Posted in Whathaveyou on September 8th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Who’s gonna argue? Icelandic trio The Vintage Caravan will begin a European tour at Desertfest Belgium 2023 in Antwerp on Oct. 21. They’ll spend nearly a month on the road on a run scheduled largely after the wind-down of the Fall festival season, but accordingly at a less saturated time, as opposed to, say, mid-October, when even on the continental scale of Europe as a whole things are packed. Plus, taking off later allows them to get the release of their new live album, The Monuments Tour (Live), out of the way and pack the inevitable boxes of vinyl for lugging from show to show. At least until they sell through.
What’s funny is that the tour for 2021’s Monuments (review here) studio album will be continuing on this impending stint even as they memorialize it on the live 2LP. Leave it to The Vintage Caravan to exist in multiple timeframes. Suitable for a band who do so much to modernize classic heavy methods.
A sampling of their bona fides and info on the live record are available to check out below, as is the live video for “Can’t Get You Off My Mind,” which has been posted as the first single. Dig it:
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN to Release Live Album, ‘The Monuments Tour (Live)’, on October 13, 2023 via Napalm Records
Icelandic retro rock trio THE VINTAGE CARAVAN announce their first live album, ‘The Monuments Tour (Live)’, to be released on October 13, 2023 via Napalm Records!
Bringing back vintage rock with progressive influences, THE VINTAGE CARAVAN has proven more than capable of creating their own trademark sound, presenting guitar driven classics merged with blues and rock. Today, the band unveil the live single “Can’t Get You Off My Mind” – taking the listener on a blistering ride through pounding drums, intense guitar solos and an undeniably catchy chorus.
Known as an energetic live band, THE VINTAGE CARAVAN has convinced thousands of fans after countless high-voltage live performances at festivals such as Roadburn, Wacken and Hellfest, touring with Opeth, and most recently on their latest Latin American headline tour. THE VINTAGE CARAVAN create nostalgic nuances to get lost in, and with their upcoming first live album, they’ve finally captured the magic of their live performances on record.
Watch the live video for “Can’t Get You Off My Mind” below and catch THE VINTAGE CARAVAN live on the second leg of The Monuments Tour!
‘The Monuments Tour (Live)’ Track List: 1. Whispers (Live) 2. Crystallized (Live) 3. Reflections (Live) 4. Innerverse (Live) 5. Forgotten (Live) 6. Can’t Get You Off My Mind (Live) 7. Psychedelic Mushroom Man (Live) 8. Cocaine Sally (Live) 9. Hell (Live) 10. Babylon (Live) 11. On The Run (Live) 12. Expand Your Mind (Live) 13. Clarity (Live)
‘The Monuments Tour (Live)’ will be available in the following formats: => 2LP Gatefold marbled vinyl Red => 2LP Gatefold marbled vinyl Yellow => Digital Album
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN Fall 2023 European Tour
21/10 BE – Antwerp, Desertfest 23/10 CH – Aarau, KIFF 25/10 NL – Alkmaar, Victorie 26/10 DE – Bremen, Tower 27/10 NL – Helmond, De Cacaofabriek 28/10 NL – Drachten – Iduna 29/10 DE – Hannover, Béi Chéz Heinz 31/10 DE – Dresden, Club Puschkin 02/11 PL – Gdansk, Drizzly Grizzly 03/11 PL – Warsaw, Hydrozagadka 04/11 SK – Kosice, Colosseum 05/11 HU – Budapest, Analog Music Hall 07/11 HR – Zagreb, Vintage Industrial Bar 08/11 AT – Vienna, Arena 09/11 DE – Augsburg, Kantine 10/11 AT – Lustenau, Carini Saal 11/11 DE – Frankfurt, Nachtleben 13/11 DE – Stuttgart, Im Wizemann Club 14/11 DE – Dortmund, FZW Club 15/11 FR – Strasbourg, La Laiterie 17/11 FR – Marseille, Molotov 18/11 FR – Vallet, Westill Fest
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN is: Óskar Logi Ágústsson – lead vocals, electric guitar Alexander Örn Númason – bass guitar, backing vocals Stefán Ari Stefánsson – drums, percussion
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 20th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Add Icelandic heavy rockers The Vintage Caravan to your list of who’s on the road in Europe this Fall, and if you’re noticing that last growing increasingly crowded, I don’t think that’s wrong. The rightly venerated Reykjavik trio toured last year in support of their Spring 2021 album, Monuments (review here), and they’ll head out again in the coming months, keeping company on part of the run with countrymen Volcanova. That too is consistent with their 2022 tour, hence the sequelish nomenclature around the upcoming run, the still-mostly-young band having established themselves as ambassadors of Iceland’s surprisingly crowded and varied underground scene.
