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Plays: 3988
Views: 5632 |
Members:
Formed: 1983
Official Site: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/kukl
iSound Site: www.isound.com/kukl
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| KUKL was incarnated as a band in August 1983, when Ásmundur Jónsson from Gramm Records, and Guðni Rúnar Agnarsson from Esquimaux Management, wanted to celebrate the final episode of the Radio-Show 'Áfangar' they had been producing for many years, at the Icelandic State Radio |
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KUKL was incarnated as a band in August 1983, when Ásmundur Jónsson from Gramm Records, and Guðni Rúnar Agnarsson from Esquimaux Management, wanted to celebrate the final episode of the Radio-Show 'Áfangar' they had been producing for many years, at the Icelandic State Radio, usually nicknamed as 'GUFAN'.
They recruited the guitar player/composer Guðlaugur Kristinn Óttarsson (a.k.a. Godkrist), vocalist Björk Guðmundsdóttir, together with Einar Örn Benediktsson (Purrkur Pillnikk), as well as the keyboardist Einar Arnaldur Melax (Medúsa), and the bassist Birgir Mogensen, and finally the drummer Siggtryggur Baldursson (Þeyr).
KUKL's first live concert, outside the radio studio, was in Reykjavík on September the 20th, as an opening act for CRASS (UK). Soon after, they put out their first release, a single featuring the song 'Söngull', as well a curious song named 'Pökn fyrir Byrjendur'.
'Söngull' is the Icelandic forerunner of 'Dismembered', which later appeared with English Lyrics on a their 1st album, The Eye...
THE EYE:
This album, was illustrated by 'Dada Nana' and contained beside the English version of 'Söngull', the song 'Anna' which made itself into a video that was shot under the direction of Tage Amendrup, a producer for the Icelandic State TV - almost the 'GUFAN'.
KUKLs music portrayed a very different style in Crass Records, as it was a complex mixture of rock, punk, jazz, classical, and rhythmic music with references to Igor Stravinsky as well as Alexander Scriabin.
The Guitars and The Electric Strings were played by Guðlaugur Kristinn Óttarsson, accompanied by elaborated notes from Birgirs Mogensens bass lines, which created a sound base, alongside with Sigtryggurs very tribal drums, and made a very vibrantly colored textures by the inclusion of Björk and the two 'Einars', that is, Einar Örn and Einar Melax - and all together, the total band accumulated their efforts into a very sophisticated, and a rather obscure kind of music, overlaied with very strange and scrabbled lyrics.
Right from the start, through 1984, as well as through 1985 & partially 1986, KUKL toured the whole of Europe, north, west, as well as the other directions. For example, they gig'd the Netherlands during the Pandora's Box Festival and they gig'd Denmark and appeared on the infamous 'Roskilde Festival', as well as Paris, Monpellier, Berlin, Hamburg, Oslo - to name but a few classic cities.
But most importantly, they toured the whole of the United Kingdom - together with the band 'Flux of Pink Indiand' - whose bassist would years later rule the label 'One Little Indian' - the very same label publishing BJÖRK and some of her friends, the very label icelanders like to nickname 'OLI'.
KUKL Statement for the U.K. tour:
'Through the ugliness of mankind, we try to shine. Against the stupidity of mankind, we try to fight. Our wages are the lunacy of others, as well as our nourishment. Atrocities of the world... Our nourishment is constantly our joy of the world'.
(Manifesto taken from page 3 of the booklet belonging to The Eye).
MEGAKUKL:
In 1985, KUKL and the renowned rock singer Megas, created a new band, nicknamed 'MEGAKUKL', which after collaborating on about 20 songs, gave very important concerts in the Icelandic Opera - but sadly, MEGAKUKL never released their works besides on some very obscure radio shows (remember Áfángar - the start), and their work still remain as unpublished material (althoug some cassette copies are known to be in circulation).
PARIS (at the Hilton):
During this period, KUKL had some presentations in France, which resulted in the album 'KUKL à Paris 14.9.84', which was released by the label 'V.I.S.A.' - a forteller to the multimilliondollar status some of them would later gain. V.I.S.A. was an independent record label, and released a 'Compact Magnetic Cassette' (CMC format) limited to France only, although some copyes made it to Iceland, and possibly to other countries.
