Amiina played yesterday at Eymundsson bookstore for admirers, friends and casual bystanders. I got to the bookstore just in time for the show to start, after a walk in the wind that almost defeated me. Eymundsson by that time was crowded enough to force me to find a spot next to the trash bin, near the refreshments stand. If I can give you people a suggestion: never stand by a refreshments stand, especially if what they offer is free. Even if at first doesn’t look like it, it’s going to be a popular spot, trust me. The whole time I had to be careful to not inadvertently kick or elbow children that were continuously wanting a cookie or a juice refill. Nightmare.
The music performance was brief but nice. The atmosphere was extremely relaxed and friendly. Once again I was reminded how very naturally – thanks to culture and education, but also thanks to temperament of these people – music comes to Icelanders. The band played a few of their songs from Puzzle, choosing to emphasize for the occasion more on the instrumental side of the latest album.
Puzzle represents a slight departure from amiina’s previous works, not so much in spirit but mainly in sound. More synthetic than the rest of their production and more vocally-driven, albeit the lyrics sung are very essential. Although I still prefer amiina’s strictly instrumental side more, Puzzle is definitely a grower and I am enjoying it more after having listened to it for some time.
You can visit amiina‘s site for more information about the band’s activities and releases.
Images ©Pu the Owl. Don’t use without permission. Pu’s photography blog can be found at Manic Owl Works.