Tour starts at Desertfest Belgium in Antwerp on Oct. 21, ends at Westill Fest in France on Nov 18, and has plenty of stops in between. Here’s the rundown:
(#128293#)Europe! (#128293#) We’re super excited to announce that we’ll be hitting the road again in October and November! Check out the dates below carefully as in some of these cities we’ll be headlining for the very time ever! You can expect a long The Vintage Caravan show and who knows we might bring something special, so stay tuned for more news! ⚠️ Get your tickets here (#128073#) www.thevintagecaravan.eu
Very happy to have our dear friends of Volcanova again with us at some of the shows!
21/10 BE – Antwerp, Desertfest 23/10 CH – Aarau, KIFF 25/10 NL – Alkmaar, Victorie 26/10 DE – Bremen, Tower 27/10 NL – Helmond, De Cacaofabriek 28/10 NL – Drachten – Iduna 29/10 DE – Hannover, Béi Chéz Heinz 31/10 DE – Dresden, Club Puschkin 02/11 PL – Gdansk, Drizzly Grizzly 03/11 PL – Warsaw, Hydrozagadka 04/11 SK – Kosice, Colosseum 05/11 HU – Budapest, Analog Music Hall 07/11 HR – Zagreb, Vintage Industrial Bar 08/11 AT – Vienna, Arena 09/11 DE – Augsburg, Kantine 10/11 AT – Lustenau, Carini Saal 11/11 DE – Frankfurt, Nachtleben 13/11 DE – Stuttgart, Im Wizemann Club 14/11 DE – Dortmund, FZW Club 15/11 FR – Strasbourg, La Laiterie 17/11 FR – Marseille, Molotov 18/11 FR – Vallet, Westill Fest
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN is: Óskar Logi Ágústsson – lead vocals, electric guitar Alexander Örn Númason – bass guitar, backing vocals Stefán Ari Stefánsson – drums, percussion
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 7th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Some expected names in this first announcement from Desertfest Belgium 2023 in Antwerp — Yawning Man, King Buffalo, Truckfighters who seem to be making the rounds all year, etc. — but plenty of unexpected too, with aCarlton Melton returning to Europe, Philadelphia’s Heavy Temple apparently traveling abroad for the first time (new album?), Sourvein returning to road work, REZN heading over to support their killer new record, BlackWater HolyLight, Howling Giant — maybe also their first time in Europe? — Duel getting back over and so on.
As ever, I’m curious to see which of these acts will be on tour, and which with each other, but for now Desertfest Antwerp 2023 looks like a banger in the making. Early-bird tickets sold out in like hours when they were put on sale in February — two months before this first unveiling of band names, mind you — and one expects the sale on weekend tickets to follow suit. I’m not much for the big name on the poster personally, but I recognize I’m in a minority pretty much of myself in that, and from there on I don’t see a clunker in the bunch. Call it a win.
Of course, Desertfest Belgium also helms the Ghent edition. I’m not sure if that will be earlier or later — my guess would be earlier, but maybe the Fall fests spill over to November this year; could happen, wouldn’t be terrible if it did — but for today there’s plenty to dig here as posted by the festival:
The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived! We’re beyond stoked to announce the first round of names for Desertfest Antwerp!
