In the 1980s, my dad, Tony Sandy, was a band promoter in Iceland.

Sniglarnir (often called Sniglar) was a motorcycle club that sometimes worked as security for concerts at that time.

I was eight. My friend Rebekka and I were in our converted attic room when we heard the bikes arrive and watched the driveway fill up with motorcycles. Neighbours were watching from behind their net curtains.

We were laughing and said in Icelandic:
“Hvaða sniglar á hjólum eru að koma hingað núna?!”
(What snails on bikes are coming here now?)

This image is a context photo of Sniglarnir.

If anyone has photos of Sniglarnir from the 1980s, especially around gigs or venues, please DM me. I’m collecting material for a personal archive.

Íslenska 🇮🇸

Á níunda áratugnum var pabbi minn, Tony Sandy, tónleikahaldari á Íslandi.

Sniglarnir (oft kallaðir Sniglar) eru mótorhjólaklúbbur sem sinnti stundum öryggisgæslu á tónleikum á þeim tíma.

Ég var átta ára. Ég og vinkona mín Rebekka vorum uppi á risi þegar við heyrðum mótorhjólin koma og sáum innkeyrsluna fyllast af hjólum. Nágrannar horfðu út um netgardínurnar.

Við hlógum og sögðum:
”Hvaða sniglar á hjólum eru að koma hingað núna?!“

Þessi mynd er samhengismynd af Sniglunum.

Ef þú átt myndir af Sniglunum frá níunda áratugnum, sérstaklega í tengslum við tónleika eða tónleikastaði, endilega sendu mér skilaboð. Ég er að safna efni í persónulegt safn.

#bitsandbobsarchive #splitpromotionsarchive

Bits + Bobs

Bits + Bobs is an archive-led storytelling project inspired by the lives of my late parents, Tony Sandy and Hafdís Sandy.

Following their deaths, I found myself surrounded by photographs, VHS recordings, documents, memorabilia and memories that captured not only their lives, but the people, communities and cultural movements they were part of. What began as a personal journey to preserve their legacy quickly revealed wider stories waiting to be told.

My mother, Hafdís, was Icelandic, and our family lived in Iceland from 1983 to 1990. Those years connected us to a remarkable network of musicians, artists, promoters, journalists and audiences whose stories remain largely untold. Through archive research, interviews and oral histories, Bits + Bobs uncovers and preserves overlooked histories before they are lost.

At its heart, the project is about recognition; celebrating not only those in the spotlight, but also the people behind the scenes whose contributions helped shape communities, cultures and moments of significance.

The first story explores Tony Sandy, Hafdís Sandy, Bobby Harrison and Split Promotions, whose work helped connect Iceland with international artists and performers during the 1980s.

At the same time, the project has become a personal exploration of identity and belonging. As a half-Icelandic woman with family, friends and deep connections still rooted in Iceland, the research has led me back to my own childhood. Along the way, I discovered citizenship papers from 1986 confirming my Icelandic nationality, and learned that I have my own kennitala (national identification number), reconnecting me with a part of myself I had long assumed was lost.

Listening to old cassette recordings of myself speaking fluent Icelandic is both familiar and strange. I recognise the child I was, yet feel I am meeting her again for the first time. Through this creative process, I am rediscovering my roots, strengthening connections with Iceland and ensuring that this shared family heritage continues with my own children, who now also hold dual citizenship.

Bits + Bobs is an evolving collection of lives, memories, identities and legacies; a way of remembering the past, understanding the present and carrying stories forward into the future.