m?m

m?m

m?m is an experimental electronic group from Reykjavík, Iceland. The group forms in 1997 and remains active. Its music is marked by soft vocals, unusual rhythms, colourful effects, and a mix of traditional and unconventional instruments. Its genres include electronic, electronica, glitch, glitch pop, IDM and indietronica.

Formation and line-up

The group starts as a duo formed by Gunnar Örn Tynes and Örvar Þóreyjarson Smárason. It later expands and contracts around a changing pool of musicians, with a reported total of 15 to 20 people involved over time. Gyða Valtýsdóttir and Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir join in 1998, and the group records two albums as a quartet. In its later touring and recording line-up, the group includes Gunnar Örn Tynes and Örvar Þóreyjarson Smárason, alongside Eiríkur Orri Ólafsson, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Sigurlaug Gísladóttir, Róbert Reynisson and Samuli Kosminen, with occasional contributions from Ólöf Arnalds, Högni Egilsson, Ólafur Björn Ólafsson and Guðbjörg Hlín Guðmundsdóttir. Ásthildur Valtýsdóttir and Serena Tideman also appear briefly in the line-up after Gyða leaves.

Recordings and releases

The first release is a split 10-inch with Spúnk in 1998. The group’s debut album, Yesterday Was Dramatic - Today Is OK, receives wide praise, and is later reissued by Morr Music. A remix project, Please Smile My Noise Bleed, also appears on Morr Music in 2001. After Finally We Are No One, the group releases Summer Make Good in 2004, followed by the singles Nightly Cares and Dusk Log. Its fifth studio album, Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know, appears in 2009. Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy is released in 2007 and is the group’s last release for FatCat Records.

Collaborations and other work

m?m works on a range of collaborative and cross-disciplinary projects. It records its own soundtrack for Sergei Eisenstein’s Battleship Potemkin, with live performances in Hafnarfjörður, Brooklyn Lyceum in New York, and at the Gijón Film Festival. It also composes for theatre and radio drama, including Svefnhjólið by Gyrðir Elíasson, which wins the Nordic Radio-theatre Prize, and Augu þín sáu mig by Sjón in 2008. The group works with Sjón earlier on the operetta Kisa in 1999. In 2005, it collaborates with the National Dutch Chamber Orchestra at the Holland Festival on a performance based on compositions by Iannis Xenakis.

Live activity and other appearances

The group tours extensively after Finally We Are No One and appears as DJs at festivals including FatCat Festival in Belgium, SXSW in Austin, Summer Sonic in Japan and Bestival on the Isle of Wight. Its live setups combine decks, effects, laptops, toy microphones, old cassette recordings, vocals, recorded material and covers by friends.