Future Forecast by Jack Magnet Science

Jakob Magnússon has lived many lives that are a confluence of extraordinary musical talent, TV & film production work, environmental activism, and even a stint as the cultural attaché of the Icelandic embassy in London. His new musical project, Jack Magnet Science, is the latest endeavor in his rolodex of multi-hyphenism. The project is an amalgamation of members of the prolific Icelandic band Stuðmenn, which he co-founded, and top call US-based jazz titans such as Peter Erskine (Weather Report, Steps Ahead) and Matthew Garrison (Shapeshifter, The Zawinul Syndicate). The future-forward ensemble will release their debut album, ‘Future Forecast’ on June 7, 2024 via Floki Studios.

Future Forecast is a double entendre nodding to the band’s admiration for Magnússon’s fascinating environmental work background that includes developing a weather control device with British scientists that has been successfully used for years at various musical festivals. In the autumn of 2022, the newly formed group convened at Floki Studios, located in a remote area of Northern Iceland and decided to operate off the most simple, yet perhaps somewhat risky premise: Let's play and see what happens.

The musicians improvised for three days which culminated into hours of improvised music split over 72 tracks that then provided the basis for 7 brand new tracks, each detailing a sonic exploration of its own. All musicians involved recounted transformative experiences at Floki Studios that rekindled their love for making music, “This musical experience reignited my passion for creating and recording new music,” reflected Erskine in a radio interview shortly after the sessions.

That is the sound of Future Forecast—a way forward, without boundaries, suddenly aware of how many more possibilities await.

Jack Magnet Science is the latest iteration of Jakob Magnússon’s ever-evolving endeavors. Jack Magnet Science. Magnússon
gathered an ensemble: his Stuðmenn bandmates Ragga Gísla, Disa Jakobs and Egill Ólafsson. Eyþór Gunnarsson on keys, Einar Scheving on percussion,
Matthew Garrison on bass, Phil Doyle on reeds, Sigtryggur Baldursson, and Weather Report's own Peter Erskine on the kit.