bass for them just for the
night before he had to run to the room next door to play guitar and keyboards
for his ‘other band’ Agent Fresco. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen
Dikta now but they are one of the most enjoyable bands in Iceland to watch and
a lot of that comes down to the fact that they always have such a good time on
stage themselves. Their lead singer Haukur Heiðar Hauksson is a doctor at the
Landspítali hospital in Reykjavík and their drummer Jón Þór Sigurðsson is a
pilot and despite having such busy ‘day jobs’ these guys still find the time to
be one of the most consistently entertaining bands in the country as well as
releasing album after album of quality catchy-as-hell tunes. ‘Sink Or Swim’ by
Dikta: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2c2I7G86kQ
Next door Agent Fresco were at their awesome best giving a performance of raw passionate energy. Some lead singers can seem closed off or to be simply going through the motions. Some wear their hearts of their sleeves but Arnór Dan takes his and throws it to the audience to see what they will do with it and they inevitably embrace it and give him all that love right back. Agent Fresco gigs are special events and the show at Harpa was no exception. The band played everything live including the many electronics that feature on their albums. They employed the talents of Styrmir who mixed their latest album, 'Destrier' to play synths and local wonder-boy Ceasetone to play rhythm guitar. All in all an amazing, amazing show.
Thursday night brought about one of
the best Airwaves moments of any of the festivals so far for me with John Grant
performing with the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra. Every Airwaves I’ve been too
I’ve made a point of seeing whoever has been playing with the fantastic I.S.O
and along the way I’ve seen Valgeir Sigurðsson perform his soundtrack to the
movie, ‘Draumalandið -check out some of it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp5n2vd8c9o
As well as that I’ve seen Ólafur
Arnalds perform his album ‘For Now I Am Winter’ and Jóhann Jóhannsson performing
‘The Miners’ Hymns’ – check out some of that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_Rfkhg7s_M and they’ve all been outstanding but John
Grant’s performance was one that took me completely by surprise.
Perhaps it was because I didn’t
really know what to expect having never heard John’s music before but that
turned out to be a bonus. His songs are quirky and brilliant and his voice is
truly exceptional. His rapport with the crowd was heart-warming and there is
obviously a lot of love for him here. He has certainly been embraced by the
country he now calls home and it’s because he has embraced it and its people so
openly himself. Definitely a serious highlight of the festival if not THE
highlight. There were so many stand-out tracks but this was my pick off his
songs. If you can just imagine this accompanied by a sixty-piece orchestra:
‘Where Dreams Go To Die’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNfckqekxY4
The other big highlight of the festival for me
was another local band that has played almost every year at Airwaves since its
inception in 1999. I caught kimono off-venue at Bar 11 on Friday and tonight is
their official show at Gamla Bíó. I unfortunately missed their Thursday night
gig with being at John Grant and all which was a shame but like I said before
it’s just impossible to see everything you want to with such a wonderful glut
of talent and shows on offer. These three gigs for Airwaves 2015 are the only
ones that kimono have played all year apart from one for a local radio station
at the beginning of the year and one they did in September at Húrra with their
friend from Germany, Ari Russo. I was lucky enough to be at the radio interview
and concert at Bar 11 but missed the gig at Húrra so it was definitely a case
of making up for lost time this time around. The off-venue show at Bar 11
impressed the crowd, a lot of whom were foreign including the gentleman from
Lithuania who Gylfi Blöndal, kimono’s affable bass player, engaged in conversation
much to everyone’s delight suggesting that he was “possibly German”.
Many of the enthusiastic punters came
up to the stage after the show to voice their appreciation to the band members.
The highlights of the show for me were the recent single ‘Specters’, the painfully
honest and wonderfully bleak ‘Less Than Zero’ and ‘Black’ from the album ‘Easy
Music For Difficult People’. If you haven’t heard of them before you should
check out ‘Specters’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KMEAwgB26g
And if you’ve never checked out
Iceland Airwaves before or indeed Iceland in general for that matter then you should
seriously consider doing both next year. As soon as this Airwaves is done we’ll
be counting down the days until the next one comes around. It’s like Christmas
for your ears.
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