Biography
Comparisons to Damien Rice, Ray LaMontagne, Nick Drake, and My Morning Jacket surface repeatedly when Without Gravity is discussed, and each one holds. Reykjavik’s four-piece outfit works in a recognizable melancholic vein that, with the arrival of their first full-length in 2005, still found favor on triple-A radio and the iPods of attentive listeners past thirty. Their music forgoes the deliberate jolts and puzzles favored by fellow Icelanders Björk and Sigur Rós, yet the pieces lock together with equal agility.
Ennui drew surname-less singer/guitarist Kalli, guitarist Konni, drummer/vocalist Grimsi, and double bass/e-bass player Ottar together in 2002. While more animated acts scrambled for notice during the early Icelandic rock surge, the foursome passed idle afternoons in a bandmate’s living room shaping songs gentle enough for that confined space. Once the name Without Gravity was settled and shows began, that same restraint kept bookings inside cramped clubs and tiny cafés.
By 2005 the reach of their plain, yearning material had crossed Nordic lines, resulting in the recording of the ethereal Tenderfoot. Its U.S. appearance on the One Little Indian label the same year stirred adult-leaning tastemakers and may eventually force Kalli, Konni, Grimsi, and Ottar to set aside their preference for seclusion if they intend to keep reaching listeners. Ordinary living rooms cannot hold a following that has grown so quickly.
Ennui drew surname-less singer/guitarist Kalli, guitarist Konni, drummer/vocalist Grimsi, and double bass/e-bass player Ottar together in 2002. While more animated acts scrambled for notice during the early Icelandic rock surge, the foursome passed idle afternoons in a bandmate’s living room shaping songs gentle enough for that confined space. Once the name Without Gravity was settled and shows began, that same restraint kept bookings inside cramped clubs and tiny cafés.
By 2005 the reach of their plain, yearning material had crossed Nordic lines, resulting in the recording of the ethereal Tenderfoot. Its U.S. appearance on the One Little Indian label the same year stirred adult-leaning tastemakers and may eventually force Kalli, Konni, Grimsi, and Ottar to set aside their preference for seclusion if they intend to keep reaching listeners. Ordinary living rooms cannot hold a following that has grown so quickly.
Albums
