Sindri Eldon, the eldest son of Icelandic singer Björk, has spent years largely out of the spotlight since he was born during his mother's brief marriage to fellow musician Þór Eldon. Now 40, the Icelandic musician and author has followed his parents into music but never reached anything close to his mother's global fame.
He did, however, once claim to be a better musician than most of his countrymen, including Björk herself, in comments he later publicly retracted.
The quote first appeared in an interview published by The Reykjavík Grapevine in October 2012, headlined "The Confessions Of A Misanthropic Musician: The Sindri Eldon And The Ways Interview." In it, Eldon said: "My main statement will be to prove to everyone what I've secretly known for ages: that I'm a better songwriter and lyricist than 90 per cent of Icelandic musicians, my mother included."
Nearly nine years later, in 2021, the interview resurfaced on social media and drew widespread criticism. Eldon responded in a Twitter thread.
Eldon's Twitter apology
"Ok. first, I think it has to be said that this is from like 15 yrs ago. I was an asshole back then, drinking a lot and in a toxic relationship. I had a massive chip on my shoulder and didn't really know how to deal with it," he wrote.
He explained that the interview had been conducted by email by a friend, Bob Cluness, and that his answers were meant to be "kinda tongue-in-cheek and jokey." He added: "I was very bitter and angry, yes, but I was also just dicking around."
Reflecting further, Eldon wrote: "Context doesn't really impart very well in a text interview. Anger, self-loathing and self-sabotage are things I've struggled with a lot in my life. Like everyone who likes their parents, I grew up wanting to be like them, but they made it look so easy, so I didn't really put the work in like I should."
He concluded: "I just wanted to seize this opportunity to announce that I am not the guy who said those things, not anymore, and if ppl are gonna laugh at me and judge me, they should know that I also think the guy in that photo was just a titanic asshole that I no longer relate to. That doesn't absolve me douchy things I said, I know, but I think society is in some small way to blame here."
Childhood between airports and hotels
Sindri was born on June 8, 1986, the same day his mother's band The Sugarcubes officially formed. His parents divorced when he was very young.
Because both of his parents worked in music, Sindri spent much of his childhood travelling internationally. He has said hotels and airports felt more like home than any fixed place, describing himself as more of a "citizen of the planet" than someone tied to Iceland.
In interviews from the early 2010s, he was openly critical of Icelandic culture and music, saying he felt little kinship with the local scene and preferred to look abroad for inspiration.
From spite to solo records
Influenced by both his parents' careers, Eldon began making music as a teenager, forming a band largely out of spite after friends refused to let him join theirs. He started with a group called DESIDIA before moving into solo work, recording homemade lo-fi demos for years.
His music draws far more from American indie rock, alternative rock and power pop than the experimental electronic sound associated with his mother. He has frequently cited American bands as influences and has expressed admiration for The Replacements.
His releases include Boring Indie Disco Party (2005), Come Thirty (2013), Bitter and Resentful (2016), OK to Disconnect (2018) and The Full Circle EP (2018).
Reconciling with Björk
Despite the earlier controversy, Eldon has since collaborated with his mother. He appears on the song Ancestress from her 2022 album Fossora, a deeply personal track about the death of Björk's mother, contributing vocals as part of a family ensemble.
Unlike many children of famous musicians, Eldon has largely resisted embracing his mother's musical aesthetic, instead making straightforward guitar-driven rock records with conventional song structures.
Björk's other child
Björk is also mother to Ísadóra Bjarkardóttir Barney, 23, from her relationship with artist Matthew Barney, her partner of over a decade. Ísadóra has worked as a model, actress and musician, appeared alongside her mother in the 2022 film The Northman, and has modelled for major fashion brands.
