Since first bursting onto the global punk scene in 2018, Icelandic trio GRÓAhave thrilled audiences across the world by fully embracing an unruly freedom. The Reykjavík-bred band, consisting of sisters Karólína Einars Maríudóttir, aka Karó (lead vocals, guitar, synth), Hrafnhildur Einars Maríudóttir, aka Hrabba (drums, vocals), and Fríða Björg Pétursdóttir (bass, vocals), merge elements of post-punk, noise-rock and art-pop with absolute abandon, arriving at an explosive yet magnificently arranged sound unlike any other. GRÓA approach their output with equal parts DIY spirit, strong-minded vision, and wildly playful imagination, as shown on their 2019 sophomore album Í Glimmerheimi and its 2021 follow-up What I like to do, both of which are to be re-released via FOUND later this year.
GRÓA will also be making their U.S. debut next month, performing at the Reykjavík Presents: Iceland Airwaves Off-Venue show, held at New York City’s iconic venue Pianos on May 11. Playing alongside experimental pop artist gugusar, the show is part of the touring festival Taste of Iceland, a multi-day event featuring the best of Icelandic food, beverages, music, film, literature, wellness, and more. Sign up for free tickets to the show here.
Known for their revelatory live shows – a highly communal experience that has won acclaim from outlets like KEXP, Paste Magazine, Clash, The Line of Best Fit, and more – GRÓA discovered their combustible musicality through years of dreaming up songs while growing up together in Reykjavík. While their songs endlessly veer off into unexpected and sublimely jarring directions, all of GRÓA’s music reveals the deep sense of purpose behind their nonstop experimentation: a profound desire to shatter limitations, dismantle worn-out patterns and narrow ways of thinking, and uncover new possibilities for living without restraint in an all-too-rigid world. “The only rule we follow is that there’s no wrong way to create,” says Karó. “We’re obsessed with trying new things and finding more extreme ways to come up with sounds.” Hrabba adds, “It’s like our music is a world we’ve made for ourselves, as a way to keep exploring new sounds and new ideas. Nothing is ever a mistake; it’s about having fun and doing what we want and fucking everything up if that feels right. Rebelliousness is definitely a big part of what drives us.”
With their early live experience including gigs at a library, a café/bike-repair shop, and a children’s school (as well as countless shows at a local basement venue), GRÓA released their self-titled debut in 2018 and took the stage at the famed Iceland Airwaves festival in 2019, earning them rave reviews around the globe. Since then, they’ve opened for artists like Wilco, Pussy Riot, Björk, and Kælan Mikla. In all of their live shows, the band adds a heady element of free-flowing improvisation to their songs while providing abundant space for audience members to shed their own inhibitions. These refreshing elements make them a live act that you just can’t miss.
