Of Monsters and Men

Of Monsters and Men
Of Monsters and Men playing in New York City on 5 April 2012
Background information
Origin	Garður/Keflavík/Garðabær, Iceland
Genres	Indie folk,folk-pop
Years active	2010–present
Labels	Record Records, Universal Republic, Republic
Website	www.ofmonstersandmen.com
Members	Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir Ragnar Þórhallsson Brynjar Leifsson Kristján Páll Kristjánsson Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson
Past members	Árni Guðjónsson

Of Monsters and Men is a five-member band from Reykjavík, Iceland, formed in 2010. The members are lead singer/guitarist Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir, co-singer-guitarist Ragnar "Raggi" Þórhallsson, guitarist Brynjar Leifsson, drummer Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson and bassist Kristján Páll Kristjánsson. The band won the Músíktilraunir in 2010, an annual battle of the bands competition in Iceland. In 2011, Of Monsters and Men released an EP titled Into the Woods. The band's 2011 debut album My Head Is an Animal, reached the No.1 position in Australia, Iceland, Ireland and the U.S. Rock and Alternative Charts, while peaking at No. 6 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart, No. 3 in the UK, and Top 20 of most European charts and Canada. Its lead single "Little Talks" was an international success, reaching the Top 10 in most music charts in Europe, including No. 1 in Ireland and Iceland, and No. 1 on U.S. Alternative Songs.

Of Monsters and Men won the 2013 European Border Breakers Awards.

The band's origins began in 2009 when Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir decided to add to her solo project, Songbird. Of Monsters and Men entered 2010's Músíktilraunir, an annual music competition held in Iceland, as a quartet with members Nanna (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Brynjar (electric guitar), Raggi (backing vocals, melodica, glockenspiel), and Arnar (backing vocals, melodica, glockenspiel, tambourine). Raggi came up with the band name, Of Monsters and Men, and everyone else liked it, so it stuck.