Confirmed for Desertfest Antwerp 2023 are Cult of Luna, Truckfighters, MANTAR, King Buffalo, The Vintage Caravan, Year of no light, Nebula, Yawning Man, Dopelord, The Atomic Bitchwax, DUEL, Siena Root, Blackwater Holylight, Howling Giant, SOURVEIN, Carlton Melton, Heavy Temple, REZN, Margarita Witch Cult.
No doubt, it is going to be another epic version of Desertfest Anywerp!
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 21st, 2022 by JJ Koczan
So it goes. To be perfectly honest with you, I can’t really keep up anymore — if doing so was ever possible — with what tours are actually happening, what tours aren’t, what’s been canceled, postponed, and so on. But I posted these dates the first time around, so it seems only fair to do so for the second go. I’m not sure the plague status or attitude in Europe at this point — sadly, I haven’t been abroad at all in well over two years — but I know where I’m at people are dropping masks like covid never happened and that usually precedes some stupid outbreak of some stupid variant. When it comes to this and the countless other runs bands have planned, fests and whatnot, I suppose I just hope stuff can actually happen and that people on stage and off can feel and actually be safe. It seems like much less to ask than it apparently is.
There are a couple unfilled dates in this list that I wouldn’t be surprised to see result in festival slots, but of course everything is contingent still on that big dumb viral elephant in the room. Go, The Vintage Caravan and Volcanova, go.
In a spirit of hope, then:
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN – NEW TOUR DATES!
We are absolutely stoked to announce the new tour dates in Europe and the UK together with our friends of Volcanova in September and October! Where will we see you???
Tickets: www.thevintagecaravan.eu/shows/
September
30 ES – Barcelona, Sala Boveda
October
01 ES – Madrid, Story Live 02 PT – Lisbon, LAV 04 FR – Toulouse, Connexion Live 05 FR – Lyon, CCO Villeurbanne 06 FR – Paris, Backstage O’Sullivan 07 FR – Nantes, Le Ferrailleur 08 FR – Chalons en Champagne, Espace Solana 09 FR – Tourcoing, Grand Mix 11 DE – Berlin, Cassiopeia 12 DE – Hamburg, Bahnhof Pauli 13 NL – Amsterdam, Q-Factory 14 NL – Sneek, Het Bolwerk 15 NL – Tilburg, Little Devil 16 DE – Essen, Turock 18 CH – Solothurn, Kofmehl 19 DE – Munich, Strom 20 AT – Innsbruck, PMK 21 AT – Vöcklabruck, OKH 22 DE – Cologne, Artheater 23 BE – Brussels, AB 25 UK – London, O2 Academy 2 Islington 26 UK – Chester, Live Rooms 27 UK – Leeds, The Warehouse 30 UK – Manchester, A3 31 UK – Cardiff, The Globe
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN is: Óskar Logi Ágústsson – lead vocals, electric guitar Alexander Örn Númason – bass guitar, backing vocals Stefán Ari Stefánsson – drums, percussion
Day Three. The kinds of material covered have varied, but it’s been pretty good so far, which as you can probably imagine makes this whole process much, much easier. Today would traditionally be hump day, where we hit and surpass the halfway mark, but since this is a double-size Quarterly Review, we’re only a quarter of the way there. Still a long way to go, but I’ve got decent momentum in my head at this point and I’ve taken steps not to make the workload crushing on any given day (this mostly involved working last weekend, thanks to The Patient Mrs. for the extra time), so I’m not feeling overly rushed either. Which is welcome.
In that spirit, let’s get to it.
