GusGus is an Icelandic electronic music band from Reykjavík. Although initially a film and acting collective, the group is mostly known for its electronic music. The band's name refers to the 1974 German film Ali: Fear Eats the Soul () by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, where a female character is cooking couscous for her lover, pronouncing it Gusgus. GusGus' music is eclectic, and although primarily classified as techno, trip hop, and house music, the band has experimented with other styles.

In 1998, a remix of the track "Purple" appeared on Paul Oakenfold's trance compilation Tranceport.

After the group's third album, This Is Normal (1999), the filmmaking arm of GusGus (Kjartansson and Árni Þorgeirsson) split off to form the production company Celebrator, now known as Arni & Kinski, which has produced advertisements and videos.

In January 2004, they released the song "Desire" with Ian Brown.

As of 2011 the band had sold over 700,000 copies worldwide.

Its 2015 incarnation consists of four members (President Bongo, Biggi Veira, Urður Hákonardóttir and Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson). A few former members such as Hafdís Huld, Blake, and Daníel Ágúst have gone solo; Emilíana Torrini provided a song for the soundtrack of Peter Jackson's film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

Band members

{| class="toccolours" border=1 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="width: 500px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid #E2E2E2;"

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 1995

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Emilíana Torrini Davíðsdóttir
  • Magnús Jónsson
  • Hafdís Huld Þrastardóttir
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Magnús Guðmundsson
  • Sigurður Kjartansson
  • Stefán Árni Þorgeirsson
  • Baldur Stefánsson
  • Ragnheiður Axel
  • Páll Garðarsson

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 1996–2000

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Magnús Jónsson
  • Hafdís Huld Þrastardóttir
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Magnús Guðmundsson
  • Sigurður Kjartansson
  • Stefán Árni Þorgeirsson
  • Stephan Stephensen
  • Baldur Stefánsson

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2001–2007

|

  • Urður Hákonardóttir
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Stephan Stephensen
  • Magnús Guðmundsson

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2008–2010

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Stephan Stephensen

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2011–2013

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Högni Egilsson
  • Urður Hákonardóttir
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Stephan Stephensen

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2014–2016

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Högni Egilsson
  • Birgir Þórarinsson

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2016–2020

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Birgir Þórarinsson

|-

! bgcolor="#E7EBEE" | 2021–present

|

  • Daníel Ágúst Haraldsson
  • Birgir Þórarinsson
  • Margrét Rán Magnúsdóttir

|-

|}

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ List of studio albums, with selected chart positions

! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Title

! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album details

!

! colspan="5" |Peak chart positions

|-

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| ISL<br>

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| AUS<br>

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| FRA<br>

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| GER<br>

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| SWI<br />

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;"| UK<br />

|-

! scope="row" |Gus Gus

|

  • Released: 1995
  • Self-released

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Polydistortion

|

  • Released: 7 April 1997
  • Label: 4AD

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |This Is Normal

|

  • Released: 26 April 1999
  • Label: 4AD

|—

|69

|40

|65

|—

|94

|-

! scope="row" |Gus Gus vs. T-World

|

  • Released: 24 April 2000
  • Label: 4AD

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Attention

|

  • Released: 14 October 2002
  • Label: Moonshine / Underwater

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Forever

|

  • Released: 23 February 2007
  • Label: Pineapple

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |24/7

|

  • Released: 14 September 2009
  • Label: Kompakt

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Arabian Horse

|

  • Released: 23 May 2011
  • Label: Kompakt

|1

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Mexico

|

  • Released: 23 June 2014
  • Label: Kompakt

|—

|—

|—

|62

|82

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Lies Are More Flexible

|

  • Released: 23 February 2018
  • Label: Oroom

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |Mobile Home

|

  • Released: 28 May 2021
  • Label: Oroom

|11

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

! scope="row" |DanceOrama

|

  • Released: 10 November 2023
  • Label: Oroom

|8

|—

|—

|—

|—

|—

|-

|}

Live albums

  • Mixed Live at Sirkus, Reykjavik (2003)

Compilations

  • 15 ára (2010)

EPs

  • New Arrivals (2025)

Singles

  • "Polyesterday" (1996) — UK No.&nbsp;55 <small>(as Purple EP: Polyesterday)</small>
  • "Believe" (1997) — UK No.&nbsp;154
  • "Standard Stuff for Drama" (1997)
  • "Ladyshave" (1999) — UK No.&nbsp;64, AUS No.&nbsp;192
  • "Lifetime" (2019)
  • "Out of Place" (2020)
  • "Higher" feat Vök (2020)
  • "Stay the Ride" (2021)
  • "Our World" (2021)
  • "Love is Alone" feat John Grant (2021)
  • "Simple Tuesday" (2021)
  • "Bolero EP" feat John Grant (2022)
  • "Into the Strange" (2023)
  • "Eða?" feat Birnir (2023)
  • "When we Sing" (2023) — UA No.&nbsp;55

See also

  • List of bands from Iceland

References