After their previously announced road-trip with label mates SÓLSTAFIR, ÁRSTÍÐIR have now announced more European tour dates in December in support of their latest release Nivalis. The "A Special Holiday Concert" run will start at the UT Connewitz in Leipzig (DE) on the 3rd of December and sees the band traveling through 6 more countries before a final curtain on the 20th of December at the Spielbaden in Dornbirn (AT).

ÁRSTÍÐIR comment: "For ten years now we've been playing special holiday shows in the Fríkirkjan Church in Reykjavik, mixing our own material with traditional Icelandic Christmas songs that we arrange specifically for the occasion. This December we're bringing the show on the road in Europe! A lot of you have seen the YouTube recordings through the years and expressed the desire to one day experience this in person - and so we're super happy to finally be able to bring this show to you. See you in December!"

ÁRSTÍÐIR "A Special Holiday Concert"

03 Dec 18 Leipzig (DE) UT Connewitz
04 Dec 18 Helmond (NL) Cacao Fabriek
05 Dec 18 Hamburg (DE) Imperial Theater
08 Dec 18 Berlin (DE) Stummfilmkino Delphi
09 Dec 18 Reichenbach (DE) Altes Rathaus
10 Dec 18 Aschaffenburg (DE) Colosaal
11 Dec 18 Brno (CZ) Melodka
12 Dec 18 Bratislava (SK) Klub Kulturak
13 Dec 18 Budapest (HU) A38
14 Dec 18 Annaberg Bucholz (DE) Alte Brauerrei
15 Dec 18 Maastricht (NL) tba
15 Dec 18 Arnhem (NL) tba
16 Dec 18 Sneek (NL) Bolwerk
16 Dec 18 Amsterdam (NL) Paradiso Noord
17 Dec 18 Roeselare (BE) De Verlichte Geest
18 Dec 18 Thun (CH) Mokka
19 Dec 18 Zurich (CH) Ebrietas Bar
20 Dec 18 Dornbirn (AT) Spielbaden
Solstafir-2018-EU-admat

SÓLSTAFIR+ ÁRSTÍÐIR +LOUISE LEMÓN
20 Nov 18 Gdansk (PL) B90
21 Nov 18 Warsaw (PL) Progresja
22 Nov 18 Vilnius (LT) Loftas
23 Nov 18 Riga (LV) Melna Vilnius
24 Nov 18 Tallinn (EE) Tapper
29 Nov 18 Gothenburg (SE) Sticky Fingers
30 Nov 18 Oslo (NO) Vulkan Arena
01 Dec 18 Copenhagen (DK) Lille Vega

ÁRSTÍÐIR will be touring in support of their latest release 'Nivalis' the cover and details can be viewed below.

Track-list
1. While This Way (3:11)
2. Lover (2:53)
3. Please Help Me (3:06)
4. Entangled (2:51)
5. Like Snow (3:34)
6. Þar sem enginn fer (sjálfviljugur) (4:00)
7. Circus (3:10)
8. Órói (3:32)
9. Mute (4:38)
10. Conviction (3:38)
11. In the Wake of You (3:35)
12. Wasting Time (3:21)
13. Passion (4:38)
Total playing time: 46:07

ÁRSTÍÐIR redefine their sound and take an evolutionary quantum leap that will catapult the eclectic Icelandic band from a highly praised phenomenon at the fringe straight to the centre of international attention. ÁRSTÍÐIR were never an ugly duckling, but now their musical swan has emerged in its full glorious beauty on Nivalis.

The Icelanders have never easily fit into any stylistic drawer and hence attracted a particular long list of attempts of a musical definition that ranges from indie rock via progressive rock, indie folk, chamber folk and pop, neo-classical to minimalism.

There is some truth in all these categories assigned to ÁRSTÍÐIR, but no single description entirely catches their overall sound entirely. Always something else is appearing that is adding and contradicting the first impression. Although everything said above about the band still remains true, new elements appear on 'Nivalis' that add up to a big change. One of these items can easily be identified as drums playing a much stronger role than it did on previous releases, which is a welcome side-effect of ÁRSTÍÐIR recently supporting label-mates SÓLSTAFIR on their extended European tour. Other changes are harder to specify, yet the Icelanders seem to have turned all those switches into the right direction ' and not only due to a brilliant, crystalline, warm, and transparent production that perfectly brings together the dominant acoustic instruments with their electronic counterparts to evoke a fragile melancholy and embracing emotionality.