Quarterly Review #21-30:
The Vintage Caravan, Monuments
To every sorrowful head who bemoans the state of rock and roll as being dead, who misses big songs, bands unafraid to groove, to engage their audience, to change things up and stay anchored to a vital spirit of the live experience, the answer is The Vintage Caravan. Monuments is the Icelandic trio’s follow-up to 2018’s Gateways (review here) and it opens with a righteous four-song mission-statement salvo from “Whispers” to “Dark Times” before mellowing out in “This One’s for You” and diving into the eight-minute centerpiece “Forgotten” — later answered by the more subdued but likewise proggy closer “Clarity” — before the hard-hitting shuffle renews on side B with “Sharp Teeth,” “Hell” and “Torn in Two” try to outdo each other in has-the-most-swagger and “Said & Done” sneaks in ahead of the finale to walk away with that particular title. Suitably enough. Momentum is almost a detriment to the proceedings, since the songs are worth individual attention, but among the classic tenets here is leave-’em-wanting-more, and The Vintage Caravan do, no question.
First thing to note? Oslo Tapes are not from Oslo. Or Trondheim, for that matter. Founded by Marco Campitelli in Italy, the band is a work of homage and exploration of ideas born out of a trip to Oslo — blessings and peace upon the narrative — and ØR, which is Norwegian for “confusing,” is their third album. It arrives loaded with textures from electro-krautrock and ’70s space modernized through to-day’s post-heavy, a breathy delivery from Campitelli giving a song like “Kosmik Feels” an almost goth-wave presence while the harder-landing “Bodø Dakar,” which follows, shifts with pointed rhythm into a textured percussion jam in its second half, with ethereal keys still behind. The shimmering psychedelia of “Norwegian Dream” comes paired with “Exotic Dreams” late in the record’s eight-track procession, and while the latter emphasizes Oslo Tapes‘ can-go-anywhere sensibility with horn sounds and vague, drumless motion, the hard dance in closer “Obsession is the Mother of All” really seems to be the moment of summary here. That must’ve been some trip.
Clocking in at 15 tracks and 77 minutes of deeply varied cosmic fuckery, from the motorik push of “Your Are the Sun” to the ’90s Britgaze stylizations of “Mystified” to the twanging central guitar figure of “The Air is Poison” and onward into the blowout kosmiche echo “Sweet Dreams and Nicotine” and chic the-underground-is-actually-made-of-velvet “Like a Halo” ahead of the Hawkwind-on-ludes “I’m Buggin’ Out,” Filthy Hippies‘ Departures at very least gets points for having the right title. Departs from everything. Reality, itself, you. The whole nine. The good news is the places it goes have a unifying element of grunge laziness woven throughout them, like Filthy Hippies just rolled out of bed and this material just happened — and maybe that’s how it went — and the journey they make, whistling as they go on “Among the Wire” and ending up in the wistful wash of “Empty Spaces” is a joy to follow. Heady. More purposeful than it’s letting on. Not a minor investment, but not a minor reward either.
Long since in command of their aesthetic, Norway’s Dunbarrow embark on III, their third long-player, with a full realization of their purpose. Recorded by the five-piece in Spring 2020 and left to gestate for a year’s time, it’s having been unearthed is suitable to the classic doom vibe wrought throughout the eight tracks, but Dunbarrow‘s sound is more vintage in structure than production at this point, and the shifting balance between ‘then’ and ‘now’ in what they do imagines what might’ve been if self-titled era Witchcraft had retained its loyalty to the tenets of Sabbath/Pentagram while continuing to grow its songcraft, such that “Worms of Winter” both is and is decidedly not “Snowblind,” while “Lost Forever” embarks on its own roll and “Turn in Your Grave” makes for an organ-laced folkish highlight, fitting in its cult atmosphere and setting up the rawer finish in “Turns to Dust.” This is who Dunbarrow are, and what they do, they do exceedingly well.
The year is 2076. The world’s first Whole Earth parliament has come together to bask in the document Transmission, originating in Gothenburg, Sweden, at the behest of an entity known only as Djinn and respected purveyor Rocket Recordings. It is believed that in fact Transmission and its eight component freak jazz psychedelia tracks were not written at the time of their first release some 55 years earlier, but, as scholars have come to theorize after more than a half-century of rigorous, consistent study, it is a relic of another dimension. Someplace out of place, some time out of time as humanity knows it. So it is that “Creators of Creation” views all from an outsider’s eagle eye, and “Urm the Mad” squees its urgency as if to herald the serenity of “Love Divine” to come, voices echoing up through the surcosmic rift through which Djinn sent along this Transmission. What was their purpose? Why make contact? And what is time for such creatures? Are they us? Are we them? Are we alone? Are we “Orpheus?” Wars have been fought over easier questions.
