• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • BOSTON BETTER BEER BUREAU
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • ABOUT
    • MASTHEAD
    • ADVERTISE
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Greater Boston's Alternative News Source

GET NORDIC WITH MUSIC, FOOD, AND FILM FROM LOCAL ICELAND TASTEMAKERS

Written by NINA CORCORAN Posted March 14, 2017 Filed Under: Drinks, Eats, Interviews, LIFESTYLE, MUSIC

Photo of Fufanu by Magnus Andersen

‎

Strap on your snow gear and tie your scarf tight. Iceland is hauling some of its buzziest bands overseas so we can get a better look at what their music scene is all about.

 

But first: some clarification. If this seems random, think again. The fine folks at Taste of Iceland are returning to North America to bring their Icelandic culture event to major cities like Chicago, Toronto, and New York City. Each year, they show off the vibrant culture Iceland has to offer. Given Boston is so close to the country (A 5-hour direct flight? Yes please.), we’re a regular pit stop for Taste of Iceland. This year’s lineup, however, is a step above years past.

 

This Saturday, the annual Reykjavik Calling concert will bring electronic post-punk act Fufanu (whose live show leaves you feeling like you’ve been electrified, as will its new album Sports), melodic punk group Mammút (who won Album of the Year and Song of the Year at the 2014 Icelandic Music Awards), and local motown poppers the Dirty Dottys to the Middle East Downstairs. The team works in collaboration with WERS, WBUR, Icelandair, and more to arrange the event, so you know it’s got enough ties to the scene to properly represent both Iceland and Boston. Best of all, the concert is totally free.

 

“There are so many Icelandic bands doing amazing things that I wish Americans knew about,” says Mammút’s Alexandra Baldursdottir. “The rap scene is getting bigger every day, with feminist forces like Reykjavíkurdaetur in the frontline. Electronic trio Samaris made an epic album last year. Hatari is a new Icelandic band that we’re keeping our eyes on.”

 

Mammut

 

For both Icelandic bands, traveling to Boston is a chance to better understand America while simultaneously debunking stereotypes about our city. “The only image of Boston I have is Alan Shore, Denny Crane, and Shirley Schmidt,” laughs Fufanu’s Kaktus Einarsson. “The shows Boston Legal were on TV when I was growing up, and that’s the closest I’ve been to Boston. I hope those characters exist when we arrive.”

 

“Everyone in Boston is at least a little Irish, or at least that’s what Icelanders think,” adds Baldursdottir. “It’s said that the Icelandic Vikings went to Iceland and stole all the beautiful women. Strangely, we don’t celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, though. There should always be an excuse for partying. Maybe we should try it while there.”

 

Luckily for the bands and for attendees, the event doesn’t stop there. The Taste of Iceland weekend continues its exploration into the Nordic nation’s culture at the Merchant where Icelandic chef Siggi Helga from Grillið restaurant will fly to Boston to create a homecooked meal that showcases their rising food scene. On Sunday, a short film festival from Iceland called Stockfish will screen at Brattle Theater in Harvard Square. Literature events, artwork discussions, and more will also take place. This is an immersive experience. If we didn’t know better, we would say it’s an on-point experience of Iceland without the flight but, thanks to the recent blizzard, with the weather.

 

If the event leaves a good taste in your mouth, then open up your calendar and mark vacation time in the month of November. Both Fufanu and Mammút play Iceland Airwaves regularly. Chances are you can catch them at this year’s festival, snack on freshly prepared local food, and take in the sights. It’s a dream combination that will have you wondering why you don’t travel to Iceland on the regular.

 

Now that’s a góðan dag if we ever saw one. If you don’t know what that means, well, I guess you just have to go to the show and ask an Icelander to tell you. And if you do make it to Iceland come November, take Baldursdottir’s advice: “Don’t buy bottled water in Iceland. There’s no need for that, even if the ads say so.”

 

FUFANU, MAMMÚT, THE DIRTY DOTTYS. SAT 3.18. MIDDLE EAST DOWNSTAIRS, 472 MASS. AVE., CAMBRIDGE. 8PM/18+/FREE. CROSSROADSPRESENTS.COM

NINA CORCORAN
+ posts
    This author does not have any more posts.

Filed Under: Drinks, Eats, Interviews, LIFESTYLE, MUSIC Tagged With: Baldursdottir, Dirty Dottys, Fufanu, Grillið, Iceland, Kaktus Einarsson, Reykjavik Calling, Siggi Helga

WHAT’S NEW

The Legendary Past And Uncertain Future Of The Harvard Square Theatre

The Legendary Past And Uncertain Future Of The Harvard Square Theatre

State Wire: Funds Aim To Support Municipalities With Expanded Mail Voting

State Wire: Funds Aim To Support Municipalities With Expanded Mail Voting

Parks & Checks: Wasteful, Opaque Bookkeeping At Two City Of Boston Nonprofit Arms

Parks & Checks: Wasteful, Opaque Bookkeeping At Two City Of Boston Nonprofit Arms

Surf’s Upcycled: Meet The Bay State Surfers Conserving The Oceans Where They Ride

Surf’s Upcycled: Meet The Bay State Surfers Conserving The Oceans Where They Ride

State Wire: Public Supports Changes To High-Stakes Testing For Mass Students

State Wire: Public Supports Changes To High-Stakes Testing For Mass Students

State Wire: White Supremacist Gatherings, Incidents Hit All-Time High In New England

State Wire: White Supremacist Gatherings, Incidents Hit All-Time High In New England

Primary Sidebar

LOCAL EVENTS

AAN Wire


Most Popular

  • Does Massachusetts Underestimate Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions?
  • The Most Expensive Massachusetts City For Car Insurance (No, It’s Not Boston)
  • If You Find A Mini Felted Animal Around Boston, This Is Where It Came From
  • As Prices Soar, Fossil Fuel Industry Looks After Its Interests On Beacon Hill
  • FOTOBOM: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND @ TD GARDEN

Footer

Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Advertise

Customer Service

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an email blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: sales@digboston.com To reach editorial (and for inquiries about internship opportunities): editorial@digboston.com