Those inevitable comparisons with fellow countrymen SIGUR RÓS will most likely not go away with 'Nivalis', although ÁRSTÍÐIR have clearly developed a style very much their own. Yet other parallels drawn about past references such as SIMON & GARFUNKEL or PENTANGLE are bound to make way to fresher and more recent names pointing way past the also previously mentioned RADIOHEAD.

ÁRSTÍÐIR emerged from the burgeoning Icelandic music scene in 2008, when the band's three founding members discovered their mutual love for vocal harmonies despite coming from different genres. Daniel, Gunnar and Ragnar quickly went from playing acoustic cover versions to leaving their own sonic footprint by amalgamating influences taken from different styles into something quite unique, which might tentatively be dubbed "Icelandic independent".

With early lyrical references pointing towards the spectacular nature and scenery of this volcanic island and the strongly contrasting moods of its seasons, the band took the name ÁRSTÍÐIR, which means "seasons" in Icelandic.

At home, the band experienced a fast rise. Only four months after its inception, ÁRSTÍÐIR had risen from performing in a coffee shop in Reykjavik to scoring a number one hit on national radio with the track "Sunday Morning".

The Icelanders published their self-titled debut, Árstíðir in summer 2009, and while their home country was reeling from the market crash, the band's stocks went up. During the air traffic disrupting eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano, ÁRSTÍÐIR embarked on their first international tour. Over the next years, the band stayed continuously on the road and gathered a dedicated fan base in more than 30 countries.

Their second album, Svefns Og Vöku Skil followed in 2011 and, only a year later, the Icelanders won the prestigious Eiserner Eversteiner European Folk Music Award in Germany. While on the road in Germany in 2013, a friend of ÁRSTÍÐIR recorded an impromptu performance of the old Icelandic hymn, "Heyr Himna Smiður" in a train station, which went viral on YouTube and has attracted more than 6 million views to date. Backed by the interest sparked by this global hit, ÁRSTÍÐIR continued their head-lining tours and furthermore supported Swedish band PAIN OF SALVATION and Dutch vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen.

ÁRSTÍÐIR launched a highly successful crowdfunding campaign in 2014 to finance the recording of their third full-length Hvel, which translates as "spheres". Following the release, the band embarked on a first US tour that reached from coast to coast. A full collaboration with Anneke van Giersbergen followed in 2016. The Verloren Verleden album contains a collection of re-imagined traditional and classical songs.

Now the Icelanders return with their fourth album. Nivalis offers everything that followers of ÁRSTÍÐIR love, but with this stunning masterpiece the band transcends all limitations created by genre to appeal to any friend of great music!

Recording: Sakaris Emil Joensen in Orgelsmiðjan and E7
Sound engineering: Daniel Auðunsson, Gunnar Már Jakobsson, Ragnar Ólafsson

Mix
Track 1, 2, 3, 5, 11 mixed by Axel "Flex" Árnason at Studio ReFlex Ost
Track 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12 & 13 mixed by Arnar Guðjónsson at Aeronaut Studios
Track 7 mixed by Magnús Árni Øder Kristinsson at Orgelsmiðjan

Mastering: Glenn Schick

Line-up
Daniel Auðunsson: guitar, vocals
Gunnar Már Jakobsson: baritone guitar, vocals
Ragnar Ólafsson: keyboards, vocals

Guest musicians
Magnús Magnússon: drums and percussion on all tracks
Hálfdán Árnason: bass on track 2, 5
Arnar Guðjónsson: bass on track 4, 6, 9, 12
Guðrún Hulda Pálsdóttir: double bass on track 7
Sigrún Harðardóttir: violin and viola on all tracks except 8
Guillaume Lagravière: cello on track 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13
Jean-Samuel Bez: violin on track 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13
Unnur Jónsdóttir: cello on track 1, 6, 11, 12
Margrét Soffía Einarsdóttir: violin on track 1, 6, 11, 12
Þórunn Harðardóttir: viola on track 1, 6, 11, 12

https://www.arstidir.com
www.facebook.com/arstidir

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Kyle Scott
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