good morning!
“Of course I’m going to go to a record store while I’m in Iceland,” I told myself on my first full day in Reykjavik.
But which one? And what do I get?
Bjork? Nah. Laufey? A bit too on-the-nose for me right now. Something else, but something Icelandic.
I took some inspiration from visiting the Icelandic Punk Museum earlier that day, a small space formerly carved out of an underground water closet now dedicated to the history and legacy of Icelandic punk music.
It’s a good time!
And it showcased a lot of great music and musicians. Now, I couldn’t remember any of them. That posed a problem when I went to 12 Tonar, a record store situated right on the main touristy bit in the Reykjavik city centre.
Aside from being a really cool store, 12 Tonar of course has a few sections dedicated to Icelandic music. Of course, I didn’t really know what to search for. It also didn’t occur to me until later that maybe I could’ve asked the guy to help me out.
So I stumbled upon this record from the band Pink Street Boys. I knew nothing about them, but figured they had to be punk given the cover art on the jacket. Also, their name reminded me of Pet Shop Boys. I like the Pet Shop Boys, so Pink Street Boys has to be good too.
When I finally got home to Washington I gave it a spin.
It isn’t too bad - a little more hardcore than I typically go for when it comes to punk. I like that though, particulaly when you play it against some of the folksier and more cherubine melodies you might associate with Iceland.
That’s kind of what makes punk so unique, right? This willingness to not be so commercial, to be a bit edgier - to take more risks. I dunno, I kind of like this record. Maybe you will too.
Fitzie’s track of the day: Way It Goes, by Pink Street Boys
And now for your links:
The Guardian previews the upcoming League One season
Brazil to face US in women’s football Olympics final