Iceland Airwaves finalizes its 2026 program: the final 25 artists, daily schedule and seven venues in Reykjavík
Iceland Airwaves has finalized its official music program for 2026 by adding the final 25 artists, including Cobrah, Alien Chicks, Leith Ross, Warhaus, 9m88, Agent Fresco and Una Torfa. The festival will take place in central Reykjavík from November 5 to 7, 2026, and on September 3 the organizers simultaneously announced the daily artist schedule and seven official festival venues. This completed the multi-month rollout of the lineup, which was assembled in three waves, from the first group of artists presented in April, through the second wave in June, to the final September announcement. According to the festival's official announcements, the main program now includes 95 performing acts from Iceland and a number of other countries, along with additional special concerts and accompanying events during festival week. For audiences planning a trip to Reykjavík, the most important news is that it is now known not only who is performing, but also on which day, allowing three-day and single-day tickets to be selected according to the specific program.
The final 25 names broaden the program from experimental pop to Icelandic hip-hop
The final wave of confirmations brings an exceptionally broad range of genres and scenes. Among the more internationally recognizable names is Swedish artist Cobrah, whom the festival presents through a blend of club music, experimental pop and a pronounced visual aesthetic, while British trio Alien Chicks combines punk, rap and jazz. Canadian singer-songwriter Leith Ross arrives with a more intimate indie-folk and alternative pop approach, while Belgian project Warhaus will perform in Reykjavík as a duo with electronics, connected to the new concept Ha Ha Heartbeats. Taiwanese singer, songwriter and actress 9m88 brings a blend of jazz, R&B, neo-soul, hip-hop and pop. The official festival announcement also highlights Worldpeace DMT, PIXY, Victoryland, Mackenzie Leighton, Dumbhead and State of Grace among the new names, with the final wave further emphasizing the international character of the program.
A large part of the new announcement belongs to the Icelandic scene, which remains one of the fundamental characteristics of Iceland Airwaves. Iceland Music states that 13 of the 25 newly confirmed artists are from Iceland, including Agent Fresco, Birnir, Cell7, Blood Harmony, CeaseTone, Emma, Juno Paul, Kaktus Einarsson, Spacestation and Una Torfa. Agent Fresco returns with a progressive art-rock approach, while Birnir and Cell7 represent different generations and expressions of Icelandic hip-hop. In his solo work, Kaktus Einarsson connects indie pop, electronics and post-punk, while Spacestation develops a sound at the intersection of indie rock, shoegaze, post-punk and psychedelia. Such a combination of established domestic artists and new projects fits into the festival's long-standing role as an international stage for Icelandic music.
The final 25 confirmed artists:
- Agent Fresco, Alien Chicks, Apex Anima & FRZNTE, Birnir and Blood Harmony
- CeaseTone, Cell7, Cobrah, Dumbhead and Emma
- Juno Paul, Kaktus Einarsson, Leith Ross, Mackenzie Leighton and PIXY
- Sandrayati, someshiit, Spacestation, State of Grace and Sycamore Tree
- Una Torfa, Victoryland, Warhaus, Worldpeace DMT and 9m88
Thursday opens the three-day official program, with Warhaus and Yaelokre among the highlighted names
The first official festival day, Thursday, November 5, brings 26 performances in the published daily schedule. The names include Warhaus, MAMMÚT, Adult DVD, Yaelokre, PISS, Lucy Dreams, State of Grace and someshiit, alongside a number of Icelandic artists and bands. The daily schedule does not yet list the times of individual concerts, so detailed planning of transfers between venues will depend on the later publication of performance times. The festival's official website states that the program at official venues takes place in the evening and that a festival wristband is required for entry. Since the venues are located in the city center and, according to the organizers, are within walking distance of one another, the festival format continues to rely on audiences moving between multiple spaces rather than on a single central festival zone.
Thursday, November 5:
- Adult DVD, Andervel, bed, Brynja, Emma, Falinn Gjóður, Flesh Machine, Gosi, LÓN, Lucy Dreams, MAMMÚT, Marsibil, PISS, RAKEL, Revenge of Calculon, Sævar Jóhannsson, someshiit, State of Grace, Sycamore Tree, TÁR, The Gnomes, virgin orchestra, Warhaus, Worldpeace DMT, Yaelokre and YARD.
