Arny Margret releases single 'In a Dream'

Arny Margret   Single ‘In a Dream’ out now via One Little Independent Records   First North American headline shows announced   Smartlink Spotify Youtube

“Years of long, dark, difficult winters proved to be the perfect ingredient for developing Margret’s quiet, searching, folk songs” – The Line Of Best Fit   “With its icy charms unfolding at a devastating pace, this marks the emergence of a bold new talent” – Clash Magazine   “Haunting vocals backed up by an intimate guitar” – Rolling Stone   Icelandic singer-songwriter Arny Margret returns with her new single ‘In a Dream’, a raw and intimate offering that captures a fleeting moment of reflection, written and recorded in a moment of solitude on a quiet New Year’s Eve.   ‘In a Dream’ finds Arny leaning further into her instinctive, diaristic songwriting. Built around its original demo take and layered with subtle textures, including a newly explored harmonica, the track preserves the immediacy of its creation while gently unfolding into something more fully realised. “I wrote it on New Year’s Eve, just sitting in my room with my cat while fireworks were going off outside,” Arny explains. “I hadn’t written in a while, and it just came out. I just write whatever comes up. I don’t really like New Year’s Eve, so I was trying to do something fun instead.”   True to her process, the meaning behind ‘In a Dream’ remains elusive, still revealing itself over time. “I never really know what a song is about when I’m writing it,” she says. “I just have a sentence and then it kind of goes from there, it’s whatever I’m thinking, like a diary, and then later I’m like, okay, that’s what it meant. It’s like a little moment from that night. It will probably make more sense to me later. It’s actually the original demo take because I tried doing it again and it just didn’t feel right. It kind of captured the moment how it was supposed to be, so I built everything on top of that.”   Entirely self-produced and performed, ‘In a Dream’ continues Arny’s growing confidence as a multi-instrumentalist and producer, playing every instrument on the track and shaping its sound from the ground up. The addition of harmonica, an instrument she picked up only recently, adds a wistful, nostalgic quality to the track’s atmosphere. “The harmonica is a new instrument for me, I actually went to the Bob Dylan movie and then I was gifted the set. I was just playing around with it.”   At its core, ‘In a Dream’ reflects a deeper, more personal undercurrent, an exploration of identity, growth, and self-perception. “It’s a lot about me and who I want to be, like wanting to be honest and strong, and becoming the woman I want to become.”   Following the expansive sound of her recent work, including the album ‘I Miss You, I Do’ and its subsequent Sjáumst Edition, ‘In a Dream’ offers a return to something more immediate and unguarded. It stands as a perfect snapshot of Arny Margret’s evolving artistry, a live favourite from her recent tour with Of Monsters and Men, capturing a moment suspended in time.   Alongside the release, Arny Margret announces her first ever North American headline shows, following previous support tours in the region with artists including Blake Mills, RY X, Julian Lage, The Crane Wives and John Grant. Marking a significant new step in her live journey, the dates see her bringing her live show to audiences in Chicago, Toronto and New York, as well as an appearance at this year’s Iceland Airwaves.   Arny Margret has steadily built a reputation as one of Iceland’s most compelling emerging voices. She has has performed at festivals such as SXSW, The Great Escape, Eurosonic, Newport Folk Festival and Iceland Airwaves. She was nominated for Newcomer of the Year at the Icelandic Music Awards in 2022 and won Best New Act at the Iceland Airwaves Plus Awards. In 2023 she received nominations for Song, Album and Video of the Year at the Icelandic Music Awards, winning Song of the Year. She was also nominated for Newcomer of the Year at the Icelandic People’s Choice Awards, and in 2024 was shortlisted for Eurosonic’s Music Moves Europe Award. This year, she won Song of the Year at the Icelandic Music Awards. She has performed a live KEXP session and has been championed by publications including The Guardian, The Independent, Rolling Stone, NME, Clash Magazine and The Line Of Best Fit.   Art credit: Arny Margret   Photo credit: Guðm. Kristinn Jónsson   Live dates   Jun 20 - Reykjavík, IS - Bergmál Festival Jul 8 - Chicago, IL - Hideout Jul 11-12 - Sudbury, ON - Northern Borealis Festival Jul 14 - Toronto, ON - Drake Underground Jul 16 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Pool Oct 17 - Hafnarfjörður, IS - Kaplakriki (supporting Of Monsters and Men) Nov 7 - Reykjavík, IS - Iceland Airwaves