Their third album, Shevils‘ Miracle of the Sun renews the band’s collaboration with producer Marcus Forsgren, which obviously given the sound of the record, was not broken. With a tidy 10 songs in 32 minutes, the Oslo-based four-piece deliver a loyal reading of heavy hardcore riffing minus much of the chestbeating or dudely pretense that one might otherwise encounter. They’ve got it nailed, and the break as “Monsters on TV” squibblies out is a forceful but pleasant turn, especially backed by the pure noise rock of “Scandinavian Death Star.” The band plays back and forth between heft and motion throughout, offering plenty of both in “Wet Soaking Wet” and “Ride the Flashes,” hitting hard but doing more than just hitting at the same time. Topped with fervent shouts, Shevils feels urgent in manner that to my ears recalls West Coast US fare like Akimbo, but is nonetheless the band’s own, ranging into broader soundscapes on “No More You” and anti-shred on “It Never Ends,” the only two cuts here over four minutes long. No time to screw around.
If they haven’t been yet — and they may have — it’s entirely likely that by the time I’m done writing this sentence some record label or other will have picked up Paralyzed to release their self-titled debut album on vinyl. The Bamberg, Germany-based four-piece bring classic heavy metal thunder to still-Sabbathian doom rock, casting their lot in with the devil early on “Lucifer’s Road (My Baby and Me),” which feels like as much a statement of aesthetic purpose as it does a righteous biker riff. It’s by no means the sum-total of what’s on offer in a more extended piece like “Prophets” or side B’s rumble-and-roll-plus-wah-equals-doom “Mother’s Only Son,” but the brash fare they bring to light on “Green Eyes” and the post-lizard king-turns-Purple spirit of “Golden Days” tie in well with the toss-your-hair-in-the-wind, how’d-that-hole-get-in-my-jeans spirit of the release on the whole. They start instrumental with the eponymous “Paralyzed,” but vocals are a focus point, and as they round out with the rawer “Parallel,” their command of ’70s heavy is all the more evident. They signed yet? Give it another minute, if not.
Admittedly, I’m late to the party on Black Spirit Crown‘s 2020 debut full-length, Gravity, but as one will when in orbit, it’s easy to be pulled in by the record. The Ohio-based two-piece of Dan Simone (vocals, guitar, theremin, dulcimer) and Chris Martin (vocals, keys & programming, bass) — plus guitar spots from Joe Fortunato (Doomstress, ex-Venomin James) — flourish over longform progressive heavy rock pieces like “Doomstar” and “Orb,” both over eight minutes, and the 21:10 closing title-track, which well earns having the album named after it for its consuming balance between aural weight, darkness of atmosphere and tone, and breadth. Before the last several minutes give way to droning noise, “Gravity” counterbalances the metallic underpinning of “Saga” and the rush of the penultimate “Teutates,” its patience singular even among the other longer cuts, balanced in alternating fashion with the shorter. Peppered-in growls make the proceedings less predictable on the whole, and feel like one more strength working in favor of these complex compositions.
Intraveineuse, Chronicles of an Inevitable Outcome
Parisian instrumentalists Intraveineuse make a strong statement with their 32-minute/single-song debut EP, Chronicles of an Inevitable Outcome, the feeling of aftermath — regret? — permeating the goth-doom atmosphere coming through in tectonically-dense riffs as well as the piano that offsets them. France would seem to have a post-Type O Negative standard-bearer in Hangman’s Chair, but to discount Intraveineuse on that basis is to miss out on the flowing, immersive progression the band emit on this already-sold-out tape, working in three distinct movements to find their own place within the style, building momentum gradually until the last payoff cuts itself short, as if to emphasize there’s more to come. Hopefully, anyhow. EP or LP, debuts with this kind of scope are rare and not to be overlooked, and though there are stretches where one can hear where vocals might go, Intraveineuse ably steer “Chronicles of an Inevitable Outcome” through its various parts with natural-sounding fluidity.
