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.
Ljós í Stormi
Sólstafir Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Eftir stormasamar nætur,
Hvert ég á braut
Hvert sem nú toga fætur.
En þú kallar eftir mér,
þú býður mér skól.
þú ölduna brýtur,
þú býður mér griðarstað.
Á myrkustu stund.
þú varst ljós i storminum.
Ég rambaði einn í själfseyðingu,
Sál mín er nú feig.
Nú virtist svart,
Nú allt er orðið kalt.
Ég inn í myrkrið steig,
Sál mín er nú feig.
Myrkrið vék á brott,
þú varst ljós í storminum.
The lyrics to Sólstafir's "Ljós í Stormi" evoke a sense of struggle and isolation in the midst of a storm, both literal and metaphorical. The first verse compares the call of the seagulls to the call of the singer's own journey, a journey that they must undertake despite the difficult and stormy conditions. Despite this struggle, the singer hears a comforting voice calling out to them, offering them refuge and peace amidst the chaos. The final line of the verse, "þú varst ljós í storminum" (you were the light in the storm), suggests that the voice belongs to someone who has been a source of strength and hope for the singer in the past.
The second verse takes a more introspective turn, as the singer describes feeling lost and alone. They have retreated into themselves and feel that their soul is fading away. However, just as they seem to be swallowed up by darkness, they hear the voice again and the darkness recedes. The final line of the song, "Myrkrið vék á brott, þú varst ljós í storminum" (the darkness retreated, you were the light in the storm), emphasizes the importance of this voice in the singer's life, and suggests that they have found a way through the storm with the help of this person.
Overall, "Ljós í Stormi" is a powerful meditation on the trials of life and the importance of finding a way through difficult times with the help of others. The storm serves as a metaphor for the challenges we all face, from external obstacles to the internal demons that plague us. The comforting voice represents the love and support of those who help us weather these storms, and reminds us that even in the darkest of times, there is always hope.
Line by Line Meaning
Eins og miðin kalla út skipin,
Like the seagulls calling out the ships,
Eftir stormasamar nætur,
After stormy nights,
Hvert ég á braut
Wherever I wander
Hvert sem nú toga fætur.
Wherever my feet take me now.
En þú kallar eftir mér,
But you call after me,
þú býður mér skól.
You offer me shelter.
þú ölduna brýtur,
You break the waves,
þú býður mér griðarstað.
You offer me a sanctuary.
Og hvering sem allt fer,
And regardless of how everything turns out,
Á myrkustu stund.
In the darkest moments,
þú varst ljós i storminum.
You were the light in the storm.
Ég rambaði einn í själfseyðingu,
I stumbled alone in despair,
Sál mín er nú feig.
My soul is now cowardly.
Nú virtist svart,
Now it seemed black,
Nú allt er orðið kalt.
Now everything has become cold.
Ég inn í myrkrið steig,
I stepped into the darkness,
Sál mín er nú feig.
My soul is now cowardly.
Myrkrið vék á brott,
The darkness receded away,
þú varst ljós í storminum.
You were the light in the storm.
Contributed by Emma H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@sgcatalan
Love this. It's basically 4 notes in a 10 minute song one would think repetitive and boring but I does not sound boring at all, sounds amazing!
@fearsix4850
Simplesmente fenomenal!
Uma obra de arte!
@97warlock
I think its unheard of to have the drum track THAT low building into a simple melodic rythym ...........but they did it & gradually worked up the drum volume gradually to apoint it just grabs a nerve somehow & ya start feeling that rythym .. makes ya say CMON, cuz ya know its building to something, but it doesnt. this is my favorite track on the cd
@diessike
Essa banda é muito do caraaalhoooo!!! Super curti!!
@massiveelectrohead1054
9:21 since this part everythin's turns so emotive and magic !!! i fell the desire to be in the top of a mountain and scream to the clouds,to the threes and winds like this guy does !!! OMG, long time without no enjoy such beatifull music like this !!!! *_____* !!!!
@jaroslavnejtek8221
úžasná kapela :)
@yeniferfara
Verdaderamente una obra maestra!!!
@jcw3018
The comments on this page are strange. This is one of the very best bands in their genre. I could see them live and I was impressed.
@Auslandic
I never get tired of this amazing song!
@smellyoldsock1553
Absolutely love their sound... now they're costing me a bomb on vinyl.