Sólstafir was formed by 3 friends, Aðalbjörn Tryggvason, Halldór Einarsson and Guðmundur Óli Pálmason in January 1995. Later that year, the band recorded its first demo tape Í Norðri and at the end of the year recorded their second demo, Til Valhallar. Til Valhallar was never released as a demo, and four of the six songs were released as an EP by View Beyond Records. It was later re-released in 2002 with all six songs.
In 1999, Sólstafir entered the studio to record their debut full-length album. By that time Halldór had left the band, and in 1997 and 1998 Sólstafir released two promos as a two-piece. For the recording of the debut full-length, Sólstafir recruited Svavar Austmann as Halldór’s replacement. Although the recording of Í Blóði og Anda had started in 1999, the album was not released until 2002 due to endless delays and mishaps. The band truly believed they were cursed. In the meantime, Sólstafir started playing live shows in Iceland, and for that had added a second guitar player, Sæþór Maríus Sæþórsson. So, for the first time as a four-piece, Sólstafir recorded a new demo in 2002, eventually releasing 3 songs as the EP Black Death.
In 2004 the band began working on the follow up to Í Blóði og Anda on their own with the help of a good friend. Although Sólstafir were becoming a well known name in the European metal underground, the band found themselves without a recording label. Thus, the band decided to release 3 of the songs from the album as a limited edition promo to send around to labels. This, and a gig in Denmark (the band’s first outside of Iceland) ensured the band a deal with Spikefarm Records, a sub-label of Spinefarm Records.
Sólstafir released Masterpiece of Bitterness through Spinefarm in 2005. The album got exceptionally good reviews almost everywhere, and the band kept on making a good name for themselves with powerful live performances.
In December 2007, the band traveled to Göteborg, Sweden to record their third full length, Köld.
Köld was released in early 2009, and like Masterpiece… it not only got exceptionally good reviews, but most critics also had a hard time putting Sólstafir’s music into a specific genre. Descriptions like "Sounds like The Hellacopters if they went to art school and did a lot of Valium", "Imagine if Nachtmystium, Alice in Chains, and Neurosis got hammered while listening to Entombed's DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth – it would sound something like this" and "Sigur Rós goes metal!" were becoming really common.
Meanwhile, Sólstafir kept getting equally as good reviews for their live shows all across mainland Europe. They have played on many of Europe’s biggest festivals, including Roskilde Festival, Wacken Open Air, Summer-Breeze Open Air, Party San Open Air, Hole in the Sky Festival etc. Sólstafir have also done two full European tours in 2009 and 2010 as well as a few shorter ones.
Sólstafir's fourth full-length album, entitled Svartir Sandar was released on Season of Mist 14 October 2011 in Europe, and 18 October in the USA. The album got exceptionally good reviews and was voted album of the year in a few esteemed publications such as Finland’s biggest metal magazine, Inferno, Germany’s Metal.de and Iceland’s biggest newspaper Morgunblaðið. It was also voted the best heavy album of the year in Finland’s biggest music magazine, Soundi. For the first time, Sólstafir also entered the charts, and Svartir Sandar topped at no. 7 in Iceland and at no. 11 in Finland. The song "Fjara" also entered the single charts and topped at number 1 in Iceland.
Before the beginning of the second leg of their European tour in January 2015, the band posted a message on Facebook saying that Pálmason would not be joining them due to "personal reasons". Guðmundur replied immediately via the band's Twitter account, explaining that he'd been "stonewalled by ex-bandmates" and "thrown out of his life's work". In the beginning of June 2015, Guðmundur offered an explanation of the events that occurred 5 months prior. In an extensive statement, he revealed the details of his "forced" departure and condemned the actions of the rest of the band, in particular Aðalbjörn Tryggvason.
Fjara
Sólstafir Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Aldrei aftur samur maður er.
Ljóta leiðin heillar nú á ný,
daginn sem ég lífið aftur flý.
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
er það samt dauði minn.
Trú mín er að allt fari ej vel.
Dag sem nótt hljóðið var svo rótt.
Þrotið þol lamað bros.
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum.
Dag sem nótt ég geng nú einn.
Grafin bein grotna í jörðunni,
eins og leyndarmálin þín
sem þú hélst forðum burt frá mér.
En blóðið þyngr´en þögnin er.
Svikin orð, grjót í kjafti þér,
rista dýpra en nokkur sár.
Brotin bönd aldrei verða söm.
Lygar eins og nöðrubit.
