Samaris | Góða tungl
Samaris’s “Góða tungl” Three Icelandic teenagers combined clarinet, electronics, and 19th-century poetry to create the glacial electronica anthem that launched them to international attention in 2013.
Story Behind “Góða tungl”
The Music Theory Class
January 2011. Reykjavík. Frozen, dark, boring—that’s how Áslaug Rún Magnúsdóttir remembers it. She sat in a music theory class at Reykjavík’s music academy with Þórður “Doddi” Kári Steinþórsson and Jófríður Ákadóttir, three teenagers who wanted to try something new, something weird. They decided to start an electronic band. Áslaug had no idea if they’d sing, dance, or create a theatre piece.
But Doddi and Jófríður had a spark. “’Góða tungl’ was one of the first songs we wrote,” Áslaug later recalled. “It just clicked.”
The combination shouldn’t have worked: Doddi’s minimal beats and dreamy synth washes, Áslaug’s sonorous clarinet melodies wandering through electronic landscapes, and Jófríður’s breathy, intimate vocals singing words she didn’t write. The lyrics came from Steingrímur Þorsteinsson, an Icelandic poet who lived from 1831 to 1913. He’d written “Góða tungl” (Good Moon) as an adaptation of an old German folk song called “Til tunglsins”—poetry about the moon watching over us, shining into windows and hearts when we feel hurt or alone.
The track became Samaris’s calling card. They’d found a winning formula: taking 19th-century Icelandic poetry and weaving it through glacial electronica until the ancient words sounded both timeless and utterly contemporary.
From Battle of the Bands to One Little Indian
Within months of forming, Samaris entered Músíktilraunir—Iceland’s annual battle-of-the-bands competition that had previously launched Of Monsters and Men. They won. Doddi also took home the Keyboard/Programmer prize. Then they won the prestigious Kraumur Award. All before any of them turned twenty.
They wore costumes to early gigs to help secure bookings, but it quickly became clear the music itself drew crowds. That October, they performed at Iceland Airwaves festival during a daytime café show. One Little Indian Records—the legendary label that had championed Björk, The Sugarcubes, and múm—was watching. They signed Samaris on the spot.
The band self-released two EPs: Hljóma Þú in 2011 and Stofnar falla in 2012 (recorded at Sigur Rós’s Sundlaugin studio with Gunnar Tynes of múm). When One Little Indian re-released these tracks as the self-titled album Samaris in July 2013, they added four remixes. “Góða tungl” was released as a single that same month, complete with a sophisticated music video directed by Þora Hilmarsdóttir that matched the track’s haunting aesthetic.
“Góða tungl” Recording and Production Details
Doddi’s Minimal Electronics Meet Classical Clarinet
Þórður “Doddi” Steinþórsson crafted “Góða tungl” using what became Samaris’s signature production approach: hyper-minimalist electronics layered with bold, percussive beats. The track’s foundation sits in sub-bass frequencies and juddering rhythms that create physical impact without overwhelming the delicate elements above.
Áslaug’s clarinet enters not as jazz embellishment but as equal melodic voice. Her lines wander through the electronic landscape with classical training guiding improvisational freedom. The clarinet becomes the bridge between Steingrímur Þorsteinsson’s 19th-century poetry and Doddi’s 21st-century production—an organic instrument that feels at home in digital space.
The production emphasizes space and silence as much as sound. Electronic elements enter gradually, building atmosphere through restraint rather than density. Doddi cited influences from The Knife, Portishead, and Massive Attack—trip-hop pioneers who understood that tension lives in what you don’t play.
Jófríður’s Chant-Like Vocals
Jófríður Ákadóttir approached the 19th-century lyrics as sounds first, meanings second. As the band explained, the words are “delicately sewn together and in a way they already have their song, their own melody when you read them.” Her vocals sit intimate and breathy in the mix, almost like whispered incantation.
The production captures this quality perfectly—Jófríður sounds close, like she’s singing directly into your ear in a dark room. The vocal treatment emphasizes the texture of Icelandic syllables, letting non-Icelandic speakers feel the emotional weight without understanding literal translation. “Góða tungl” translates to “good moon,” and the song functions as a lullaby, an ode to the moon watching over us, guiding us to the right direction.
The track runs 4:11—long enough to establish its hypnotic pattern, build tension through minimal variation, and leave listeners wanting to restart immediately.
