Relocate. Reshape. – New Icelanders on Entering a Micro-Scene
Presented by Litla Gróðurhúsa Familia

‍Where: Mengi, Óðinsgata 2, 101 Reykjavík 

When: Tuesday, Nov 5th @ 17.00–19.00

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Settling in Reykjavík is a choice: an expensive, stormy and remote one. New Icelanders arrive clear of local debt, free from the favours, loyalties and unspoken rules that keep a small scene insular. They build projects, collectives and companies nobody else thought to, often breaking rules they didn’t know existed. 

‍This session celebrates what they’ve built, and asks why small scenes need people who owe them nothing more than they want to admit.

Expect an honest, funny and perhaps mildly uncomfortable conversation, with musical interludes and some light refreshments to keep things cosy. 

The Confession Box: have you broken an unwritten rule of the Icelandic scene or run into one nobody warned you about? Do any particular social norms baffle you?  Drop it anonymously in the Confession Box at the door. We’ll read a selection aloud during the session. Newcomers and locals equally welcome.

Aurora Di Rienzo – Trúnó Music

Aurora Di Rienzo is an Icelandic-Italian music manager who has been active in the Icelandic music scene for five years. She runs Trúnó Music and manages emerging acts lúpína, Inspector Spacetime and RAKEL. This year she was named in Nordic Music Biz’s Top 20 Under 30 for her management work, recognising her as one of the most promising figures in the Nordic music industry.

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Ish Sveinsson Houle – Litla Gróðurhúsa Familia

Ish Sveinsson Houle (IS/US) is a writer and music industry professional. A member of the Litla Gróðurhúsa Familia collective, Ish manages Andervel and co-founded Heyrðu!. Previously, Ish worked as a journalist at The Reykjavík Grapevine and as a community radio station manager.

José Luis Anderson – Litla Gróðurhúsa Familia

Mexican-born and Reykjavík-based, José Luis Anderson makes folk music as Andervel, singing in Spanish, Icelandic and English through the lens of multicultural identity. His debut album Ironclad and Palm Trees, shaped by migration, memory and two homelands, has been featured by RÚV, Morgunblaðið, The Reykjavík Grapevine, The Line of Best Fit and Songlines. He founded the Litla Gróðurhúsa Familia collective, has organised concerts for the Nordic House, Mengi and Hafnar.Haus, and holds a BMus and MMus in composition from the Iceland University of the Arts.

Jelena Ćirić – Artist

Born in Serbia and raised in Canada, Jelena is a five-time Icelandic Music Awards nominee and won Folk Album of the Year in 2021. Her songs draw on the folk melodies of the Balkans and the North American songwriting tradition, with a voice and piano playing that evoke Laura Marling and Joni Mitchell. She is a member of the improvising Tramuntana Collective (Moderna Records), sings with and sometimes conducts the Reykjavík choir Kliður, and is writing her first theatre score.

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Colm O’Herlihy – INNI Music

Colm O’Herlihy co-founded INNI with film composer Atli Örvarsson in 2019, opening INNI House, with nine recording studios, in 2022. INNI has since worked with Apple, HBO, Netflix and Disney. Colm began his career when Morrissey signed his band to Attack Records, and has toured as a guitarist with Joan Shelley and Grant Hart of Hüsker Dü. Since moving to Reykjavík in 2014, he has managed local labels and become a central figure in Icelandic music publishing and sync.

John Grant – Artist

John Grant has lived in Iceland for many years and has been a notable figure in its music scene and beyond for over two decades. His songwriting spans genres, blending heartfelt sincerity with sharp humour and writing candidly about his own life. Critics place him among the most distinctive artists of his generation, and he is known for his voice and commanding stage presence. His latest album, The Art of the Lie (2024), was widely acclaimed, and he has collaborated with many Icelandic artists.

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