Þetta er það lengsta sem ég fer,
Aldrei aftur samur maður er,
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
Er það samt dauði minn,
Trú mín er, að allt fari vel,
Þessu er lokið hjá mér,
Dag sem nótt, hjartað var órótt,
Þrotið þol, lamað bros,
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum,
Dag sem nótt, ég geng nú einn,
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
Er það samt dauði minn,
Trú mín er, að allt fari vel,
Þessu er lokið hjá mér,
Dag sem nótt, hjartað var órótt,
Þrotið þol, lamað bros,
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum,
Dag sem nótt, ég geng nú einn⟓.
The lyrics of "Fjara" by Sólstafir are in Icelandic and translated to English they talk about a long and difficult journey where the singer is walking alone. It seems that this journey represents the end of something in their life, perhaps a relationship or a way of living. The lines "This is the longest I'll ever go" and "Never again will I mate with a human" suggest that the singer is not only ending a physical journey but also an emotional and spiritual one. The person is haunted by past memories and secrets that weigh heavily on their heart, making it hard for them to find peace.
The chorus of the song talks about the singer's belief that if they succeed in this journey, it will be their death. In this case, dying could mean the end of their pain and suffering, or a metaphorical death of their old self to be reborn again. The line "My faith is that everything won't go well" suggests that the person is not optimistic about the outcome of this journey. They have accepted defeat and are ready to face whatever fate has in store for them.
Overall, "Fjara" is a song about the end of something in someone's life, a journey that represents closure and the singer's desire to move on from the past, even if it means facing their fears and challenges alone.
Line by Line Meaning
Þetta er það lengsta sem ég fer.
This is the longest journey I undertake.
Aldrei aftur samur maður er.
Never again the same person.
Ljóta leiðin heillar nú á ný,
The ugly path bewitches once again,
daginn sem ég lífið aftur flý.
The day I flee life once again.
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
If I succeed in this one time,
er það samt dauði minn.
It is still my death.
Trú mín er að allt fari ej vel.
My belief is that everything is not going well.
Þessu er lokið hjá mér.
This is over for me.
Dag sem nótt hljóðið var svo rótt.
Day and night, the silence was so rotten.
Þrotið þol lamað bros.
The exhausted endurance paralyzed the smile.
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum.
Ride on, the heart pumps tears.
Dag sem nótt ég geng nú einn.
Day and night, I walk alone now.
Grafin bein grotna í jörðunni,
Buried bones rot in the ground,
eins og leyndarmálin þín
Like your secrets,
sem þú hélst forðum burt frá mér.
That you once kept away from me.
En blóðið þyngr´en þögnin er.
But the blood is heavier than the silence.
Svikin orð, grjót í kjafti þér,
Words of betrayal, rocks in your mouth,
rista dýpra en nokkur sár.
Cut deeper than any wound.
Brotin bönd aldrei verða söm.
Broken bonds will never be the same.
Lygar eins og nöðrubit.
Lies like a venomous snake.
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
If I succeed in this one time,
Er það samt dauði minn,
It is still my death,
Trú mín er, að allt fari vel,
My belief is that everything will go well,
Þessu er lokið hjá mér,
This is over for me,
Dag sem nótt, hjartað var órótt,
Day and night, the heart was restless,
Þrotið þol, lamað bros,
The exhausted endurance paralyzed the smile,
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum,
Ride on, the heart pumps tears,
Dag sem nótt, ég geng nú einn,
Day and night, I walk alone now,
Contributed by Kaelyn K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@annaripley8705
Lyrics in English:
This is the longest I'm going.
Never the same person again.
The ugly road charms again now,
the day I escape life again.
Free If I work on this one time,
is it still my death.
My belief is that everything will not go well.
I'm done with this.
Free Day and night the sound was so loud.
Swollen endurance paralyzed smile.
Continue riding, the heart pumps tears.
Day and night I now walk alone.
Free Buried bones rot in the ground,
like your secrets
which you kept away from me long ago.
But the blood is heavier than the silence.
Free Forged words, stones in your mouth,
cut deeper than any wound.
Broken ties will never be the same.
Lies like a bite.
Free This is the longest I'm going,
Never the same man again,
Free If I work on this one time,
Is that still my death,
My belief is that everything will go well,
I'm done with this,
Free Day and night, the heart was troubled,
Swollen endurance, paralyzed smile,
Continue riding, the heart pumps tears,
Day and night, I now walk alone,
Free If I work on this one time,
Is that still my death,
My belief is that everything will go well,
I'm done with this,
Free Day and night, the heart was troubled,
Swollen endurance, paralyzed smile,
Continue riding, the heart pumps tears,
Day and night, I now walk alone⟓.
