Having her solo debut Við og við named Record of the Year in her home country of Iceland, it would be easy for Ólöf Arnalds to sit on her laurels with its follow up Innundir Skinni . However nothing could be further from the truth. If anything the classically trained violinist and singer steps out of her comfort zone for this record, deciding to delve into using the English language for three tracks. And as well as the traditional folk influences that were found on her debut, we find more contemporary and even Celtic influences scattered all over Innundir Skinni. Produced again by Kjartan Sveinsson from Sigur Ros, the record has a wonderful consistency throughout and Arnalds gives the impression of a musician who is completely comfortable with what she is doing.
The opening track Vinur Minn finds Arnalds alone reciting what seems to be an old fashioned Icelandic nursery rhyme before it transforms into some kind of cool seventies soundtrack with baby noises in the background. It really should not work but for some reason it does and immediately Arnalds has the listener intrigued in what is coming next.
The first of the three songs in English comes in the form of Crazy Car, a precautionary tale, warning a fellow Icelandic musician about the pitfalls of seeking fame in the US with Arnalds seeming completely at ease switching from her native tongue.
The stand out track on the album has to be Surrender which features backing vocals from fellow Icelander Bjork. With a wonderful fragility throughout the song, one could think a vocal powerhouse like Bjork may be the only voice you pay attention to, but her backing vocals are just that and the two voices interweave perfectly.
The only gripe with what is at times a mesmerizing swirl of a record comes with the slightly sombre tracks Vinkonur and Madrid which seem to bring the listener back down to earth when staying lost in the whimsical beauty may have been a better option. This said Innundir Skinni is a stunning, unique record from a very accomplished artist and will hopefully bring Arnalds to a much larger audience.
Drop-d Rating: 9/10
