Low Roar

Low Roar
Karazija in 2012.
Karazija in 2012.
Background information
OriginReykjavík, Iceland
Genres
Years active2011–2022
Past membersRyan Karazija
Websitelowroarmusic.com

Low Roar was an Iceland-based post-rock/electronica project founded by American immigrant Ryan Karazija.[1] Originally a solo act, the band later added musicians Leifur Björnsson and Logi Guðmundsson.[2]

After releasing five albums spanning over a decade, the band and the project itself became discontinued following the death of Karazija in October 2022. However, a posthumous sixth album will be released in February 2025.

History

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After leading the California-based indie rock band Audrye Sessions from 2002 to 2010, Karazija relocated to Reykjavík, Iceland and started the new project Low Roar, releasing a self-titled album in 2011.[3][4][5][6] A second album, 0, was released in 2014 through Tonequake Records,[7] followed by Once in a Long, Long While... in mid-2017.[8] The Low Roar album, ross., was released in November 2019,[9] and the fifth album maybe tomorrow... was released in July 2021. A sixth album, titled House In The Woods, will be released on February 7, 2025.

The band's discography features heavily in the 2019 video game Death Stranding,[10][11] following a collaboration with video game designer Hideo Kojima, after Kojima chanced upon their music while in a CD shop in Reykjavík.[12] Kojima described Low Roar's music as "sensual" and "unique".[12] When Sony first contacted the band to license their music for Death Stranding, the band was struggling, with much of their music being recorded on a laptop in Karazija's kitchen. The use of Low Roar's music in the video game had a significant positive influence on the band's popularity.[13]

In 2021, they recorded the song "Feels" for the mobile game Arknights, later released in full under the title "Fade Away" on their 2021 album.[14] Their song "Help Me" plays over the end credits of the 2021 film Flee.

On 29 October 2022, it was announced that Ryan Karazija, founder and lead singer of the band, had died at the age of 40. Hours later, it was revealed that the cause of death was from complications with pneumonia. It was also announced that a sixth album, which was being worked on as of 2022, would be eventually released.[15]

On October 27, 2024, producer Andrew Scheps announced that the sixth album, House In The Woods, was finished, along with a release date of February 7, 2025. Additionally, Scheps announced two singles to support the album; Field of Dreams, releasing on December 6, and a second single releasing January 3.

Discography

[edit]

Albums

[edit]

EPs

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  • Hávallagata 30 (2014)
  • Remix - EP (2015)
  • Inure (2020)

Live albums

[edit]
  • Live at Gamla Bíó (2015)

Singles

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  • Waiting (10 Years) (2017)
  • The Sky Is Falling (2018)
  • It Won't Be Long (2018)
  • Slow Down (2019)
  • Darkest Hour (2019)
  • Do You Miss Me? (ft. Emma Lindström) (2020)
  • Everything To Lose (2021)
  • Hummingbird (2021)
  • Field of Dreams (2024)

References

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  1. ^ Benedikt Reynisson (3 April 2014). "Nýtt tónlistarvor hafið á Íslandi". Kjarninn (in Icelandic). Retrieved 30 October 2022 – via Tímarit.is. Open access icon
  2. ^ Davíð Már Stefánsson (24 July 2014). "Eins og ein, ekkert rosalega stór, fjölskylda". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). p. 33. Retrieved 30 October 2022 – via Tímarit.is. Open access icon
  3. ^ Svymbersky, Christopher (2012) "Ryan Moves to Iceland and Low Roar is Born Archived 2014-01-11 at the Wayback Machine", Iceland Airwaves Journal. Retrieved 15 April 2013
  4. ^ Cherrie, Chrysta "Low Roar Biography", Allmusic. Retrieved 15 April 2013
  5. ^ Fiander, Matthew (2012) "Low Roar: Low Roar", PopMatters, 4 January 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2013
  6. ^ Kevin O'Donnell (18 February 2009). "Breaking: Audrye Sessions". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  7. ^ Helgi Snær Sigurðsson (26 March 2015). "Low Roar hitar upp fyrir Hozier". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  8. ^ "Low Roar's newest, Once in a Long, Long While, was born of challenging times". The Georgia Straight. 12 April 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  9. ^ "Review: Low Roar - ross. | Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  10. ^ Radulovic, Petrana (20 June 2018). "Death Stranding sleuths decode hidden musical message in E3 trailer". Polygon. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
  11. ^ "Fengið viðbrögð úr óvæntum áttum". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 9 December 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  12. ^ a b Weber, Rachel (19 December 2016). "Watch Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen in Creepy 'Death Stranding' Teasers". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
  13. ^ McKeand, Kirk (6 January 2020). "Sony wouldn't even tell Low Roar its music was for Death Stranding – "We were in the gutter"". VG247. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  14. ^ "塞壬唱片 - A WORLD FAMILIARLY UNKNOWN". Monster-siren.hypergryph.com. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  15. ^ "Ryan Karazija (1982 - 2022) ***UPDATED*** After a short illness, Ryan Karazija, front man and driving force behind Low Roar, has died at age 40 due to... | By Low Roar". Facebook.com. 29 October 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
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