In 1985, KUKL released Holidays in Europe (The Naughty Nought) automatically becoming into the first band to release more than one record through Crass (with the exception of Crass themselves). Crass Records press release showed one of KUKL manifestos:
The Naughty Nought pertains to the insignificance of the individual as being nothing but a numb number in a computer game of loss/profit good/evil black/white binary pairs. You are taken from Quintessence to the Four Elements; from the Holy Trinity to Duality; and then from Monoism to the Naughty Nought. In this process, all seals are broken by thundering trumpets, and vials of wrath pour out, and blend ultimately with KUKLs subtle musical poetry and explicit expressions. The Naughty Nought is in fact the source of all creative energy, and is manifested through whirling cyclonic motion, from the very shatters of matter, to the spiralling galaxies and then to clusters of clusters, ..., of clusters of galaxies. By contemplating on the kinetic aspect of this naughty ality, you gain your former potency as a master and a creator, without mutilating your fellow beings.
Manifesto published on Crass Records press release to announce KUKL’s new album, Holidays in Europe (The Naughty Nought), on January 24, 1986.
Crass Records press release:
Holidays in Europe (The Naughty Nought) music style has been considered as some sort of after-punk or an alternative indie-rock. There was two video clips shot for this album: 'Outward Flight (Psalm 323)' and 'France (A Mutual Thrill)'
KUKL Ideology:
The engine idea of KUKL was to cause a change in society through music using it as a means of transmission. To this end, the group refused to fall into commercialism and only used to appear during special occasions so that they could keep their quality of inspiration.
KUKL’s members kept the stance that the power is within us and what we do. By listening to their music, people would become into an integral part of that power transmission, even without wanting to.
Without holding out an accurate definition of their philosophy to avoid being type-cast, KUKL members considered that there is more in life than what is predetermined. They wanted to light other people’s minds avoiding restrictions since nowadays music served as a tool to numb people while those in the post of authority watched how we all go down to doom.
KUKL pointed out that we shouldn’t be satisfied with our own life’s style, our arts or attitudes. By having this in mind when music was concerned, KUKL introduced an incongruence in the psychic of their audience and as they did not use it to its own profit, individuals would have room enough to fill in with themselves. A non conformist attitude would bring another new wave of listeners. The option is being oneself.
KUKL Disintegrates and breaks up:
After exploring all music alternatives, the end of the band was getting closer. Guðlaugur Óttarsson and Björk formed The Elgar Sisters a group which featured KUKL musicians (but with the exception Einar Örn), and the collaborations of Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson and Þorsteinn Magnússon. They recorded 11 songs in 1986 and disbanded thereafter.
By the summer of 1986 Einar Örn returned from England with two projects: the creation of a new record label and a new band to gather more money and thus support their activities.
That’s how Smekkleysa/Bad Taste came into being and by June 8, 1986 after dating with Medúsa’s guitar player, Þór Eldon Jónsson, Björk gave to birth a boy named Sindri Eldon Þórsson. That date is usually referred as the birth of the new band called Sykurmolarnir, later translated as The Sugarcubes. The only members who did not continue with the new project were Guðlaugur and Birgir.
The fate of KUKL’s members:
Björk, Einar Örn, Einar Melax, and Sigtryggur Baldursson worked in The Sugarcubes, with Bragi Ólafsson in bass, Friðrik Erlingsson in guitar, who was replaced by Þór Eldon, and Melax was later replaced by Margrét Örnólfsdóttir.
Since KUKL disbanded, Guðlaugur has made several collaborations with renowned Icelandic and international artists, besides of giving guitar solo concerts in Iceland. As a polytechnic engineer, theoretical physicist and inventor, he has effectively combined his music work with his scientific work and often delves into quantum physics, quantum music, thermoelectricity, thermomusic, navigational systems, chord permutation systems, subnuclear structures, sub- and superharmonic music theory, to name but a few.
Birgir Mogesen, who after KUKL had collaborated with three tracks for The Elgar Sisters, has worked for recording and video studios and joined Inferno 5 a multimedia ensemble founded by Þorri Jóh, and had other music collaborations. He is currently working in the TeleVision industry, f.x. @ Skjár 1 as a broadcast equipment superwiser.
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