Tag Archives: jakobínarína

#667: Jakobínarína – Jesus

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This song isn’t about our lord and saviour Jesus Christ. You know when you hear or witness something incredibly dumb and over the top and you just roll your eyes and say “Jesus…” to yourself? I believe that’s what this song’s title is going for. Here, the statement reflects the narrator’s frustration with the poor music taste of the crowd and the people performing in front of them.

Throughout the track vocalist Gunnar Bergmann Ragnarsson constantly throws shade at those around him, calling the crowd “kitsch-ass motherfuckers” with “low IQs” who are destined for desk jobs and nothing more. He’s clearly having a miserable time. The music on the other hand is driven by these sleek guitars and a bouncy keyboard melody that doesn’t make things seem so dire. There’s a hip-hop like quality to the rhythm too, dominated by a hefty bass drum and some sampling in the small instrumental break before the bridge.

This track got some frequent play on MTV2 in the UK back in the day. I either always changed the channel when it came on, or it would be finishing when I changed to MTV2 to see what was going on. I didn’t give it a chance that much. That all changed when I actually got the band’s album. That was ten years ago, my god. One of my favourites by the band from the small selection of songs they made.

#604: Jakobínarína – I’ve Got a Date with My Television

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The song next up on my phone is ‘I’ve Got a Date with My Television’ by Jakobínarína, the eighth track on the band’s only album The First Crusade. They were an Icelandic group who split up just as things were on the rise for them; that was eleven years ago. They’ve been lost in time as a result. They made good stuff though in the short time the band members were together. Some of which I’ve written about in the past.

‘My Television’ is somewhat of a commentary on the fixation on celebrity culture and the tendency to put too much trust into what famous people are doing with their lives instead of thinking about ourselves. The way this commentary is done is very simple. I may have even put too much thought into it. References to Oprah Winfrey advice on ideal body weight and David Beckham’s looks are made. The song’s chorus lyric ‘TV friends don’t stab you in the back/Keeping me on the right track’ sum up the song’s message. There is a strong sarcastic sense that is meant to be provided by the lyrics but you wouldn’t be able to tell with the almost glitzy sheen of the instrumental. Especially that (keyboard?) jingle in the introduction and the strings that arrive during the coda.

I own The First Crusade in CD format and unfortunately the lyrics for the tracks weren’t included in the liner notes. A bit of a shame really, seeing as the song’s lyrics in the bridge are in a completely different language. Or a mix of a various languages. All I can make out is ‘Guten abend’ and ‘Guten tag’, the rest I can make the sounds of… but I don’t know what he’s saying. Generally I think it’s just to show that television fascination is a something that happens all around the world. At least in the countries that speak the languages vocalist Gunnar Bergmann Ragnarsson sings during that part.

#592: Jakobínarína – I’m a Villain

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I’ve written about Jakobínarína once before; to save me the time of writing about who they were and what happened to them, I refer you to the previous blog that has all the details.

‘I’m a Villain’ is the tenth track on the band’s one and only album The First Crusade. The song is about exactly what it says in the title. Being a ‘villain’ and having pride in doing so. The track is all tongue-in-cheek though. The narrator takes great joy in petty thefts, but sees it as this kind of mission or ‘fighting test’ they have to endure. It’s a fun little composition. Quite repetitive but not to the point of being annoying.

Older players of the FIFA series may recognise it as being one of the tunes on the FIFA 09 soundtrack. For obvious reasons, EA usually censor the tracks if they have swear words in them. Sometimes they can be a bit excessive. The word ‘hell’ in this song is muted in the game which I can see as acceptable for some, though any mention of ‘shoplifting’ is edited in a strange way which I think is pushing it just a bit. There was a lot of good music on that edition.

My iPod #528: Jakobínarína – His Lyrics Are Disastrous

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Jakobínarína were an Icelandic indie-punk band that pretty much existed for a split second before disappearing and never being heard from again. After three singles came the album The First Crusade in the autumn of 2007. Unfortunately, that would be the only crusade they would embark on as the six members decided to part ways a few months later. What could have accomplished had they continued? Like Test Icicles and Larrikin Love – to name two good bands who never made it out of the 00s – we’ll never know. But we have the music, man. And that’s all that matters, surely?

“His Lyrics Are Disastrous” is the second song on The First Crusade, and is about a person who wishes to rob a bank with someone, leave the country and never return. That is pretty much it. The lyrics don’t expand much upon that situation. The title phrase doesn’t appear within the song itself; I think I remember reading somewhere that it was said by a critic/listener who was at one of their shows. The lyrics on show could appear as their own choruses in two different songs, so the title chosen is rather apt however jokingly self-deprecating it is.

Overall, it is a short and snappy to just get loose to. Nothing philosophical to dwell upon. Those types of songs can sometimes be the best ones.