Mum, "Blessed Brambles" [Icelandic Music]

If there’s one thing Americans know about Iceland, it’s that this small country has an amazingly vibrant music scene. And over the course of this week, we’ll be highlighting a bunch of bands and performers, starting with Múm (pronounced “Moom”), one of my personal favorites.

I like all of Múm’s albums, but Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy is probably the most accomplished and immediate. So many songs on this album feel like they’re just going to fall apart . . . But somehow, all the rhythms, instruments, and childlike cooing keep everything in place, resulting in a rather moving album that is both nostalgic and haunting.

In addition to the opening song—“Blessed Brambles,” embedded below—I particularly love They Made Frogs Smoke ‘Til They Exploded, Marmalade Fires, Dancing Behind My Eyelids, and Guilty Rocks. (Especially “Guilty Rocks.”)