Benni Hemm Hemm, the Icelandic indie pop band fronted by Benedikt H. Hermannsson, first began to take root when Hermannsson, after a limited release of his solo SummerPlate EP in 2003, moved to Italy for a few months and began to write a new batch of songs. With a full band, including trumpet, bass, and flügelhorn, Benni Hemm Hemm issued their self-titled full-length debut on Iceland's Smákökurnar Records in September 2005, with reissues in Japan, Europe, and North America coming the following year with the help of P-Vine and Morr Music, respectively. In November of 2006 the group's second album, Kajak, recorded in just a few days at Sigur Rós' studio, came out in Iceland, and by May 2007 it had hit U.S. shores. The band's third studio album, Murta St. Calunga, followed in 2008. In 2011 Benni Hemm Hemm returned with the album Skot, featuring Hermannsson backed by the Icelandic pop ensemble Retro Stefson. ~ Marisa Brown