lazyblood

The performance opened with the entrance of a giant, twitching, two- masked figure,
caped in a shimmering, golden cloak, and absorbing the
attention and energy of the space, like an alien making its first landing
on Earth. The costume was about as low-tech as one from a retro Doctor
Who episode, but the movement and power that was erupting from with-in the cloak was explosive and primal. Our introduction to this golden
beast was short as the human forms, hidden beneath, were released and
revealed to be two figures, one male and one female. The long-haired
male took to his Apple Mac and microKorg keyboard, and the volatile
female grabbed the microphone and dominated centre-stage. The 15–20
minutes that followed was an unclassifiable merge of dance, drama and
theatre – all compacted within the form of a rock band. With Valdimar
Jóhannsson steering the sound through an electronic storm of electro-
punk, metal, glam rock and Nordic folk, Erna Ómarsdottir sculpted and
ruptured the world she and Jóhannsson were building together with a
body like a tornado in a music box, and a voice that danced between tones of the
Northern Lights and the sound of a mother dragon protecting her young. - Alexander Roberts , Total theater magazin ,spring 2010 volume 22 issue 01

Lazyblood at Faktorý, first show of Saturday night. I'm there on the recommendation of fellow reviewer Bob Cluness. Other than that, all I know about Lazyblood is what the Airwaves booklet says. So when the duo walked onto the stage I didn't know what to expect. Erna Ómarsdóttir, who is a modern dancer, a petite woman with wild hair and muscles like suspension bridge cables, picked up a microphone and announced, in a voice that sounded a bit like Jónsi from Sigur Rós doing a Björk impression, that the next song was about "being in love and laziness." Therefore, I wasn't expecting when Erna and Valdimar Jóhannsson, the other member of Lazyblood, a large, imposing, long-haired man, started screaming in the deep, guttural manner of black metal singers, their faces and bodies contorting.

It was as if an electro-schmindie band had been eaten by rampaging maenads. While Valdimar stuck to the stage, playing music on a laptop and other gadgets, Erna twisted and coiled her body, at times rushing into the crowd, even crawling around on the floor, pushing audience members out of her way. This was, of course, a thoroughly premeditated and choreographed performance, but in the moment it felt like being enveloped by a soft avalanche of human madness. Describing Lazyblood's performance is an exercise in futility, as their art can almost be said to be about the limits of what can be communicated in language. So just go watch a live video. It's Björk Metal (that's a good thing). - By Kári Tulinius, Reykjavik Grapevine

The best show I witnessed at Iceland Airwaves in 2010 is a pretty hard one to pick. Frankly the line up this year was awesome. However, because I was reviewing for the Grapevine, I got the opportunity to see all kinds of things I wouldn’t normally have thought to check out. One of these happened to be Lazyblood, an Icelandic duo who cranked out a truly impressive and powerful performance for the few keen punters who came to check out their set early on Saturday evening.

It is perhaps because I am new to the particular style of dark, grinding music that Lazyblood play that I was so blown away by their set. All greenness aside, their performance was deeply affecting simply for the amount of energy they put into their work. Veins were bulging from their necks and eyes rolling back in their heads. It was cool. They also used the space in a really different way, not leaping around theatrically and striking the typical rock star poses, but moving snake-like across the floor, amongst the thinly scattered crowd.

A concert is really great when it opens your eyes to something, makes you look twice and see that music doesn’t just have to be about playing notes, it can also be a performance which challenges people. This is what I saw in Lazyblood’s show, and probably what made it the best show I saw at Iceland Airwaves 2010. - Bergrún Anna Hallsteinsdóttir, Reykjavik Grapevine