HOSTAGE

• 22nd Mar 2004

Gisli. It means hostage in Icelandic. He hasn¹t got a clue why his parents called him Gisli, but he says there are no easy answers in this world. Gisli writes about his loves and losses and fuck-ups. His life is full of fuck ups, he says without them, you don¹t get the music. His influences range from Iron Maiden to Justin Timberlake to Dinosaur Junior to Beck.

Gisli was born in Rekyavic, Iceland. His father was a fisherman who regularly sailed to Germany and came home with fresh records for his little boy to listen to. By the age of six he was playing his neighbour¹s drum kit. At 18, he moved from Iceland to Norway, which had a little more daylight and was marginally less bleak. But only marginally. He spent five years as drummer with the punk rock band Pornshot.

Gisli’s music is inspired by everything that has gone wrong in his life; how he fell out of love with his girlfriend who was lead singer in the band, how the members of Pornshot began to think they were superstars because they performed in front of 200 people in Oslo, how he decided he had to pull his life by the roots, and start again.

There is nothing elliptical, nothing subtle in Gisli’s lyrics. They are as direct as they come.

Gisli’s ‘Passing Out EP’ is released by At Large Recordings on March 22nd

1. Passing out
2. Go Get ’Em Tiger
3. Know What I’m Sayin’
4. I Refuse

Gisli is playing at the following venues…

MARCH
Mon 22 London, Barfly (X-Posure Live)
Tue 23 Brighton, Concorde 2
Thu 25 Cardiff, Barfly
Fri 26 Newcastle, Northumbria University (Bulletproof Club Night)
Sat 27 Oldham, The Castle (Stonelove Club Night)
Sun 28 Stoke, Sugarmill
Mon 29 Liverpool, University Guild Of Students (Double Vision Club Night)