Ske is an

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

ic band whose origins can be traced back to 1992, when a band called ''Skárren ekkert'' was founded by Eiríkur Þorleifsson, Frank Hall and

Guðmundur Steingrímsson Guðmundur Steingrímsson (born 28 October 1972) is an Icelandic politician. He is the son and grandson of former Icelandic Prime Ministers Steingrímur Hermannsson and Hermann Jónasson. Career Guðmundur was a member of the Althing for Southwe ...

, and joined by Hrannar Ingimarsson in 1998.

History

In 1999, they wrote the music for ''NPK'', a dance performance by the Icelandic Dance Company. The following year Eiríkur, Frank and Guðmundur, along with Guðmundur Hafsteinsson, wrote and performed music for Shakespeare's ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' at the Icelandic National Theatre's ( Þjóðleikhúsið) 50th anniversary performance. Hrannar was away in New York with Icelandic rap-band

Quarashi Quarashi is an Icelandic rap rock band from Reykjavík, Iceland. The group consists of rappers Hössi Ólafsson (later replaced by Egill Olafur Thorarensen), Ómar Örn Hauksson, Steinar Orri Fjeldsted, and Sölvi Blöndal (who also acted as p ...

, with whom he'd worked extensively as engineer/mixer and guitarist since 1996. In 2002 the album ''Life, Death, Happiness and Stuff'' was ready, with additional performances from Kjartan Guðnason on drums, Una Sveinbjarnardóttir on violin and vocalists Jón Oddur Guðmundsson, Juri Hashimoto, Julie Coadou and Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson. The album was a cult hit, the songs Julietta 2 and Stuff were picked up by ad-agencies for national television campaigns for The National Bank of Iceland and

Icelandair Icelandair is the flag carrier airline of Iceland, with its corporate head office on the property of Reykjavík Airport in the capital city Reykjavik. Linked from here It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates to destinations on both si ...

. The album was also nominated as Album of the Year and 'Julietta 2' was nominated for Song of the Year and won. In 2003 the band, now consisting of Eiríkur Þorleifsson, Frank Hall, Guðmundur Steingrímsson, Hrannar Ingimarsson, Jón Oddur Guðmundsson, Kjartan Guðnason and

Ragnheiður Gröndal Ragnheiður Gröndal or Ragga Gröndal (born 1984) is an Icelandic singer. She was described as Iceland's best-selling artist in 2006, and was named Icelandic Singer of the Year that same year. In 2007, she was a finalist in Söngvakeppni Sjónv ...

, who had started singing with the band at the end of 2002, started work on new songs as well as playing dates in Scandinavia and UK, including

Roskilde Festival The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1 ...

2003. In the fall of 2003, Ske composed music for a dance piece written by Lonneke Van Leth, performed by the Icelandic Dance Company. In 2004, Ske continued work on the new album, as well as playing some dates in UK. ''Feelings are great'', Ske's second album, was released by Smekkleysa in Iceland in October 2004. In 2005 Ske played

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

's SPOT-festival, as well as opening for former

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir (; born 28 July 1982) is an Icelandic actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of the controversial character Silvía Night in the television series ''Sjáumst með Silvíu Nótt'' and during the 2006 ...

replaced Ragnheiður Gröndal for those dates as well as for a TV appearance on the Icelandic National Television

RÚV Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV) (pronounced or ) ( en, 'The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service') is Iceland's national public-service broadcasting organization. Operating from studios in the country's capital, Reykjavík, as well as regional cent ...

program ''Hljómsveit kvöldsins'', hosted by Margrét Krístin Blöndal, and Ske's fourth Icelandic Airwaves appearance. In August 2006

Hössi Ólafsson Hössi Ólafsson (born Höskuldur Ólafsson; 1977 in Reykjavík, Iceland) is a singer, rapper, producer, writer, and actor. He is best known as a founding member of the Icelandic rap group, Quarashi. Professional career Hössi first met futur ...

, formerly the lead vocalist of

, joined Ske as their lead singer. In December 2008 Ske finished recording and mixing its third studio album which will be released in January/February 2009. The album was recorded in various studios around Reykjavík and features 12 original songs written collectively by band-members in 2007/2008. English drummer Paul Maguire, formerly a member of

The Stairs The Stairs are an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1990 by vocalist and bassist Edgar "Summertyme" Jones, guitarist Ged Lynn and drummer Paul Maguire. The band released one album and a handful of singles, prior to Lynn's departure i ...

, plays drums on most of the songs but

Orri Páll Dýrason Orri Páll Dýrason (; born on 4 July 1977) is an Icelandic musician. He was previously the drummer for Sigur Rós. He joined the band in 1999, shortly after the recording of the studio album ''Ágætis byrjun'', when the previous drummer, Ágú ...

from the band

Sigur Rós Sigur Rós () is an Icelandic post-rock band from Reykjavík, active since 1994. The band comprises singer and guitarist Jón Þór "Jónsi" Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm, and keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson. Known for their ethereal sound, fron ...

plays drums on at least 3 songs. Also on percussion is Kjartan Guðnason, former drummer of Ske and currently the drummer of the Icelandic band Menn ársins and a percussionist for the

Iceland Symphony Orchestra Sinfóníuhljómsveit Íslands (Iceland Symphony Orchestra) (ISO) is an Icelandic orchestra based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Its primary concert venue is the Harpa Concert Hall. The Iceland Symphony is an autonomous public institution under the aus ...

. The single "My Lo" was released in Iceland in 2008.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Icelandic musical groups