Snorri Hallgrímsson Announces New EP: The Importance of Birds

The multi-awarded Icelandic composer and producer presents seven brand-new thoughtful and intimate tracks

“Hallgrímsson has an innate understanding of
using space and quiet to make a point”
Higher Plain Music

The Importance of Birds comes out on 12 September 2025

First single “Nowhere Again, Kinder” will be released on 30 May 2025

Deutsche Grammophon is delighted to announce the release of The Importance of Birds, the new inspiring project from Icelandic composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Snorri Hallgrímsson. This new EP is his second release at the Yellow Label after Longer Shadows, Softer Stones. 

Hallgrímsson has written and produced seven original tracks for an EP that is an observation and reflection on the fragility and finiteness of life and the relationships with those closest to us and how they are ever changing and growing as time marches on.

As Hallgrímsson recalls in his liner notes “'I don’t see any noteworthy birds across the lake,' my father said. I knew exactly what he meant and then immediately felt guilty towards the poor mallards and gulls we didn’t deem noteworthy enough. We were birdwatching at the same spot he’d taken me to so many times as a kid. Only this time I was the one driving.”

This encapsulates the EP perfectly – on the surface taking pleasure in nature and shared interests with loved ones, but at the same time reflecting on how and why certain events, memories and relationships shape us as people as we move through life.

With his new EP the Icelandic composer creates a soundworld of subtle beauty, consisting of poignant but uplifting solo piano lines, at times underpinned by warm, gently shifting string arrangements and/or layers of electronica that ebb and flow, bearing us ever further along a winding musical path.

Snorri adds: “The first piece of music specifically written for this EP was ‘Burning Little, Long and Slow’. I’d had a particularly rough day. My Mother tells me that when I was upset as a child, I’d go to my room, close the door, and start playing the guitar. This time, it was the piano: an overly dramatic opening chord, followed by a cascading, snowballing melody appeared without a thought. You can hear hints of that same melody elsewhere on the EP.” 

Hallgrímsson is joined by string players from Iceland, plus the Budapest Art Orchestra conducted by Péter Pejtsik. The Importance of Birds comes out digitally and on vinyl on 12 September 2025. Four tracks will be released in advance: “Nowhere Again, Kinder” in May, “And There Was Nowhere” in June, “I’ve Been Here Before” in July and “Row Softer Home” in August.

The release will be supported by an Autumn UK and European tour with dates to be announced shortly.