Mercy

The video Mercy 2005 presents an altcountry ode consisting of a single lyric Oh why do I keep on hurting you which Kjartansson standing alone with a guitar sings over and over in front of the camera like an actor perfecting his role Now plaintive now crass now searching now pleading the line takes on a haunting quality not quite undercut by the tunes tongueincheek twang The work introduced a recurring motif in the artists repertoire the slickhaired singer a persona Kjartansson has honed in real life as front man for the synthheavy Reykjavík rock band Trabant now on hiatus The bands performances as seen on YouTube anyway have been blowout affairs full of rock n roll swagger and screaming teenage fans Mercy was a first step toward connecting this sassy streak with the artists maturing explorations of Icelandic identity