Friday brings Cobrah, Alien Chicks and the return of Agent Fresco
Friday, November 6, is the most extensive of the three announced days in terms of the number of listed artists. The program includes Cobrah, Alien Chicks, Agent Fresco, Júníus Meyvant, Axel Flóvent, Emmsjé Gauti, CeaseTone, PIXY and Victoryland, as well as a large number of bands representing European and North Atlantic independent scenes. For audiences interested in more energetic guitar and electronic performances, Friday could be the most densely packed day, because art rock, punk, experimental electronics, rap, indie and pop all meet in the same schedule. The organizers published the daily schedule together with information about single-day passes, making the division of the program important for visitors who will not attend all three days. Yaelokre is listed on both Thursday and Friday, which means that according to the currently published schedule, the project will perform on two festival days.
Friday, November 6:
- Agent Fresco, Alien Chicks, Any Young Mechanic, Apex Anima & FRZNTE, Axel Flóvent, Bana Zahiti, BLUAI, Brynja Rán, CeaseTone, Cobrah, Dove Ellis, Dumbhead, Einakróna, Emmsjé Gauti, Esmeralda Road, Formal Sppeedwear, Haukur Páll, Jamie Duffy, JEFF3, Joe & The Shitboys, Jónfrí, Juno Paul, Júníus Meyvant, Nori, Oyama, PIXY, Pollyfromthedirt, RSP, SAKARIS, SCAM, Spacestation, SYL, Them Flying Monkeys, Tunghoyrt, Úlfur Úlfur, Victoryland and Yaelokre.
Saturday closes the main program with 9m88, Leith Ross, Birnir and Jamie Woon
Saturday's program on November 7 brings together 32 listed artists and offers one of the most genre-diverse cross-sections of the entire festival. The schedule includes 9m88, Leith Ross, Jamie Woon, Birnir, Cell7, Kaktus Einarsson, Arny Margret, KOIKOI, Sex Week, Sandrayati and The Itch. Particularly visible is the balance between Icelandic artists and international guests, ranging from singer-songwriter and folk projects to hip-hop, alternative rock, electronics and contemporary R&B. The final day thus confirms a model in which Iceland Airwaves does not build its program around a single dominant genre, but around the parallel presentation of new and established names. For visitors coming primarily to discover artists, the final timetable will be crucial because some of the program will inevitably overlap across the seven official venues.
Saturday, November 7:
- 9m88, Amor Vincit Omnia, Arima Ederra, Arny Margret, Birnir, Bjarni Daníel, BKPM, Bleech 9:3, Blood Harmony, Cell7, David Bay, HÉR, Inspector Spacetime, Jamie Woon, Kaktus Einarsson, knackered, KOIKOI, Leith Ross, Liim, LiteFun, Mackenzie Leighton, Mar Pujol, punktò, Róshildur, Sandrayati, Sex Week, Skeler, Spouses, The Itch, Una Torfa, Valborg Ólafs and Vicky Sometani.
Seven official venues are distributed throughout central Reykjavík
Along with the daily schedule, the festival also confirmed seven official venues for 2026: Kolaport, Reykjavík City Hall, Iðnó, NASA, Fríkirkjan, LEMMY and Rosenberg, formerly BIRD. The organizers emphasize that the official lineup performs specifically at these venues and that a festival wristband is required for entry. In the latest announcement, all seven venues are marked as wheelchair accessible, which is an important practical detail for planning a visit. The festival has traditionally differed from large events held in a single outdoor area precisely because it uses concert halls, clubs, churches and other urban spaces in the relatively compact center of Reykjavík. The festival's official map is expected to be supplemented during the autumn with partner venues and additional programs, meaning the final logistics will extend beyond the seven main locations themselves.
Official Iceland Airwaves 2026 venues:
- Kolaport
- Reykjavík City Hall
- Iðnó
- NASA
- Fríkirkjan
- LEMMY
- Rosenberg, the venue formerly known as BIRD
Special concerts extend festival week to November 4 and 8
Although the official three-day program runs from November 5 to 7, Iceland Airwaves 2026 also includes special concerts immediately before and after the main festival. According to separate official event pages, Shygirl performs on November 4 at Silfurberg in Harpa, with support from Alaska and Joey Christ, and a separate ticket is required for that concert. Daði Freyr performs with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra for the first time on November 5 in Eldborg, also as a separately ticketed event. Festival week closes on November 8 with The Streets at Eldborg, where the group will perform the album A Grand Don’t Come for Free in full, with Úlfur Úlfur as the support act. These concerts are not substitutes for the official daily lineup, but separate events that extend the program beyond the three main festival evenings.