@arthursalitre8933
Þetta er það lengsta sem ég fer
Aldrei aftur samur maður er
Ljöta leiðin heillar nú á ný
Daginn sem ég lífið aftur flý
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn
Er það samt dauði minn
Trú min er að allt fari ej vel
Þessu er lokið hja mér
Dag sem nótt hjartað var órótt
Þrotið þol lamað bros
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum
Dag sem nótt ég geng nú einn
Grafin bein grotna í jörðunni
Eins og leyndarmálin þín
Sem þú hélst forðum burt frá mér
En blóðið þyngr´en þögnin er
Svikin orð, grót í kjafti þér
Rista dýpra en nokkur sár
Brotin bönd aldrei verða söm
Lygar eins og nöðrubit
@_emms_
Þetta er það lengsta sem ég fer.
Aldrei aftur samur maður er.
Ljóta leiðin heillar nú á ný,
daginn sem ég lífið aftur flý.
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
er það samt dauði minn.
Trú mín er að allt fari ej vel.
Þessu er lokið hjá mér.
Dag sem nótt hljóðið var svo rótt.
Þrotið þol lamað bros.
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum.
Dag sem nótt ég geng nú einn.
Grafin bein grotna í jörðunni,
eins og leyndarmálin þín
sem þú hélst forðum burt frá mér.
En blóðið þyngr´en þögnin er.
Svikin orð, grjót í kjafti þér,
rista dýpra en nokkur sár.
Brotin bönd aldrei verða söm.
Lygar eins og nöðrubit.
Þetta er það lengsta sem ég fer,
Aldrei aftur samur maður er,
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
Er það samt dauði minn,
Trú mín er, að allt fari vel,
Þessu er lokið hjá mér,
Dag sem nótt, hjartað var órótt,
Þrotið þol, lamað bros,
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum,
Dag sem nótt, ég geng nú einn,
Ef ég vinn í þetta eina sinn,
Er það samt dauði minn,
Trú mín er, að allt fari vel,
Þessu er lokið hjá mér,
Dag sem nótt, hjartað var órótt,
Þrotið þol, lamað bros,
Áfram ríð, hjartað pumpar tárum,
Dag sem nótt, ég geng nú einn
@aro7198
Jest to najdalsza podróż w jaką się udam
Nic już nie będzie takie jak dawniej
Nikczemna droga mnie wzywa,
Dzień w którym znów uciekłem od życia
Jeśli wygram ten jeden raz,
to nadal będzie mój koniec.
Przekonanie, że nic nie kończy się dobrze.
To jest mój koniec.
Dniem i nocą serce nieukojone
Złamana wola, zastygły uśmiech.
Serce wciąż pompuje łzy.
Dniem i nocą idę sam.
Kości gnijące w ziemi,
Jak Twoje tajemnice,
Które tak długo dla mnie trzymałaś
Ale krew waży więcej niż milczenie.
Złamane słowa, jak szkło w ustach,
Tną głąbiej niż jakiekolwiek inne rany.
Złamane śluby nigdy nie będą takie same.
Kłamstwa jak ugryzienie żmii...
@leandrolcortez
PRAIA
"Este é o mais longe que eu irei
Nunca mais serei a mesma pessoa
Horríveis encantos me atraiam
No dia em que corria para a vida novamente
Se eu ganhar desta vez
Ainda vai ser o meu fim
Minha crença é de que nada acaba bem
Este é o fim para mim
Dia e noite meu coração esteve pesado
Desejos destruídos, sorrisos congelados
Eu continuo, meu coração bombeando lágrimas
Dia e noite eu andei sozinho
Ossos apodrecendo na terra
Como os seus segredos
Que há muito tempo tem escondido de mim
Mas o sangue pesa mais que o silêncio
Palavras destruídas, fragmentos em sua boca
Corte mais profundo do que qualquer ferida
Laços quebrados nunca serão os mesmos
Mentiras são como a picada de uma víbora"
@therealjonesy912
This band; and this song in particular, helped me through a rough part of my life. It's weird listening to it now. It gives me a weird nostalgic feeling for wandering around drunk and sad in the middle of winter, laying in the snow and staring at the stars with this blasting in my headphones.
Not a lot of bands successfully take me back to moments of my life. I love it.
@pavelpasek5595
Mám to stejně.
@patrickgelder-ph5yd
Always nice to meet a non audioslave.
Goodday to you.
@user-mm5zz5uq6n
After years and years of loving these guys i'm finally seeing them live tonight. This tune is on the setlist, I think i'm going to actually cry
@iiRic0
How was it? 😊
@freyjareis3604
6 years without hearing this song and gods made me remember again.... A true masterpiece! 🔥❤
@neropalma6622
It truly is
@hugoinaki3649
It's never too late to discover such a great band.
@hendriksomers8805
2 years later. Still not too late :)
@user-tg5sd5mn9h
Never too late.