░ ▒ ▄█ ▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀████ ▓ ▄ ▀▀▀ ▄▀ █▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀█████▀ ▀ ░ ░ ░░ █▓▓█ █ ▄ ▄▀ █ ░ ░ ░░ █▓▓█▌ ▒ ▒ ░░ ████ █ ▄ ▀▄▀ ▄█ █ ▒ ▒ ░░ ████ ▓ ▓ ░░ █ █▀▄ ▄▀ █ █ ▓ ▓ ▀ █░░█ ░░░░░░░ █░░█ ▀ █ █ █░░█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀█ ░▒▓██████████▓▒░ █▒▒█ ░░ █▒▒█ ░░░░ █ █ █▒▒█ ░░ ░ ░ █ ░▒▓████████████▓▒░ ▄▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ █▓▓█ ░░ ████ █▓▓█ ░░░░ ▓ █ █▓▓█ ░░ ▒ ▒ ▌ ▓█ ▓█ ██ ▓█ ████ ░░ ███▀ ████ ░░░ ▒ █ ████ ░░ ▓░░▓ ▄█▀▀▓██▄ ▄█▄ ▓ █▐█▀▄ ▒█ ▒█▀██ ▒█▀ ▀███▌ ░ ▀ ████ ░░ ░ █ ▀███▌ ░ █▒▒█ ▓█ ▄▒█▄▀ ▀ █▌▒ █▐▓▄▀ ░▀ ░▀ █ ▀█▄█▄ ▀███▄ ▄▀▀▀▄ ▀██ ░ ▓ ▀███▄ █▓▓█ ▒█ █░█ ██ █▌░ █▌▒ ░ ▀▀▀▀ █▄ █ ▒ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀█ ▀ █ ▄▀▀ ▀▀ ░ ▓█▀▀ ▄▀▄ ░ █▌█▄▐ ▄ ▄█▀ ▀ ▓▄ ░ ▄▀▄▀█ ░ █▌▄▀██ ▀ ▄ ▄ ░▒▓████████▓▒░ ▒█ ▓█ █▌▒ █▌▓█▀▄█▐▓ ▄▓ ▒█ ▓█ ▀ █ ▒ █▌▀▄ ▓▐█ ░░ roy ░▒░ ░█▌ ▀█ █ ▓ █▌▒█ █▐▒ █▒ ░█ ▒█ █ ▓ █▌ ▓█ ▒▐█ ▄ (sac) ▀▀ ▀ ▀▀ ░█ █ ▀▀▀ ░ ▀▀▀ ░▀ ▀ ▀▀ ▀▀▀ ░ ▀▀▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ █░█ █▓█ General Info : █▓█ Title .........: Hammer Of The North █▓█ Artist ........: Jim Kirkwood █▓█ Music Style ...: Darkwave █▓█ Type ..........: Album █▓█ Release Date ..: Feb-28-2003 █▓█ █▓█ Used Tools : █▓█ Grabber .......: EAC █▓█ Encoder .......: FHG Radium MP3 Codec v.1.263 █▓█ █▓█ Additional Info: █▓█ Source ........: CDDA █▓█ No. Of Songs ..: 06 █▓█ Size ..........: 95,5 MB █▓█ Playtime ......: 69:30 min █▓█ Label .........: Aphelion █▓█ Quality .......: 192kbps / 44,1kHz / HQ / Full Stereo █░█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ █▄ ░ ▀▀▀▀█▄▀▀▀▀█▄▀▀▀▀██▀ █▄ ██ ▄█▀██▀ ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░ ▐ ██▄ ██▄█▀ ▄█ ██ ▄█ ▀ ██▄█▀ ▀█▄▄ ░▒▓████████████████████████████████▓▒░ ░ ▐ ██ ▄█ ██ ██ ██▀██ ██ ▄ ██ ██ ▄ ██ ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░ █ ▀█▄██ █▀ ▀█ █▀ ▀█ ▀█▄██▄ ██ ▀█ ██▄█▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ █ ▄ █░█ █▒█ █▓█ 01 ::: Mjolnir ::: 11:55 █▓█ 02 ::: Vanaheim ::: 12:50 █▓█ 03 ::: Axeline ::: 15:30 █▓█ 04 ::: Longships ::: 05:18 █▓█ 05 ::: Weaving the Red Thread ::: 18:44 █▓█ 06 ::: Rhythm of the Fire ::: 05:13 █▒█ █░█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ ██▀█▄ ▄█▀█▄ █▄ ░ ▀▀▀▀█▀ ▄█▀██▀ ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░ ▐ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██▄ ▄█▄ ░ ▀█▄▄ ░▒▓██████████████████████████████████████▓▒░ ░ ▐ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ▄█ ██ ▄ ▄ ██ ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░ █ █▀ ▀█ ▀█▄█▀ ▀█▄██ ▀█▄██▄ ██▄█▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ █ ▄ █░█ █▒█ █▓█ Well there's a funny thing! Back in issue 6 I summed up the █▓█ 'Yggdrasil' nine volume cassette release with "...a double CD culled █▓█ from these would be an instant classic. Perhaps some day...", then