Hjaltalín is an Icelandic group that was founded in 2004, when a handful of high school students decided to take part in a songwriting competition. After the success of the song Goodbye July/Margt að ugga on the Icelandic radio, the group went to the studio and recorded their debut album, Sleepdrunk Seasons. Its release in late 2007 sparked nationwide attention and awards. At the same time, the group began to play abroad and the year of 2009 was largely spent on tours all around Europe.
In the summer of 2009, the band began recording their second album, Terminal, which features the current members of Hjaltalín, Axel, Guðmundur, Hjörtur, Högni, Rebekka, Sigríður and Viktor. The album was chosen as the album of the year and featured, amongst other things, a large orchestra, and expanded the sound of the group substantially. In June 2010, Hjaltalín and the Icelandic Symphony orchestra played 3 sold out concerts in Reykjavík, later released as the cd/dvd package Alpanon. In the autumn of 2012, the group made the score to the silent movie Days of Grey, which will receive its international premiere in 2013. Hjaltalín has now completed their third album, Enter 4, which was released in Iceland in December, 2012.
The album was praised by both the media and fans in Iceland, receiving a ten out of ten review from the Icelandic National Radio, and an Album of the year award from The Reykjavík Grapevine, which stated that „not only have they made the best Icelandic album of 2012 by a country mile, they’ve gone and created a record that’s probably one of the most searingly bleak and honest record from an Icelandic group in what feels like…forever?“ The album is set for an imminent worldwide release in September, 2013.
