June 2002 • Rockbites Alternative Daily
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June 2002 • Rockbites Alternative Daily
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The Funerals lead new Icelandic wave to America 13 June 2002
American country music, that absurdly grand melding of the poignant with the kitsch, must look a little funny to folks from say, Iceland. With loves and jobs getting lost left and right, self-pity beatified and glamorized... what could be more evocative of this tragicomic ethos than a band named The Funerals and an album bearing the title Pathetic Me? The Funerals are a collective led by vocalist/ guitarist/ songwriter Ragnar Kjartansson. They’re also the new side project of Icelandic electronica duo Trabant—Vidar Hákon Gíslason (who recorded and produced their record) and Porvaldur H. 'Thor' Gröndal. Three other musicians complete the project: vocalist Lara Sveinsdottir, guitarist Olafur Jonsson, and drummer Thorgeir Gudmundsson. Pathetic Me, The Funerals’ debut, came out in Iceland in December. Along with Trabant’s Moment Of Truth LP, it marked the leading edge of a new Icelandic wave when Reykjavík’s Thule Musik released both records domestically for the US on 21 May. Thule has a lot more very interesting music in store—some to appear Stateside later this year. With records by acts like Sofandi, múm, and Aparat Organ Quartet in the wings, the label is poised to shatter the notion that tiny Iceland (population 300,000) shot its wad having brought the world Björk and Sigur Rós. Kjartansson and company recorded Pathetic Me live to two-track outside Reykjavík over a couple of weekends last summer. From the completely sincere opening couplet of Puppy Eyes, “You’re so cute/ When your heart is broken”—sung over brushed drums, sparse acoustic guitar, and plinky synth—Kjartansson masterfully walks (and blurs) the line between tears of sentiment and tears of laughter. Surprisingly (hey: I couldn’t order a glass of water in Icelandic to save my life), the American-English lyrics on this record are subtle and colloquial enough to be, in turns, funny and tragic just where they are supposed to be. There’s none of that painfully embarrassing misuse of cliché you might expect—as on the recent, charmingly naive LP by Norway’s St. Thomas. The foreign flavor is strong, but as quirky rock goes (check out their Velvet Underground impression in the middle of the track Rich Bitch) this is highbrow without taking itself too seriously, and all in all is exceptionally satisfying. Pathetic Me is sparse and sad, tragicomic and beautiful, and may be the most delicate, and intimate, and perfectly balanced slow pop record of the year. Five bites out of five. Rockbites ratings 5: life changing, 4: stunning, 3: captivating, 2: amusing, 1: annoying. North American distribution for Pathetic Me is still coming up to speed; as of press time you won’t find it on CDnow or Amazon, for example; but check our link to Parasol. | Thule Musik/The Funerals | | CD from Parasol mail order | | top of page | |
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