up █▓█ pops 'Hammer of the North'. Only a single CD though, so the question █▓█ must be has Jim culled the "right" six? After numerous releases and █▓█ inclusion on various samplers most should, by now, know of Jim's █▓█ Gothic/Prog Rock keyboard style so let's get straight to this, his █▓█ second CD release. The first surprise is that Vols 1 to 4 are omitted █▓█ from the team selection along with Vols 7 & 9. "What! No 'Walking the █▓█ Web', 'Wild Fire', 'Ice Flow' and 'Asylum..." I hear you Kirkwoodians █▓█ cry! But there lies the rub. How do you cull 9 albums down to 6 █▓█ tracks? (Unlike Schulze, who makes 6 tracks into 9 albums!). Opening █▓█ with 'Mjolnir', from 'Sisters of the Web', this is a potent █▓█ Wakemanesque piece with gutsy, if at times grating, slabs of lead █▓█ synth and an infectious central theme. a good curtain raiser! █▓█ 'Vanaheim', from the same album, enters with atmospheric structures █▓█ and a variety of sequences before settling again for a more Prog Rock █▓█ oriented stance - Paul Ward fans take note. It's a good "ballsy" █▓█ outing ending on a beautiful baroque piano refrain. To me, if one █▓█ track sums up Kirkwood (an awful slur I hasten to add!) it's █▓█ 'Axeline', taken from 'The Age of the Wolf'. This is the showboat of █▓█ what his sound is all about. A slow, dark, brooding opening combines █▓█ with catchy sequence lines, playfully introduced. While the pot █▓█ bubbles, ingredients are added until boiling point! The result is a █▓█ Shreeve-style solid wall of chords and screeching guitar. Marvellous! █▓█ Things cool down with a playful medieval passage, only to be █▓█ confronted by the Shreeve-like refrain full in the face again! A work █▓█ of art! Another 'Wolf...' highlight follows in the shape of █▓█ 'Longships', a slab of solid sequences, thumping bass drum and a █▓█ variety of leads sparring for the foreground. 'Weaving the Red Thread' █▓█ from Vol. 6 (same title) is the full 19 minutes of part 1. For anyone █▓█ into the TD 'Poland' sound, this is for you. A glorious array of █▓█ sequences, mechanical bird calls and that "84 sound" Worth buying the █▓█ CD for this alone! The final track 'Rhythm of the Fire', again from █▓█ 'Sisters...', is coupled with 'In stone Carved', an incidental, to █▓█ extend it just past the 5 minute mark and is much of the same... All █▓█ in all then a success, and an ideal way to sample 'Yggdrasil'. Each █▓█ track has its own merits and, unlike the tapes, no "padding" is █▓█ included. Well recommended! Oh, and he even produces the cover art in █▓█ the form of 4 suitably Nordic pieces. Is there no end to this man's █▓█ talents?! I still think it warranted a double though... █▓█ [ Stuart J Harris @ www.synthmusicdirect.com ] █▒█ █░█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ [ best viewed in jane with lucida console ansi (size 8) ]