I swapped music recommendations with two young men I met at Mary Lattimore’s wondrous recital at the Lied Center seven weeks ago. Their tastes leaned toward abrasive underground electronica. They probably share my appreciation for Iceboy Violet’s stunning new mixtape.
After eagerly adding their suggestions to my queue, I tipped them to Jóhann Jóhannsson, the late Icelandic composer who has provided me with countless hours of inspiration. Jóhannsson’s expansive catalog grew 70 minutes longer last week when a pair of original motion picture soundtracks he created with Jonas Colstrup for Chinese films became available on streaming services.
Jóhannsson’s contribution to the 2014 film Blind Massage (推拿) falls somewhere between the indolent ambience of Harold Budd and the melodic brilliance of Nino Rota on tracks including "If There Is an Afterlife". The ominously abrasive "Midnight Highway" typifies the sound of the very different score for 2018’s The Shadow Play (风中有朵雨做的云).
Given the infrequency of concerts by prominent new music artists in the region, I don’t expect to see my acquaintances until William Basinsky performs in Lawrence in October. My cultish adoration of the composer won’t be diminished even if they’ve opted to dismiss Jóhannsson as a soporific shill.