Árstíðir – Colos Saal, Aschaffenurg; September 11th, 2013

I never had any doubts Árstíðir’s Germany tour would be a successful one, but the first show already went so far beyond my expectations that I wonder, how they will manage to top this. Even considering being biased with all the love I feel for this band and even with my firm belief in their ability to take over any audience there is still a difference between shows and this was a good one.

It was never my original plan to go to Aschaffenburg, since the train connections aren’t that great and I was out of vacation days. Yet, during a sleepless night this past weekend I realized I couldn’t not be there so I ended up booking a hotel and train ticket in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Got to the venue just in time for the show to begin, said a quick hello to Masha and Linda, then made my way to the front where I fond a spot side stage. The Colos Saal was still as cozy as I remembered and they’d even set up tables and chairs which suits the guys better than everyone standing up.

Myrra Rós started shortly after 8, on stage alone with her guitar. The sound was perfect, her voice loud and clear. I liked it even better than at the Rosenberg back in August. Don’t know her setlist yet, but she played 6 or 7 songs, warmly received by the audience. For the last two she had Jón and Hallgrímur on stage with her. 🙂 Apparently they play on her album too. It was lovely seeing and hearing them.

During the short break that followed I took a look around. The venue was nicely filled with people of different age groups. I wondered how many had come, knowing what they were in for and how many would just be blown off their feet by what they were about to hear. Chatted with Linda and Masha a bit and almost missed the start of the concert. Luckily my nice spot hadn’t been taken by anyone. 🙂

The atmosphere was right from the start and all of the guys looked quite happy. Occasionally one of them seemed far away and thoughtful, but overall they were in a great mood, friendly banter and jokes happening all through the night. 🙂 Even before they had played one note I was smiling. The guys eased the audience into what lay ahead with ‘Sunday Morning’ and ‘Heiðin’. By the time they got to ‘Á meðan jörðin sefur’ and Jón started the jokes about nobody understanding Icelandic and not wanting to translate, they had already won them over. People were amazingly quiet, so quiet in fact that my camera could be heard, even though it was in silent mode. After every song, the audience waited a little bit to make sure it was really over, before breaking into loud cheers – absolutely perfect.

Every song was warmly received and many wore smiles on their faces. This reflected back on the guys, gave them energy. Jón and Gunnar did most of the talking that night, announcing songs with a few jokes in-between. At one point Jón even underlined Gunnar’s jokes on the piano. That sure made me laugh. As usual, little things made my night. The smiles, the looks they shared, the passion I felt, just watching them play. They all seemed quite relaxed and really concentrated at the same time, very much in tune with each other.

After what felt like mere minutes, they ended with ‘Shades’ and ‘Tárin’, uninterrupted by clapping for the first time in a long time. We would not let them go though and they had to come back out again. ‘Til hennar’ was next, then I saw Karl asking the others “one more?” and they treated us to ‘And so it goes’. People still would not stop cheering and to everyone’s surprise the guys jumped off stage, walked into the audience and performed one last song, right among us. It was a perfect way to end the show.

I went to the merchandise stand for hugs and a chat. Many people bought CDs, telling they guys how wonderful it was. It is always a pleasure listening in on these conversations, makes me feel proud to see my guys succeed. 🙂 After everyone was gone I got my chance to have a word with them too. Left around midnight to get some sleep before going home again the next morning. It was so worth the trip.

Setlist

Sunday Morning
Heiðin
Á meðan jörðin sefur
Orð að eigin vali
Ages
þér ég unni
Lost in you
Ljoð í Sand
Við dagsins hnig
Days and Nights
Brestir
You just have to know of me
Nú gleymist ég
Shades/Tárin

Til hennar
And so it goes
Góða veislu gjöra skal

Árstíðir  Germany tour fall 2013 – 1 concert down, 9 to go. Next stop: Hamburg