Björk. Sigur Rós. Múm. Being a band from Iceland can be a tall order. With so many big stars looming over you, how do you make a name for yourself outside the borders of the tiny nation? According to Seabear, you just go with the flow.

Everything about Seabear seems to have just come about organically, much the way their music feels. Sindri Sigfússon began writing music as Seabear around 2002. In the following years, he produced a few EPs and two LPs, picking up session players along the way. “After a while they just joined the band,” Sigfússon says, and eventually these players came to make up the seven-piece as it is today. As the band grew, so did their music. Each record was more delicate and detailed than the last, and the progression seemed natural. Their songwriting process was just as organic as their formation. Sigfússon talks about how the seven of them simply gather in their practice space and see what happens. He also waves away the fact that their lyrics are in English. Sigfússon was only following the musical heroes of his youth, saying, “I don’t think it matters if you sing in English, Icelandic, or whatever, as long as it’s done well.”

Their rise into the international consciousness is nearly as serendipitous as their creative process. Seabear got picked up by German label, Morr Music, a few years ago when the owner of the label caught a Seabear show in Berlin and “liked it, I guess,” says Sigfússon. Soon, their songs began to get picked up for soundtracks, including some high profile placements in Finding Neverland and Gossip Girl. “The money we got for Gossip Girl paid for a whole five-week tour we did,” the singer recalls. Since then, the band has received attention from all over the world and has had tours to match.

The band is currently promoting their new album release — entitled “We Built a Fire” — and the slew of tours that will follow (including North American dates this spring). Sigfússon, however, remains laid back about it. “I just hope people have fun,” he says.

We’re pretty confident they will.

- Casey Bridgers