The accompanying program additionally includes events run by partners and third parties. The official schedule of additional events currently includes, among others, the concert project ANOK Högni Egilsson & Cantoque Ensemble on November 6 at Hallgrímskirkja, GusGus that same evening at Austurbæjarbíó, and a screening of the film RADIOHEART: The Drive and Times of DJ Kevin Cole with a discussion on November 7 at Bíó Paradís. The festival warns that different accompanying events have different access conditions: some require a wristband, some require a separate ticket, and some may be free for festival pass holders. Visitors should therefore check the conditions for each individual event before arriving rather than assume that one type of ticket automatically opens every door. The final schedule of additional programs may continue to expand until the beginning of November.
Iceland Airwaves remains a combination of a festival and an international music showcase
Iceland Airwaves was launched in 1999 as a one-off event in an aircraft hangar, and over more than a quarter of a century it has grown into one of Europe's more recognizable showcase and city festivals. According to the organizers' historical overview, previous editions have featured artists such as Björk, Sigur Rós, Kraftwerk, The Flaming Lips, Florence and the Machine, Hot Chip, James Blake, Sigrid and Of Monsters and Men. An important part of its identity is not only the concert program, but also the presence of professionals from the music industry, media, publishing and festival sectors. The organizers state that delegates from more than 50 countries come to Reykjavík, positioning the event as a place for international networking and the export promotion of Icelandic music. The final wave for 2026 further confirms this balance: alongside artists with growing global profiles, significant space is given to local bands and authors who are only beginning to expand their audiences beyond Iceland.
The industry part of the event will take place on November 5 and 6 at NASA at Parliament Hotel, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. According to the organizers, the Iceland Airwaves Conference is being organized in cooperation with Iceland Music, the Reykjavík Music City initiative and Business Iceland, and the program includes panels, keynote presentations and networking events. Announced topics include the sustainability of tours and festivals, the contemporary functioning of the music industry, and conversations with artists and industry professionals. During the day, the festival thus functions as a professional platform, while the main concert program moves into the evening hours. For artists from small markets and more remote scenes, precisely this combination of showcase performances and an industry audience can be just as important as performing before the festival audience.
What visitors should know before traveling to Reykjavík in November
The publication of the daily program breakdown is also practically important for international visitors who are only now planning their trip. The official tourism organization Visit Reykjavík states that in November the city usually has around five to seven hours of daylight and temperatures of approximately -1 to 5 degrees Celsius, with the possibility of rain, snow and strong winds. These are climate guidelines, not a forecast for festival week, so the actual conditions in early November 2026 will need to be checked shortly before traveling. The festival organization recommends planning movement through the city center, because the official venues are concentrated within a walkable area, but cold and changeable weather may affect the time needed to move between concerts. Visitors coming from outside Iceland should therefore, in addition to the final timetable, arrange accommodation in Reykjavík during Iceland Airwaves in advance, especially if they want to stay within walking distance of most official venues.
During festival week, Reykjavík is not merely a backdrop for the event but part of the very concept of Iceland Airwaves. Concerts are distributed across city venues of different sizes and purposes, so during a single evening audiences can move from a club space to a church or a larger concert hall. Such a format allows relatively intimate performances to take place in parallel with larger-scale productions, but at the same time increases the importance of good planning when schedules overlap. Following the announcement of the final 25 artists, seven official venues and daily schedules, the main framework of the 2026 edition is now in place. The next key information for audiences will be the detailed timetable by stage and any additional changes or expansions to the accompanying program in the weeks before the festival begins.
Sources:
- Iceland Airwaves - official announcement of the final wave of 25 artists, daily schedule and seven official venues (link)
- Iceland Airwaves - official information about the program and lineup for November 5-7, 2026 (link)
- Iceland Music - confirmation that 13 of the final 25 artists are Icelandic projects and additional context on the domestic scene (link)
- Iceland Airwaves - official information about special concerts by Shygirl, Daði Freyr with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and The Streets (link)
- Iceland Airwaves - history and description of the festival since its first edition in 1999 (link)
- Iceland Airwaves Conference - dates, venue and partners of the 2026 conference program (link)
- Visit Reykjavík - official information about typical weather conditions and daylight in Reykjavík in November (link)