Grim, gritty and ghastly, Void Tripper is the debut full-length from Brazil’s Void Tripper, comprised of five tracks marked by the shared/alternating vocals of guitarists Mário Fonteles and Anastácio Júnior. The former gurlges on opener “Devil’s Reject” while the latter complements with a cleaner take on the subsequent “Burning Woods,” setting up the back and forth that plays out in the remaining three tracks, “Hollow,” “Satan & Drugs” and “Comatose.” With the lumbering bass and drums of Jonatas Monte and Gabriel Mota, respectively, as the thickened foundation beneath the riffs, there are shades throughout of Electric Wizard and other acts to be heard, but it’s Sabbath-worshiping sludge one way or the other, and Void Tripper willingly head into that void with a dense fog preceding them and a bleak mood that does nothing if it doesn’t feel suited to our times. Riffy disaffection writ large. You wouldn’t call it groundbreaking, but you’d nod the fuck out.
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 28th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Fresh off the release this month of their new album, Monuments, Icelandic heavy rockers The Vintage Caravan are looking to return to the road and make it count. The three-piece have newly announced two rounds of touring through Europe that will take place across early Spring and Fall 2022, and neither stint is what you’d call a cheapie. They’re going for it.
Of course, like everyone else, their plans have been usurped by circumstances beyond their control, but The Vintage Caravan have been a hard-touring band for years across Europe, and good for them reclaiming that title and a headliner spot in the early offing of potential live music being on the horizon. If it needs to be said — it doesn’t — no one knows what next year will bring, but god damn, is it so wrong to want to look forward to a thing? Are we allowed to do that? I won’t even see this tour and I’m just looking forward to it happening.
Anyway, the dates follow here, as posted by the band earlier:
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN – TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT
We are beyond stoked to announce our European headline tour dates for next year! We can’t wait to finally tour again and to play songs of our latest album ‘Monuments’! Tickets:www.thevintagecaravan.eu/tour
Fri, AUG 20 Festival ‘t zeeltje Deest, Netherlands Sat, FEB 26, 2022 Q-Factory Amsterdam, Netherlands Sun, FEB 27, 2022 Das Bett Frankfurt Am Main, Germany Tue, MAR 1, 2022 Cassiopeia Berlin, Germany Wed, MAR 2, 2022 Headcrash Hamburg, Germany Thu, MAR 3, 2022 Little Devil Tilburg, Netherlands Fri, MAR 4, 2022 Poppodium Bolwerk Sneek, Netherlands Sat, MAR 5, 2022 Ancienne Belgique Brussels, Belgium Sun, MAR 6, 2022 Artheater Cologne, Germany Mon, MAR 7, 2022 Backstage Halle Munich, Germany Wed, MAR 9, 2022 Orpheum Extra Graz, Austria Thu, MAR 10, 2022 PMK Innsbruck, Austria Fri, MAR 11, 2022 Spielplatz OKH Vöcklabruck, Austria Sat, MAR 12, 2022 Papiersaal Zurich, Switzerland Sun, MAR 13, 2022 CCO Villeurbanne, France Mon, MAR 14, 2022 Backstage Paris Paris, France Tue, MAR 15, 2022 Le Grand Mix Tourcoing, France Wed, MAR 16, 2022 Le Ferrailleur Nantes, France Fri, MAR 18, 2022 O2 Academy Islington London, United Kingdom Sun, MAR 20, 2022 THE LIVE ROOMS Chester, United Kingdom Mon, MAR 21, 2022 KK’s Steel Mill Wolverhampton, United Kingdom Tue, MAR 22, 2022 The Globe Cardiff, United Kingdom Wed, MAR 23, 2022 The Warehouse Leeds, United Kingdom Thu, MAR 24, 2022 Manchester Academy Manchester, United Kingdom Wed, SEP 14, 2022 Helitehas Tallinn, Estonia Thu, SEP 15, 2022 Palladium Riga Riga, Latvia Fri, SEP 16, 2022 Progresja Warsaw, Poland Sat, SEP 17, 2022 A2. Sp. z o.o. Wroclaw, Poland Mon, SEP 19, 2022 Forum Karlín Karlín, Czechia Tue, SEP 20, 2022 Arena Wien Wien, Austria Wed, SEP 21, 2022 Barba Negra Budapest, Hungary Fri, SEP 23, 2022 The Roman Arenas Bucharest, Romania Sat, SEP 24, 2022 SFC Universiada Sofia, Bulgaria Mon, SEP 26, 2022 Tvornica kulture Zagreb, Croatia Tue, SEP 27, 2022 Arcimboldi Theater Milan, Italy Wed, SEP 28, 2022 Ostia Antica Città Metropolitana Di Roma, Italy
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN is: Óskar Logi Ágústsson – lead vocals, electric guitar Alexander Örn Númason – bass guitar, backing vocals Stefán Ari Stefánsson – drums, percussion
