18 The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 16 — 2015 Tired And Getting Old (but not really) The Vintage Caravan are back in Iceland to celebrate their new album The Vintage Caravan October 9 20:00 Gamla Bíó 2,900 ISK Words Gabríel Benjamin Photo Philippe Beck The Vintage Caravan have sure come a long way. As they released their second album, ‘Voyage’, they graduated from support slot jockeys to headliner status, their energetic stage presence attracting swathes of young, party-hungry millennials. They went on to sign with Nuclear Blast in 2013, subsequently relocating to Denmark, and started touring internationally full time. Two years later, frontman Óskar Logi Ágústsson clearly carries the stress of having been on the road for so long. Despite the excitement of performing at big festivals like Roskilde and Wacken, playing upwards of 50 dates over a summer takes its toll. And the shows themselves are the easy part—Óskar tells me they’ve spent most of the past few months crammed into a small van with all of their gear, driving across Europe for up to eleven hours at a time, suffering each others’ smelly feet and loud snoring. Now the trio is back home for a spell, recharging their batteries and preparing to celebrate their latest album, ‘Arrival’, with a grand release show. I chat with Óskar at Stofan café as he enjoys a much-needed cup of coffee. As always, he is personable, quick to laughter, a glint of excitement for what’s to come sparkling in his eyes. <strong>CLASS</strong>ICS For many young people, the idea of touring through Europe and making a living off of your music sounds like a dream come true. What’s it like, being 21 and having already reached that coveted plateau? It’s all very surreal, and completely different than I had expected. I’m very grateful for the opportunity, as it’s not a given that people will receive your music well—we’ve been lucky in getting the right people with the right connections to take an interest in us. You play ‘70s inspired hard rock, that doesn’t at all feel out of place coming on after Deep Purple or Zeppelin on classic rock radio. Why do you choose to play such an old-timey style of music? Because it’s so much fun! There are a lot of people that’ve asked us “you’re from Iceland, why don’t you play pop music?” Electro and black metal are Iceland’s two main musical exports, but that’s not what we’re interested in playing. I think a big part of the beauty of living in Iceland is that nobody expects to be able to make a living playing their own original music, so there’s less emphasis on “making it.” People create their music the way they want to without compromising, and that’s what we’ve been able to do. TONGUE-IN-CHEEK The video for “Expand Your Mind” from ‘Voyage’ is loaded with references to taking a trip on psychedelic substances. How much do you guys, playing psychedelic rock, drop acid or do shrooms? Not at all. I mean, I can’t speak for the other guys in the band, but I’m not interested in any of that. I haven’t said this before in an interview, but every song on ‘Voyage’ tells the tale of some absurd story or character, and “Expand Your Mind” is about an encounter I had where these junkies were trying to get me to partake with them, saying “Dude, just try it, expand your mind!” Another song that was a bit more controversial but does the same thing is “Know Your Place” [a song that caused an uproar for its overtly misogynistic lyrics]. I really hoped that people would get it at the time, and I panicked when everyone thought we were endorsing these views. But fuck it, it’s art, and there are plenty of artists that write texts portraying troubling characters and their thought processes, like Nine Inch Nails. A large part of the metal scene also does this, such as Cannibal Corpse, and they’re not serial “But fuck it, it’s art, and there are plenty of artists that write texts portraying troubling characters and their thought processes, like Nine Inch Nails. A large part of the metal scene also does this, such as Cannibal Corpse, and they’re not serial killers, even if their lyrics often focus on butchering people.” killers, even if their lyrics often focus on butchering people. We’re from Iceland, one of the most feminist countries in the world, and we’re all feminists in the band, so I don’t know… It was so absurd to us that people didn’t get that we were saying these chauvinists are assholes. PROGGY PARTY So what can you tell me about the new album? Oh, it’s good! It was released this May, and has been well received. We recorded it in January in a studio we set up in Borgarfjörður. We were isolated there for two and a half weeks, writing, recording and finessing the album. The first four songs are much darker and heavier than the stuff that’s on ‘Voyage’, the next three songs are more party-friendly, and then the final tracks are very proggy. I feel like it’s a very cohesive album. Are there any songs that you foresee will cause as much controversy as “Know Your Place” ? No! [laughs] That song and album, they were both experiments that we don’t need to repeat. So what can you tell me about the album release concert? We’re going to play the album in its entirety for the first time ever. We’ll be joined by Magnús Jóhann from Electric Elephant, who played keys on the album, so we can perform our songs differently than when it’s just the three of us. We’re working on getting the sound as tight as possible, because we want to make sure it’ll be a oncein-a-lifetime kind of show. rauða húsið E yrarbakka r e s t a u r a n t “One of the best restaurants in Iceland. Fresh lobster, amazing cod fi sh!!” “Very good food, excellent service and a very friendly restaurant.” 1 to Reykjavík ca. 45 min. 1 to Þingvellir, Gullfoss, Geysir ca. 45-60 min. Hveragerði 39 Selfoss to Blue Lagoon ca. 50 min. Eyrarbakki “Amazing seafood in this little town...” “Not to be missed. Food fabulous and staff wonderful ... This spot is worth the trip to the small village alone.” raudahusid.is Búðarstígur 4, 820 Eyrarbakki • tel. 483-3330 open for lunch & dinner 7 days a week
ENNEMM / SÍA / NM70703 Spectacular Whale Exhibition Walk Amongst the Giants Come and see full-scale models of the 23 whale species that have been found off Iceland’s coastal waters. Walk amongst life-size models, check out the interactive media and explore these majestic creatures in our family-friendly exhibition. “Wonderful one of a kind museum!” Loved this museum with its life-sized models of 23 different species of whales! Interesting and informative exhibits, well worth a visit! The staff was friendly and helpful, and we loved the gift shop, too. WE ARE HERE FISKISLÓÐ GRANDAGARÐUR REYKJAVÍK HARBOUR HARPA ÁNANAUST MÝRARGATA WELCOME TO OUR CAFÉ | GET A SOUVENIR IN OUR GIFT SHOP | BOOK A WHALE WATCHING TOUR Fiskislóð 23-25 | Reykjavík | Tel. +354 571 0077 | Open every day 10 am – 5 pm | www.whalesoficeland.is
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