virgin orchestra - LET IT BURN
Photo Credit: virgin orchestera by Kaja Sigvalda
Across Reykjavik's concrete sprawl, virgin orchestra have quickly earned a reputation as one of the most exciting names in alternative music. Now, their work is emanating across borders with the release of their brand new EP, LET IT BURN, a project that is turning heads with its vital, experimental sound. Before it dropped, we caught up with Starri Holm, Stefanía Pálsdóttir, and Rún Árnadóttir to talk about their creative process and how they have achieved their unique aesthetic.
Back in 2023, the band released their debut album Fragments. Across seven tracks they premiered a grungy, industrial sound that combined the shoegaze haze of my bloody valentine, the ethereal textures of Cocteau Twins and the post-punk edge of Just Mustard. The record quickly put the band on the map and highlighted Iceland’s thriving DIY scene, a vibrant, often-overlooked incubator of innovative music.
“We wrote Fragments, except for two songs that were written a few months before, about two or three weeks ahead of recording,” says lead guitarist Starri Holm as he reflects on the project’s breakneck construction. Despite the record’s immediacy, the band didn’t sit still for long. “Once we had finished it, we immediately went into the process of making the next one,” he adds, a sign of the trio’s relentless desire for creative evolution.
On LET IT BURN, virgin orchestra have taken another bold step forward with a sound that is richer, more cohesive, and more texturally varied than its predecessor. “It’s quite easy to layer some strings on a song, but to do something interesting with instrumentation, that takes time,” Rún, the band’s virtuoso cellist explains.
Photo Credit: virgin orchestra - Stefanía in the studio
Where Fragments drew power from its minimalism, LET IT BURN feels more expansive and fully realised. A longer lead time gave the band the space to fully explore and refine their ideas. “We had a lot of time to work the material and round things out,” Rún says. The result is a project with softer edges but a much broader range both sonically and instrumentally.
Lead single “Banger” is exactly what it says on the tin. Indie guitar music infused with a synth-pop shimmer, it recalls the atmospheric energy of early Warpaint, particularly singles such as “Love Is to Die.” Yet it never feels derivative. Instead, it plays like an urgent rebuttal to the anxiety of our times. An antidote to apprehension.
When they entered the studio to record their new EP, the goal was simple: experiment and expand. This, and the wealth of intricacies heard in their music can be primarily attributed to their unique approach to songwriting. “Someone sends a demo, and we all listen to it by ourselves before meeting up to mess with it,” explains Starri. These sessions allow each individual to stretch the source material and are often responsible for the music taking unusual, unexpected roads, but do they ever worry about other members ruining their ideas? “Sometimes you have to kill your darlings,” Stefania, the band’s lead vocalist confidently proclaims.
Photo Credit: virgin orchestra - Starri in the studio
“We usually chop it down so much that every time it passes from hand to hand, it becomes a totally different thing” says Rún, further elaborating on their methodology. On “The Pathetic Song” they demonstrate the kind of kaleidoscopic variety that comes from this approach. The track opens with crudely plucked guitars and the creak of Rún’s cello, creating a raw, almost haunting atmosphere. When a swinging drumbeat comes in alongside Pálsdóttir’s nonchalant vocal, it is, to all intents and purposes, a Haim-adjacent pop song. However, as the beat splutters and falters, the whole thing collapses and transforms into something much more heavy and sludgy, a deconstructed descent reminiscent of Tilt era Scott Walker. It is both jarring and enthralling in equal measure.
They say necessity is the mother of invention, for virgin orchestra that has certainly been the case. “The reason we write songs this way is because we don’t have a drummer or someone to play synths in the room,” Starri says. This constraint has removed the possibility of them jamming tracks live, allowing them to mould their sound into something truly unique.
Their decentralised, modular approach seems fitting for a band born from Reykjavík’s frosty quietude, introspective, patient, and unafraid to challenge convention. “We like to reflect on things over longer periods of time,” Rún explains. “It can feel limiting to write and have to play and hold it all together. It’s hard to push yourself into something totally different when you're writing a song from start to finish on the spot.”
Photo Credit: virgin orchestra - Rún in the studio
Far from dulling their creative impulses, this method has injected a sense of novelty into their writing, imbuing their music with a boundless potential that can evade bands who rely exclusively on collective improvisation. “It’s so much fun, you never know what you’re going to get,” Stefania says. Listening to virgin orchestra discuss how they construct and contort their songs, you wonder if they could tinker with them indefinitely. “We could,” Starri acknowledges, “but we’re also very conscious of how dangerous that can be.”
With the release of LET IT BURN, it’s hard to deny the effectiveness of their approach. “This is our main creative project, and this is what we put all our energy into,” Rún tells me. Their passion for the process and for each other is infectious. “I even dream about music... it’s always there, bubbling in the subconscious,” Stefania jokes.
With this shared obsession, the band remains committed to pushing boundaries, even when working within their limitations. “We are all completely in music,” Rún proudly proclaims. “We are lucky to have found one another.” LET IT BURN isn’t just the sound of a band evolving, it’s the sound of three artists immersed in their own world, reshaping constraints into a shared creative language. Their process is patient, their bond unshakable, and their vision is only becoming sharper.
LET IT BURN is out now.