Posted in Questionnaire on April 15th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Alexander Örn Númason of The Vintage Caravan
—
How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I think at some point I would have defined what I do as being a musician but nowadays I don’t really feel like that really covers it. The actual music part of what we do is in some time periods relatively small and there’s a lot of things to be done when you have a band like ours. Lots of jobs to be done and not a lot of budget to do it haha.
Lately I’ve been enjoying learning new skills that I think are useful for all of my musical and personal ventures and I love the idea of not just being one thing. Especially in terms of income it’s very useful to have something going on in all corners.
So best to just leave it somehow undefined but in the category of music!
How I/we got here. Me and the other guys have all been playing music with unrelenting passion and dedication since we were young and you could argue that there is some luck associated with where we are now. But I think the main thing is that we’ve all been working very hard at getting to where we are since our early teens which I feel like would have hopefully brought us to this lifestyle regardless of the small choices we make in our lives. If there is a will, there is a way!
Describe your first musical memory.
The first one I can think of is a weird one and I don’t think I’ve really told anybody this. On Christmas Eve when I was five years old I got as a present from someone a CD with a collection of Disney songs. I was very excited to put it on so later in the evening I went into my room, put it into the stereo and started going through the songs. Track number five was one of the songs from the Aladdin movie and something in this song made my body and mind just resonate in the wildest way. I then learned that the stereo had a repeat button.
The song kept playing again and again and I danced, alone, to the same song, for hours. Afterwards I couldn’t really put my finger on what had happened but this was really a moment that foreshadowed my obsession with music which I still have to this day.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
So many great moments and yet I draw almost a complete blank when asked this. One of the more powerful moments I have experienced was when we did a one-off tribute show for the album Lifun by Icelandic ’70s prog act Trúbrot with one of the original members. We assembled a seven- or eight-piece band and did a festival show. The album is universally loved in Iceland and lot of people in the crowd had grown up with this album. So many beautiful moments which brought members of the band and audience to tears even.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
I’m not big on beliefs honestly! I think it’s important to not be stuck in a certain way of thinking and to be able to adapt when situations change. Too many times I’ve fallen on my ass when a thing I thought I “needed” to be part of my life was in all reality just killing me like. I prefer keeping an open mind and always be searching for ways to improve as a person.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
That’s the thing about artistic progression, it leads where it wants to lead. As soon you start to want it to lead somewhere it inhibits creativity. At least for me!
How do you define success?
By individual happiness. I consider a happy individual successful. If you want to think of success, in the music business especially, in terms of money or fame you could go crazy by always trying to compare yourself to the next bigger fish in the pond. Best thing to do is just to be happy for everyone else’s success and focus on what makes you tick!
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Too many disgusting online videos growing up!
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
More different kinds of music! Recently I’ve been writing music for another project which I’m excited about. Also every now and then I get to do a session with some big name pop/hip-hop artists in Iceland. That’s always a breath of fresh air when all you do is rock and roll haha!
