The Icelanders are coming! With a population of just over 300 thousand its home to two of the Coachella’s favorites: Of Monsters and Men and Sigur Ros. All the while my hometown, Fresno, which has nearly twice the population still holds artistic claim as being the city within driving distance of the other city where Steve Perry of Journey grew up in.
For those not savvy to the eclectic Icelandic experimental scene, Sigur Ros is a post-rock, ambient band, whose members, which are in the double digits, play flawless harmonies, as front man Jónsi Birgisson slides a violin bow across his electric guitar creating an eternal wailing sound, while singing in a hauntingly beautiful Icelandic falsetto. In other words, I’m moving to Iceland.
The only negative about their set came from the venue’s side. Phoenix, who was headlining the main stage during Sigur Rios’ set, drowned out a bit of the latter’s softer and more delicate songs. Also towards the tail end of the performance, Sigur Ros’ sound dropped out, leaving an awkward 15 seconds of thumb-twiddling anxiety wondering how long the technical glitch would last for. However, the drums kicked in, soloing acoustically until the sound problem was rectified, and the other band members joined him seamlessly like only a band with 19 years experience could.
See Lisa Morgan’s, The Coachella 2013 Experience Part 1 for “Of Monsters and Men.”
SPOILER ALERT: They killed it.
