Roskilde contest: blog nr. 3 - Roskilde 2006Birta Sæmundsdóttir

After the Sigur Rós concerts I was pretty happy. I mean, just to have seen them was almost enough for my simple childish mind, but sure enough, that was only on Thursday and we had three AMAZING days left, filled with great music.

The weather was good the entire time except for one day that rained a little but that was before the actual festival started so it was nothing to complain about. It probably would only have been nice getting some rain after all the sun that was that year.
Since I've been three times before, the festivals all mix together in my head and I can't remember clear enough when what band was. But like any first times you have; the first drink, the first kiss, the first time you have sex, you never, ever forget you're first Roskilde festival. From sitting in front of Orange stage and enjoying Morrisey and Bob Dylan, or slamming to Deftones, watching the singer of The Strokes falling on the stage, trying to pass the ridicolous crowd at Arena when Arctic Monkeys were playing, it all comes back so easily like you wouldn't believe! But the concert I remember the most was without a doubt Scissor Sisters late on Saturday night on Orange. The group (minus one who wanted to have some quality time back at camp with himself) were really excited to see them. We the girls even bought "new" vintage clothes in one of the markets there just for that occasion. When we saw that the front pit was open we absoloutely had to go there and to my surprise we had more than enough room to dance ther e the entire time. Not one of us disliked the concert and we all danced our feet of. I think that was the first time I ever saw my brother dance!!

It was pretty awesome finishing the festival with a legend like Roger Waters and since my unexperienced body was so tired from that week I welcomed it. And the icing on the cake, if you will, were those fireworks! Man, I light up like a child when I think about fireworks so for me it didn't come any better than that.

I think it's the best time I've ever had, just wandering around the site, checking out the centers, drinking beer all day long, listening to music. It's the best relaxing holiday you can have, except for, you know, maybe beeing sleepdeprived from all the constant partying in your group or around you. But that sure dosen't stop anyone from having a good time and keep coming back for more of Roskilde festival!

Roskilde contest: blog nr. 2 - Roskilde 2006Birta Sæmundsdóttir

I've thought about what to write here to convince the people who selects the nine Roskilde bloggers to pick me. I'm, after all only writing in English to show that I'm capable of it. After a lot of thought about what's interesting enough I've decided to write about my experience of Roskilde festival. I've been three times before; in 2006, '07 and '09. I think it's traditional to start at the beginning.

In 2006 I was almost 19 and going for the first time with a small group from my home town. In that group was my brother, his girlfriend and few good friends. My older brother had actually been to Roskilde festival three times before, so he was the official guide of the group to the festival, explaining the do's and don'ts etc. We started our awesome trip from our small town in east of Iceland driving for 7 hours to Reykjavík. Since this was a party trip we decided to live a little while in the capital. So we rented a limo for the group for one hour, sitting and drinking to bands that were going to play at Roskilde, I remember especially Scissor Sisters. After the hour in the limo we went bowling and drinking the ridiculously expensive beer sold there. Like that wasn't enough splurging before spending a week in Denmark, we took another limo for two hours after that! Just to make it clear, that was before the economy in Iceland exploded, we may actually have had some part of it...

Anyway! Of course, after that night we were all pretty hungover and were supposed to take a flight really really early. There were some in that group that almost missed the flight! But in the end everything went well and we arrived in sunny Copenhagen and went straight to Roskilde. I didn't know what to expect of the festival, the camping site and all that and I was mostly shocked of the size it, the countless tents and people. I thought it was so great!
My brother, having been three times, said that we should not be too close to the centers because we wouldn't want to smell like pee. So we walked all the way to J, which was a fantastic area to rest but party also (that was before it came a quite area, that's unless we just didn't know about it then - in that case, oops!).
The first thing we did after setting up our tents was of course walk to buy some ice cold delicious Tuborg. Then it was just four days of relaxing, drinking and exploring the site until the festival started.

The first concert I ever saw at Roskilde was the metal band Trivium from the United States on Arena. I hadn't heard a lot from them but some songs I like and I thought they rocked that concert! ...It might have been the ecstacy from actually beeing to Roskilde festival, FINALLY! We walked around after that and waited for Axl Roseto show up. I have never seen so many people gathered in one place as there were there, waiting for him. That ended up beeing a total bust, we had to wait for 45 minutes and people did not like it. I whined to my friends to go back to Arena to see Sigur Rós, my favorite Icelandic band (which I'm actually listening to right now, funnily enough). To this date I haven't been so mesmerized by one band. The concerts were so amazing that I didn't even care that I was way in the back, just cathcing glimpses of the band. Thinking back I must have looked like I was seriously on ecstacy or something, because I couldn't stop smiling the biggest smile, thinking: Wow, I'm really here, finally experiencing it!
 
 
2006 to be continued...

 

Roskilde contest: blog nr. 1Birta Sæmundsdóttir

So I've been counting down the days to Roskilde Festival 2010. I've already been there three times before and am longing - no, craving - to go this year. My friends (who haven't been) ask me:
-Don't you wanna try something new? Some other festival or country? 
Just the fact that they ask these questions shows that they have not been to Roskilde Festival. And my answer to those questions is: Hell no!
But the fact that I'm a poor university student from a country that appears to be slowly sinking, with an currency that almost isn't valid in a make believe game, makes my dream or craving to go for my fourth time almost impossible. My act of desperation to go? Write this blog, in English, so that I can enter a contest to blog from Roskilde Festival (and yes, I should be doing a essay now, due today). I haven't written anything in a year or so, but it's always easy to pick up where you left off.

As I write this I'm listening to, as my writing muse, funnily enough, MUSE. They were announced in December as a first big act to play this year and they may be one of the reasons I'm dying to go to Roskilde. I saw them when they played on Orange in 2007, the rainiest festival from the beginning. They are one of my favorite music acts ever, and I will hopefully hear them play again (perhaps this year...?)

-Birta