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
To invoke deep seated feelings in people and bring people together in celebration of life!
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
I recently started studying electronics in school. A bit outside the box for me so looking forward to many hours of tinkering and soldering. Especially for audio equipment!
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 3rd, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The Vintage Caravan aren’t kids anymore. Monuments will be their fifth album in a tenure that now spans more than a decade, and though their roots are sure enough in the classic heavy rock of yore, it’s hard to listen to the three-part vocal arrangement of “Whispers” and not call it forward-thinking. If the album opener is any kind of portend for what’s to come, then the band — who hereby make the jump from Nuclear Blast to Napalm Records — are going to turn some heads this Spring.
But, on the other hand, they must be so sick of this record already. Recorded before the pandemic hit? So they’ve been sitting on it for a year? Shit. I wonder if they have the next one written yet.
You can check out “Whispers” in the video at the bottom of this post, and Napalm sent copious info down the PR wire:
Icelandic Modern Prog-Rockers THE VINTAGE CARAVAN Announce New Album: Monuments, out April 16
Nordic favorites THE VINTAGE CARAVAN are pleased to announce the upcoming release of their new full-length album, Monuments, out April 16, 2021 via Napalm Records! The band incorporates a fountain of modern influences mixed with retro reminiscences to create an addictive sound all their own.
After countless high-voltage live performances at festivals such as Roadburn, Wacken and Hellfest, and touring with Opeth, the Icelandic band’s new full-length impressively demonstrates that they have matured both musically and lyrically, accented by bold, nostalgic nuance. Virtuosic ‘70s-inspired guitar ruminations encounter an irrefutable mixture of fresh elements and psychedelic, progressive and blues rock trademarks on Monuments, radiating the soul of some larger-than-life bands of the past as these youngbloods breathe new life into a classic formula.
Cut from Monuments, their first new single, “Whispers”, showcases the band’s musical progression without sacrificing the retro-inspired staples they’ve become renowned for. The accompanying video takes its viewer straight into the hearts and studio of the band, connecting with lucid live-music vibes. Above all, the performance video also highlights the band’s musical passion and provides an intimate glimpse into their sonic work.
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN on the new single “Whispers”:
“First single is Whispers! It was one of the first things we came up with for the album. We always try to start our albums in a strong and powerful way and it felt fitting as an opener. Hope you like it as much as we do! Enjoy!!”
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN on the new album: “We are proud to present to you our new album Monuments!! This one has been long in the making and we truly believe this is our best work so far. We went into a legendary Icelandic studio, Hljóðriti, during the stormiest season of last winter and tracked non stop for 22 days, working around the clock to get as much done as possible. Luckily enough we finished tracking just before the pandemic hit.
Having worked with producer Ian Davenport on our previous album Gateways we were comfortable and inspired to take the album to new heights in terms of sound, feel and songwriting. We ended up with quite a diverse set of songs through an interesting and in many ways different process than our usual recording sessions. It was a great feeling to get to experiment more with our sound in so many different ways. We hope you’ll enjoy the journey through Monuments!”
Monuments will be available in North America in the following formats: Preorder here:https://www.napalmrecordsamerica.com/thevintagecaravan – 1 CD Digipak – 2 LP Gatefold Vinyl Black – 2 LP Gatefold Vinyl Marbled Yellow/Red – limited to 300 copies – Limited Diehard Edition – 2 LP Gatefold Vinyl Multicolor Splatter + Patch, Slipmat – limited to 200 copies – Digital Album
Tracklisting: 01. Whispers 02. Crystallized 03. Can’t Get You Off My Mind 04. Dark Times 05. This One’s For You 06. Forgotten 07. Sharp Teeth 08. Hell 09. Torn in Two 10. Said & Done 11. Clarity
Artwork: Sebastian Jerke
THE VINTAGE CARAVAN is: Óskar Logi Ágústsson – lead vocals, electric guitar Alexander Örn Númason – bass guitar, backing vocals Stefán Ari Stefánsson – drums, percussion