Notes About “Góða tungl” by Samaris
Release Date: July 22, 2013 (single); July 2013 (album)
Duration: 4:11
Genre: Art Pop / Glacial Electronica / Trip-Hop / Ambient
Album: Samaris (self-titled debut album, track 3)
Lyrics: Steingrímur Þorsteinsson (1831-1913), 19th-century Icelandic poet
Original Poem: “Góða tungl” (adapted from German folk song “Til tunglsins”)
Producer: Þórður “Doddi” Kári Steinþórsson
Label: One Little Indian Records
Spotify Streams: Nearly 1.5 million (as of 2016)
Music Video: Directed by Þora Hilmarsdóttir
Samaris “Góða tungl” Era Band Details
Album Details
Album: Samaris (self-titled compilation album)
Release Date: July 2013
Label: One Little Indian Records / 12 Tónar (Iceland)
Album Concept: Compilation of two previous self-released EPs (Hljóma Þú 2011, Stofnar falla 2012) plus four remixes
Recording: Hljóma Þú EP recorded 2011; Stofnar falla EP recorded at Sundlaugin studio (Sigur Rós’s studio) with Gunnar Tynes (múm) in 2012
Lyrical Approach: All lyrics taken from 19th-century Icelandic poems
Critical Reception: Generally favorable reviews; compared to Björk meets Fever Ray
Band Members/Personnel
Jófríður Ákadóttir - Vocals (also member of Pascal Pinon, later solo as JFDR)
Áslaug Rún Magnúsdóttir - Clarinet
Þórður “Doddi” Kári Steinþórsson - Electronics, beats, production
Gunnar Tynes (múm) - Co-producer on Stofnar falla EP sessions
Þora Hilmarsdóttir - Music video director
Production Notes
Band formed January 2011 in Reykjavík music academy
Won 2011 Músíktilraunir competition within months of forming
Won 2011 Icelandic Kraumur Award for Hljóma Þú EP
Performed at Iceland Airwaves 2011 and 2012
Signed to One Little Indian Records after 2012 Iceland Airwaves performance
Self-titled album reached nearly 1.5 million streams for lead single
Follow-up album Silkidrangar released 2014
Switched to singing in English for 2016’s Black Lights
Interesting Facts About “Góða tungl”
The Poetry That Defined a Sound
Samaris didn’t plan to build their entire aesthetic around 19th-century Icelandic poetry. It happened almost by accident. While recording what would become the Silkidrangar album, they’d prepared lyrics but found a book of old Icelandic poems on a shelf in the studio. They changed their plan on the spot.
This approach worked because, as Jófríður explained, Icelandic hasn’t changed much over a thousand years. “We have a very old language. It’s one of the oldest languages in the world—it hasn’t changed very much over a thousand years. We can still read these books that were written in our founding language.” Steingrímur Þorsteinsson’s poetry from the 1800s remained accessible to modern Icelanders in ways that Victorian English poetry feels distant to contemporary English speakers.
For “Góða tungl” specifically, the band described it as “an ode to the moon, how it shines so bright in the night and watches over us. Shines into our windows and into our hearts when we feel hurt or alone and leads us to the right direction. The text is soothing and calm almost like a lullaby.” That lullaby quality—ancient words about the moon as guardian and guide—became the emotional core that Doddi’s electronics and Áslaug’s clarinet wrapped around.
The Remix Treatment That Proved Versatility
“Góða tungl” became a remixer’s favorite precisely because its minimal elements could be reimagined dramatically. The single release included versions by DJ Arfi, Sei A, and Stubborn Heart, each pulling the track in different directions.
DJ Arfi’s remix turned the track on its head with minor-key reworking that made the landscape seem unnerving rather than soothing. Sei A drew from the juddering beat and haunting vocal lines to create something even more trip-hop influenced. London electronic duo Stubborn Heart’s take emphasized the track’s percussive elements while maintaining Jófríður’s ethereal vocals as the lynchpin.
The fact that “Góða tungl” could support such diverse interpretations while retaining its essential character proved Samaris had created something genuinely special. Within two years of forming as teenagers in a boring music theory class, they’d crafted a track that would define glacial electronica for a generation—proof that ancient poetry and modern electronics belonged together after all.
Common Questions
Q: What does “Góða tungl” mean in English? A: “Góða tungl” translates to “good moon” or “kind moon.” The lyrics are an ode to the moon as a guardian that watches over us, shining into windows and hearts when we feel hurt or alone, guiding us toward the right direction.
Q: Who wrote the lyrics to “Góða tungl”? A: The lyrics were written by Steingrímur Þorsteinsson (1831-1913), a famous 19th-century Icelandic poet. He adapted them from an old German folk song called “Til tunglsins.” Samaris set his poetry to their glacial electronic music.
Q: What genre is Samaris? A: Samaris combines glacial electronica, art pop, and trip-hop influences. Their sound features minimal electronic beats, clarinet melodies, and breathy vocals singing 19th-century Icelandic poetry—often described as “Björk meets Fever Ray.”
Q: How did Samaris form? A: The three members—Jófríður Ákadóttir, Áslaug Rún Magnúsdóttir, and Þórður “Doddi” Steinþórsson—met at Reykjavík’s music academy in January 2011 during a music theory class. They formed the band as teenagers wanting to try something new and weird.
Q: What awards did Samaris win? A: Within months of forming in 2011, Samaris won Iceland’s Músíktilraunir battle-of-the-bands competition and the prestigious Kraumur Award. Doddi also won the Keyboard/Programmer prize. These victories helped them secure their deal with One Little Indian Records.