one album

The first in a series of music related posts.

If the music police came to your house and told you that for the rest of your life, you could only listen to one album for the rest of time, what would you choose? My choice always surprises me. I don’t think I could pick a single artist so it has to be a compilation or a soundtrack and I have so many to pick from but the winner?

Icelandic Pop Favourites – you can listen to previews from this link.

Toti, Anna and the kids sent this home with Pabbi after his 2000 trip to Iceland if I recall correctly, Matthew was sent one of the companion CD’s – Icelandic Rock Favourites. Without a doubt, this CD is the one that I have played the most, it was one for the first I ripped to MP3 format and again one of the first to be uploaded to my MP3 player.

The thing is though, I remember opening up the wrapping paper, seeing the CD and thought uggh Pop, why couldn’t I have got rock or something like Matthew, how wrong was I. Icelandic pop and music in general is so different to anything else I have heard. I am not a big pop fan but nothing could replace this CD in my collection.

I see the CD as having two styles in it, the first the tracks with a dance anthem theme; repetitive lyrics, lots of beats, the second style are the tracks with a focus on the vocals, less beats more guitar and piano but still very upbeat, these are songs that you can clean to. Some songs are in English, some are in Icelandic, sure I only understand some words in the Icelandic songs but I still love them.

Track Listing
Selma Björnsdóttir – All out of luck
Ég elska alla – Stjórnin
Síðan hittumst við aftur – SSSól
Gus Gus – Ladyshave
Móa – Joy and Pain
Sálin hans Jóns míns – Okkar nótt
Todmobile РSt̼lkan
Maryland – Dreaming
Bubbi – Sumar konur
Sóldögg – Friður
Nýdönsk – Horfðu til himins
Stu̡menn РKomdu me̡
URL – Song in A
Tweety – Gott mál
Greifarnir – Skiptir engu máli
Ã? móti sól – Ã? þig

My favourite track on the CD is without a doubt Stuðmenn’s Komdu með, I can’t really tell you why, other than the fact that each time I find myself singing away. My name on MSN and ICQ many, many times in my younger days was Komdu með or Helen – Komdu með.

So thanks to Toti and family for putting an irreplaceable album in my collection and opening my ears to a whole new world of music.

You can buy single songs from Tonlist for USD$0.99, bargain! Go explore Icelandic music 🙂 and if you could only have one album from your collection, what would it be?