JFDR’s Museum is an Experimental, Synth-Folk Triumph

Three months ago, I—admittedly—had no idea who or what JFDR was, and that was my first mistake. After spending countless hours consuming six years of work, it became clear that the solo project of Icelandic singer/songwriter Jófríður Ákadóttir is mystifying, and everyone should be ensconcing themselves in a blanket of her sublime, experimental electro-folk. Since 2017, she’s made a handful of LPs, an EP and two scores. It’s a catalog that’s ambitiously diverse and perpendicular to pragmatism, and her sophomore album—New Dreams—suggested that her approach to creative projects would never reside in the stratosphere of contemporary or traditional musical foundations.

In brilliant ways, Ákadóttir obliterates the metronome that the industry has provided her. If someone tells her to go right, she’ll go left. But, her most-masterful stroke of singularity arrives in her ability to shape-shift between worlds: At one moment, she is fiddling with Eno-esque ambience; the next, she is conjuring Bon Iver resplendents atop dainty, plucky acoustic guitars. Upon cracking open her beautiful new LP, Museum, I found myself immediately entranced by Ákadóttir’s seamless command of harmonious transgressions. She does not bend to the expectations of vocal arrangements, opting to instead forge her own curve. Lyrically, Ákadóttir pursues the avant-garde, tumbling through evocative imagery, snippets of fear and alienation and reliquaries of romances both new and old.

If you’re wondering what JFDR stands for, it’s a play on Ákadóttir’s name. But on Museum, the acronym becomes a whole animal, featuring the following outfit: Ákadóttir, Jeremy Malvin (synths, piano), Shahzad Ismaily (synths), Viktor Orri Árnason (violin, viola) and Joshua Wilkinson (synths, percussion). Though Ákadóttir writes all of the songs, what JFDR has become is now much more than just her. In a lot of ways, having such a strong supporting cast around to help her bring the ambrosial vision of her creativity to life is what makes Museum one of the acest efforts of 2023 so far.

As an opening number, “The Orchid” is a spectral, atmospheric beginning. A metronome melody twinkles in the background, Árnason’s strings pulsate and a teardrop synthesizer knots like a perfect bow-tie as Ákadóttir sews together threads of flowers, intimacy and desire. “Then when the sun rose / In a newer lighting / Lay his wings on her / Warm with his kisses / And touched her light feather / Just so they could breathe again / Just to be reborn again,” she sings. In a matter of seconds, Ákadóttir changes tune on “Life Man,” adorning an upbeat measure that builds into lush, choral harmonies. A light electric guitar flutters, turning the back-half of the song into a digital, euphoric orchestra.

The centerpiece of Museum is “Spectator,” which dazzled as a teaser single and now nestles nicely into Ákadóttir’s nine-song ecosystem. It’s a story of emotional voyeurism, where she wrestles with balancing her headspace with those of the people around her. It’s a thoughtful narrative that resonates, in which Ákadóttir, who fears she can’t be fully present for everyone she loves, takes the time to finally say: “This is too much.” Through her balmy vocals—and Ásgeir Kjartansson’s singular guitar strum—a plume of synths tumble in and out behind her. “I’m caught in between / Feeling the feelings / Of everyone except my own / I can’t take it / I can’t be in between / How can I help you if I always get it wrong,” Ákadóttir sings. “Spectator” is not a wall of sound, but a tributary of flickering textures and gentle sonic checkpoints.