Of Monsters and Men is an Icelandic indie folk/rock band formed in Garðabær in 2010. The members are lead singer and guitarist Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir, singer and guitarist Ragnar "Raggi" Þórhallsson, lead guitarist Brynjar Leifsson, drummer Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson and bassist Kristján Páll Kristjánsson. The band won the Músíktilraunir in 2010, an annual battle of the bands competition in Iceland. In 2011, Of Monsters and Men released an EP titled Into the Woods. The band's 2011 debut album My Head Is an Animal, reached the No.1 position in Australia, Iceland, Ireland and the US Rock and Alternative charts, while peaking at No. 6 on the US Billboard 200 album chart, No. 3 in the UK, and Top 20 of most European charts and Canada. Its lead single "Little Talks" was an international success, reaching the Top 10 in most music charts in Europe, including No. 1 in Ireland and Iceland, and No. 1 on US Alternative Songs.
Of Monsters and Men won the 2013 European Border Breakers Awards.
History
2009–2010: Formation and early work
The band's origins began in 2009 when Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir decided to add additional members to her previously solo project, Songbird. Of Monsters and Men entered 2010's Músíktilraunir, an annual music competition held in Iceland, as a quartet with members Nanna (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Brynjar (electric guitar), Raggi (backing vocals, melodica, glockenspiel), and Arnar (backing vocals, melodica, glockenspiel, tambourine). Raggi came up with the band name, Of Monsters and Men, and everyone else liked it, so it stuck.
Following Músiktilraunir, the quartet added two more members, Árni (accordion/keys, backing vocals) and Kristján (bass, backing vocals), and continued to tour venues in Iceland and work on new songs. They were invited to perform at the 2010 Iceland Airwaves festival, and it was there that the Seattle-based radio station KEXP recorded the band performing "Little Talks" from a living room session.
2011–2013: My Head Is an Animal
The band signed with Record Records in February 2011 for the release of their debut album in Iceland. In March 2011, they went to Studio Sýrland in Reykjavík to record and produce their debut album. In August 2011, Philadelphia's Radio 104.5 began playing "Little Talks" and propelled the band to nationwide popularity. Their debut album My Head Is an Animal was released in Iceland in September 2011 with both it and "Little Talks" hitting No. 1.
With success in Iceland and growing popularity in the United States, the band signed with Universal for a worldwide release of their debut album. The band released its Into the Woods EP on 20 December 2011, which features four songs from their debut album, and later released My Head Is an Animal in the United States on 3 April 2012.
The band performed at the Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island, on 29 July 2012, Osheaga Festival in Montreal on 3 August 2012, and then at Lollapalooza in Chicago on 5 August 2012. They have toured in several European countries including Ireland, Germany, Italy, and Sweden. Of Monsters and Men also appeared 5 October 2012, on the new PBS music show Sound Tracks: Music Without Borders, performing "Mountain Sound". Later Árni Guðjónsson left the band to go back to school.
Trumpeter Ragnhildur Gunnarsdóttir joined in the 2012 tour as a session player. The band has not commented on interest to eventually bring her into the band.
The band performed "Little Talks" and "Mountain Sound" on Saturday Night Live on 4 May 2013, and performed in the 1st Annual Boston Calling Music Festival on 26 May 2013. The band also played T in the Park in July 2013, the biggest music festival in Scotland. They performed on both Lollapalooza Brazil and Chile. They also performed at Coachella, on 12 and 19 April 2013. On 26 January 2013, "Little Talks" was voted into the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2012 at number two, a prestigious musical honour in Australia. They appeared at Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, in June 2013 and played at The Other Stage at Glastonbury Festival in that same month. On 14 July 2013, the band performed in Optimus Alive! festival, in Lisbon, Portugal, one of the most popular festivals in Europe.
Their song "Dirty Paws", from which the title of the album originated, was featured in a trailer for the 2013 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and the iPhone 5 introduction video released in September 2012. They contributed the track "Silhouettes" to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire soundtrack. Their song "Sinking Man" is featured on The Walking Dead: Original Soundtrack – Vol. 1.