“We criticise our stupid government / and a boring country / that doesn’t do anything for us / Nobody wants us.” So they sang in complaint, the young musicians of the band Sjálfsfróun (“masturbation”), while flailing at their guitars, including at times with an axe. Punks with mohawks, rock ‘n rollers with manes, and amid it all, Björk Guðmundsdóttir, already a colourfully made-up elfin presence, singing with her band Tappi Tikarrass. Iceland’s first film in Dolby stereo presents a diverse range of musical styles and scenes, from a feminist girl group (Gr‎‎ýlurnar) to punks with Nazi accessories (Þeyr). “Rock in Reykjavik” was shot over the winter of 1981/82 in small clubs and rehearsal rooms, and at open-air venues. Members of the bands talk about how they see themselves. Driven by the up-tempo beat, the film documents the genesis of a development that would, by the end of the millennium, make Iceland a mecca for pop musicians, party people, and music producers.