Mondays in Iceland - #18

Amiina, Minneapolis, 2007
 
One month from now (October 14th), The 11th Iceland Airwaves festival will begin (I hope.) Money problems, perhaps related to the Kreppa, perhaps not, have put the future of this unique event in limbo. From what I've read, November will bring new hardships and economic contractions to Iceland. Perhaps this will be a final hurrah, an end to an era. This festival, apart from its "exotic" locale, brings out a variety of musical acts, some are mainstream bands from the US and the UK, while others are from more isolated parts of Scandinavia and, of course, Iceland itself. The Airwaves I attended (in 2006) had performers ranging in age from 13 to 70, with rock, metal, techno, classical, folk, country, rockabilly, and numerous hybrids of these. Many of the groups performed in Icelandic. There have even been Faroese acts. This musical generation is the first to come of age in a world-wide pop culture, but there is just enough isolation left in the upbringing and education of these musicians to enable them to offer truly unique, innovate music.

If this event were to end, something will be lost which will be impossible to regain.