The Faroe Islands Podcast

On this episode, we travel to London to meet up with Kate Sanderson. She's the Head of Representation of the Faroe Islands to the United Kingdom. It's kind of like an ambassador, but with many more words in the title. We'll talk about representing the Faroes in the UK and the life of a Faroese diplomat. Then we head to the center of Torshavn and accidentally participate in a church service.

On this episode, we talk to out good friend Hogni about this year's G! Festival. We'll hear about the crowd pleasers, emerging artists, and the occasional curve ball that make the festival what it is. Then we'll listen to a silent disco, which is a little difficult due to the whole "silent" part. Also, we're raising money for a new season of podcasts, if you want to pitch in, here's the link.

On this episode, we learn the history of a Faroese boat whose name, translated into English is "Northern Lights" but whose Faroese name contains characters this American keyboard doesn't have. The creators of this podcast thought the boat was a sailing ship from the late 1800s. Turns out, we couldn't have been farther from the truth. Step onboard as we learn the unexpected history of an iconic Faroese ship.

On this episode, we talk to one of our favorite Faroese musicians, Sakaris. We'll revisit his performance at the 2023 G! Festival and talk about what it takes to write a great song (hint: it often involves writing a lot of bad songs first.) Sakaris has put out a new single, it's well worth a listen.   We'll also talk a little about Sissal, the Faroese singer who made it to the finals of the Eurovision Song Contest, making her the first Faroese person to achieve that. You can hear her song here.

On this episode, we talk to Faroese hip hop artist Marius DC. He's making a name for himself in both the Faroe Islands and in Europe with his mix of Faroese and English language rap.  Then we'll sit on a rock and look at the harbor.

It's festival season in the Faroe Islands, and our favorite three days in the calendar are pretty much here. We talk to the music director of the G! Festival about which bands to look out for at this year's event. And we are, indeed, still in fundraising mode. If you can help us reach our modest goal, you can throw some coins in the tip jar (or open guitar case, whichever metaphor works for you) at our gofundme page. And thank you for everyone who has already donated. It has really made a difference.

Brimheim is a Faroese/Danish musician who has a deep musical pedegree in the Faroe Islands. Last year, critics singled out her G! Festival performance as a highlight of the event. Following that performance, she sat down and talked to us. She talks to us about her journey to her triumphant G! Fest perfromance, and how she considers herself a Faroese nepo-baby, but also an outsider in the Faroes. Brimheim's latest album is called RATKING and it's getting positive notices on both sides of the Atlantic.  Also, we've got a brief update on the resolution of the Faroese labor strike. We're also in fundraising mode. If you can help us fund this odd project we're involved with, head over to our gofundme page and show us some love.

On this episode, we talk to Ragnar Olafson about his new book, Definitely Maybe. It's a book about music in the Faroe Islands and attempts to answer that age-old question: "How can a country so small put out so much music?" This is a subject that has intrigued this podcast for more than 15 years. We'll also hear a little bit from Ragnar's band Árstíðir. We'll also hear some sound recorded high atop a hill overlooking the strait that separates Streymoy and Eysturoy.

On this mini-pod, we explain why there hasn't been a new podcast in the last five months. Unlike other episodes, there isn't much about the Faroe Islands. But never fear, a new podcast that has actual audio from the Faroe Islands has just posted, too.

This week, we offer a very special episode of the podcast. We talk to Elin Brimheim Heinesen about her new album, which is a collaboraion between Elin, musicians, composers, and arrangers in three different countries, and Elin's late father Jens Pauli Heinesen. Elin has set some of her father's poems to music and set them to an orchestral arrangement. Also, she's translated those poems into English and recorded English-language versions of those songs. The album is gorgeous and emotional and we spend more than 30 minutes talking about how the album came to be, about the life and work of Jens Pauli Heinesen, and his impact on Faroese culture. We'll also hear some of the songs. We open with a bit of A Chasm Of Precious Time  and Sorrow Is Beautiful, Too and near the end you'll hear a little of The Chasm Deep Within.  If you'd like to buy a copy of the album on vinyl or CD (and we highly recommend you do) it's for sale on the TUTL website. Also, Atlantic Airways has started selling tickets for its 2024 flights between the Faroe Islands and New York. If you'd like to learn more, head on over to the Atlantic Airways website.