Ægir has been an active presence in the underground music scene in Reykjavík, Iceland since the age of fourteen; drumming in a wide variety of bands - from explosive hardcore outfits World Narcosis and Dead Herring to dream-pop sweethearts bagdad brothers and jangly indie rock band Laura Secord (& many more) - as well as releasing music as the label Why not Records and running the city’s most active all ages venue in his basement since 2017.
January 2020 saw the debut of Ægir’s solo project, where he explores new sonic avenues from behind the drum kit, aided by a collection of sound-manipulating devices and a growing interest in sound design. He draws inspiration from a wide range of influence: the naturalistic sounds of the wind, his hardcore punk roots, as well as experimental electronic, classical and ambient music. Ægir dips his toes into each of these worlds while standing firmly in his own intricate and ever-growing one.
Today he releases the new single "Forgetting That It Could Kill Me," an engaging first look into the shapeshifting world of his music. Pulsing electronics, ambient atmospherics, and an unshakable immediacy that hints at multiple paths open to him in the future.
"The foundation here, the main loop, was made from a 2-second vocal sample; a mic pop, a hum, an exhale. mix in some (a lot) reverb, some fucked up delays, some multi-band mangling. add time-stretched snares and warped, distorted strings. Everything is in the flow, each element inspired by the ones that came before - accentuating or filling in the blanks," he describes.
"It's also about feeling lost and falling prey to destructive habits and instability. Knowing kind of what I need in order to stay afloat, but losing track of those things and ending up staring into the void and feeling like there’s no way out of it."
Ægir will be releasing his new album later in 2021. Stay tuned.
