Hekla

One of the persisting joys I receive from attending Iceland Airwaves is that of seeing an unknown artist emerge years later with a new EP release. I last saw Hekla Magnúsdóttir playing theremin with the Icelandic surf band Bárujárn in 2009. Outside of being the only theremin player in the festival, she also stood out for her fearless playing on a difficult instrument. I was pleasantly surprised to find that she now has a collection of her solo compositions available on line, some of which even have a video as well.

Hekla is definitely on her own 'island' of eerie electronica; she describes it as being a bit 'horrible' at times, but perfect for the moods she is trying to create. The inverted cover art is Flippism at its finest. I got a big kick out of her in 2009 and an even bigger one from the six tracks on this short album. She has also supplied music for a dance piece video.

Here's a little video feature on Hekla from the Reykjavík Grapevine:



You can preview the album and order it as a download from her website.

Hekla rocking out in 2009 with Bárujárn:

What a sweetheart!

UPDATE: She'll be performing at Iceland Airwaves this year.

UPDATE: She has a new album coming out.