Following the re-release of my 2020 Glåsbird album Norskfjǫrðr I had a think about what I could present as a blog post to accompany the release. Since I've been sorting through and organising my record collection lately, I spotted how I had quite a few records by Nordic artists. I noticed that I had records by other artists inspired by this part of the world as well. So I decided to gather these records together and record a mix.

Unlike some of the mixes I've been making recently, I did not prepare a meticulous plan where I'd identify the root key of all the tracks, test the transitions and then record. It takes quite a bit of time and so I decided to simply get a pile of records together, pick a starting track and build the set by ear as it was recording. It seemed to go pretty well on the whole, bar one sketchy transition... The music for me tells a cinematic story of Northern hemisphere regions, with music by artists based in or inspired by Iceland, Norway, Denmark and Finland.

Click play below and then underneath is a track-by-track commentary accompanied by a photo I took of my vinyl copy for each record...

Tracklist

01 Ø – Mojave
02 Juho Toivonen – Hyönteisille
03 Biosphere – Laika
04 Jared Smith – Quiet For A Time
05 Erik M. – Swirls
06 Patricia Wolf – Echoes Through Tim
07 1982 – 2
08 Viktor Orri Árnason & Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir - Líkaminn er þaninn fiðlustrengur
09 Halvcirkel – København
10 Bremer/McCoy - Åben Bog
11 Sigur Rós – Fall

Ø – Mojave
From Oleva, 2008
[Sahko Recordings]

Kicking things off in a minimal fashion, I reached for this electronica classic by the late Finnish artist Mika Vainio under his Ø moniker. I bought this one on vinyl the first time round in 2008 when Sahko first dropped it. Tucked inside the sleeve, I saw that the vinyl cost me around £15 back then - not bad for a double album! But of course, it was a little before the great vinyl revival perhaps. I was always drawn to the artwork for this record and I particularly like Mika's cover of Pink Floyd's 'Set The Controls For The Heart of The Sun'. Some of the tracks have beats, some are a little more tonal. I wanted to select something almost silent to begin with, to help the set build like a movie.

Juho Toivonen - Hyönteisille
From Kasveille ja Eläimille, 2025
[Ultraääni Records]

Bringing things up-to-date with the first of a few 2025 purchases, I went for another record by a Finnish artist. I discovered this one by Juho Toivonen via Juno and I really love the piano pieces. However, the piece that followed the best from the previous piece is the noisier, minimal Hyönteisille so that's what I went for. It's a short track, so I had to get a shift on with the mix!

Biosphere – Laika
From Substrata, 1997
[All Saints Records]

Time for another all-time electronica classic, winding back the clock to 1997 with Biosphere's Substrata. For many, this is one of the finest Ambient albums of all time and I recently finally took the plunge and got this lavish gatefold edition. I was actually introduced to Biosphere by a friend, before I got into Ambient music. He had the Patashnik album and lent it to me and so I was all ears, when my friends in the Ambient scene would point to this one. I love the radio conversation recordings that Geir Jenssen would often use in his productions so I felt this was a natural move from the previous minimal pieces, selecting Laika. It's a really long piece so that gave a little time to plan some of the tracks that followed although I did mix out pretty quickly once I'd settled on the next track.

Jared Smith – Quiet For A Time
From Fjall, 2013
[Own Records]

I was in discussions with Jared back in 2012ish, at a time when I'd decided to transition from running the Audio Gourmet netlabel to my first label releasing CDs. I wanted to do some handmade packaging editions and found I could never quite settle on or pin down my ideas. This meant that I wasn't particularly clear on things when chatting with my artists and often, I didn't have the capabilities or know-how to execute some of the amazing ideas the artists would bring to the table. There were a few that got away and Fjall was one. I still remember seeing Jared's photo series from Iceland and being literally awestruck. It worked out really well, as he landed a release on Luxembourg's Own Records, which were incidentally one of my favourite labels at the time. The white record looks amazing and the Icelandic-themed aesthetic carries wonderfully. I wanted to bring in a little added warmth to the mix, so this one was a must.

Erik M. – Swirls
From Soft Wish, 2025
[Kora]

This record by Oslo-based artist Erik Mowinckel has sat towards the top of my album of the year for 2025, ever since I bought the vinyl in April. Firstly, I love the artwork and the record has an intriguing presentation, where there's a circular cut-out on one side only of the sleeve. What's more, it's a little smaller than the conventional size and doesn't show the full extend of the inner label sticker. But more importantly, this record is so well produced with a balanced blend of drones, acoustic textures and deep bass. I find myself picking this one up regularly and so with Erik and the Kora label being based in Norway, I had to make sure to work it in. I chose one of the more minimal, electronic tracks for the mix, taking the set back down a musique concrete route.

