Fire and Ice's second full album is a beautiful and haunting collection, able to conjure up an atmosphere of shadowy altars and shrouded forests right from the start with the steady, elegant acoustic guitar and chanted lyrics to "Lord of Secrets." More so than most explorations into antique European musical styles, there's little of raggle-taggle fol-de-rol or jarring musical or lyrical anachronisms in Fire and Ice's approach -- either a listener accepts the elegant, mysterious settings and performances of Read and company's work, or else the whole thing gets written off. Read's singing is quietly emotive, almost speak-singing at points without losing a true musical sense of performance, while the arrangements are for the most part stripped down instead of heavily layered, letting the core melodies and lyrics stand forth. Thematic material comes from both traditional numbers and more recent writers -- one of the best efforts, "The Old Grey Widowmaker," is a fine adaptation of a Rudyard Kipling poem that itself refers to an old Norse term for the sea. Read's own lyrics slot alongside the older material quite well, as the mystic invocations of "Militia Templi" and mythic setting of "Holy Vehm" demonstrate. Flutes, recorders, and violins form part of the varied backing throughout the album, but Read's vocals and guitar always sit at the center, casting their spells. Occasional backing vocals from bassist Mouse and keyboardist/flatist Simon Norris help provide fine counterpoints to Read's efforts, while Freya Aswynn's lead on "Seeker" is especially captivating. As a whole, Hollow Ways is of a piece -- there's relatively little variation between how the songs are delivered and structured -- but the cumulative effect is subtly entrancing instead of repetitive. By the time the concluding "Svartalfar" is reached, it's as close to a true heathen ritual as most will ever experience, but the wonderful music is reason enough to give an ear.
© Ned Raggett /TiVo