Peer Validated

Pictured: That’s really going to hurt the eardrums, buddy.

I always have high hopes for bands with ump-teen people. ‘Oh, the possibilities,’ I think to myself, but more often than not lately, I’m let down by double digit member bands like I’m From Barcelona, who I think might be a fun live show, but what good does that do me outside of the hour long set that they might play if they tour close to here? No good at all, that’s what good.

So, upon hearing about Iceland’s 11-17 member folk-pop orchestra Benni Hemm Hemm, I had pretty low expectations. ‘Great,’ I said to myself (I’ve been talking to myself a lot), ‘another big, huge band who’s compared to Sufjan Stevens in every review written about them. Can’t wait!’ I was pleasantly surprised though. All the songs are sung in a foreign language, but they’re really memorable. High arching trumpets, xylophones, kettle drums and whatever else celebrate the songs’ choruses, while singer-songwriter Benedikt Hermann Hermannsson strums acoustic guitar parts and sings melodies below them. This makes the first five or so songs really great, but the album takes a turn for slower, far less interesting songs after that. I think it might have something to do with recording eleven tracks in four days, but who’s to say?

Setting that aside, this is a song called Brekkan. One that shows how to do it right ya’ll.