Patricia Wolf – Echoes Through Time
From Hrafnamynd, 2025
[Balmat]

This is one of the newest arrivals to my record collection, an album that I'd had on pre-order for some time. I've long-since enjoyed Patricia's work, particularly her last album for Balmat back in 2022. With this new one 'Hrafnamynd', I was pulled in by the theme which has an aesthetic based around Iceland. The title translates to Raven Film, as Patricia composed music for a documentary film by Edward Pack Davee. There's a glimpse of this on the release Bandcamp page, with a wonderful short music video. This is a really varied album and in the mix, I brought in 'Echoes Through Time' as I felt the electronic effects gave a sense of movement, apt to transition to the second half of the mix.

1982 – 2
From Chromola, 2017
[Hubro]

We transition to a more acoustic-leaning section of the mix with the inclusion of this untitled piece by 1982 from the band's album 'Chromola'. We hop back from Iceland to Norway again here, with a record I am very fond of by Norwegian trio Nils Økland, Sigbjørn Apeland and Øyvind Skarbø, who recorded this album in Sandviken church in Bergen. I Googled this church and it has a beautiful green spire and, evidently, fantastic acoustics too. This album features percussion, harmonium, organ, violin and Hardanger fiddle. It has neither an Ambient, Jazz nor folk feel to it. Yet it is all three of these styles all at once. What's more, it's on the Hubro label - more great music from Oslo. I really like how this prolific label designs their sleeves.

Viktor Orri Árnason & Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir
Líkaminn er þaninn fiðlustrengur, 2023
[Deutsche Grammophon]

I remember picking this album up around the Christmas of 2023, being a big fan of Viktor Orri Árnason's music (and goes without saying, Deutsche Grammophon!). He collaborated with fellow Icelandic singer Álfheiður and I couldn't stop listening to this record when it arrived. So so beautiful with the classical instrument arrangements showing such a wonderful restrain to both add weight and emotion to the pieces, yet respecting Álfheiður's voice as the centre piece. The tracks are all interpretations of traditional Icelandic songs and so another fitting moment for this Nordic themed show. I opted for one of my favourite tracks, which happened to nicely follow the Chromola record.

Halvcirkel - København
Vida, 2024
[130701]

Hopping across now to inland Europe now then, with this piece by Danish strings artists Halvcirkel from their album 'Vida' on FatCat's Modern Classical spin-off label 130701. It was amongst my favourites last year and something I've still been playing regularly this year too. The string trio consists of violist Mika Persdotter, violinist Bettina Marie Ezaki and cellist Nicole Hogstrand, based in Copenhagen which happens to be the theme behind the title for the track I'd chosen for the mix. In this album I like how the strings are quite lively and repetitive and this gives a really nice bright atmosphere to the mix.

Bremer/McCoy - Åben Bog
Utopia, 2020
[Luaka Bop]

Sticking with Denmark then, and in fact the same city; Copenhagen - here's a record I missed in 2020 by duo Bremer McCoy. Given the movement in the two tracks I was mixing, you'll hear I had a bit of a hard time trying to fit these tracks - and so I employed the fool-proof DJ's rescue tool. The 'power down' technique where I turned off the power to the deck of the outgoing track so that the track slowed down to a halt. Kind of works, kind of doesn't... but you'll not care after a few seconds of this one! Utopia is an amazing record that straddles between Modern Classical and Jazz.

Sigur Rós – Fall
Átta, 2023
[BMG Recordings]

There had to be some space in the mix for legendary Icelandic artists Sigur Rós and so I was pleased that given the epic nature of their music, that I could close out the show with something from their Átta album. It's a beautiful glossy double gatefold sleeve, which my daughters were drawn to in a local record shop as I was trying desperately to find something that I'd enjoy. It's quite normal for me to struggle to find anything in a record shop largely offering commercial music. But that day I was hopefully flipping through a load of old Dad rock oldies in the vague hope of landing on a Brian Eno 12" - when my daughters presented me with Átta which they'd been drawn to (They like rainbows). I'd not heard any Sigur Rós in years and I wondered if the sound of this one had veered more towards heavy drums, so I stuck it on in my headphones in a café. We went back of course... this album is just superb!

'Norskfjǫrðr' is available in a limited repress of 100 gatefold vinyl-effect CDrs, as well as a digital option in a range of high quality format options. You can take a listen to the album in full or buy a copy HERE!