Fire + Ice
Hollow Ways

Perhaps known more for his collaborations with Current 93 and Sol Invictus than for his solo project Fire & Ice, Ian Read can be considered in every respect the fourth pillar of apocalyptic folk, alongside Douglas P., David Tibet, and Tony Wakeford.
Of all these shady figures, Ian Read is certainly the artist whose music is, in the strictest sense, the least apocalyptic, closer instead to a canonical and traditional folk. Therefore, you won't find in this "Hollow Ways" (which, if I am not mistaken, should be the band's second full-length) many of the clichés one might expect from the genre, such as the well-known warlike references or the more or less explicit right-wing hints (which, in itself, does not imply that Read is not right-wing, quite the opposite...).

A music that wisely avoids, at least in this instance, any electronic, industrial, and noise contamination, to retreat into an arcane and bucolic dimension that directly sinks its roots into the myths and legends of the past, particularly those well-known and overly used ones of North-European culture. A journey that takes on the features of an attentive, meticulous, and almost historiographical research aimed at recovering the wisdom and spiritual richness concealed in the symbols and enigmas handed down to us from the past.
To the alleged decadence of contemporary society, to the emptiness of values, superficiality, and foolishness that characterizes it, a nihilistic, destructive attitude of violence and pessimistic rejection is not counterposed; instead, a constructive criticism, an elite position if you will, a gaze that looks down on the present and firmly, nostalgically turns to the past, seen as a refuge but also as a way through which man, with constancy and dedication, can reconnect with nature and himself.

If Tibet is fragile, Wakeford courageous, Pearce disenchanted, undoubtedly Ian Read's poetics are characterized by composure, firmness, rigor, pride with which convictions, ideas, and intents are carried forward.

From a strictly musical point of view, it will certainly have been understood that Fire & Ice's proposal moves along the already known coordinates of acoustic folk in the style of Sol Invictus and Current 93, without the visionary and dark hues that characterize these projects. The more bucolic Currents are, in fact, the benchmark that fits best, an impression that is continuously confirmed, at least in this record, by the contribution of various characters already encountered at Tibet's place, such as the sweet Julie Wood, on vocals, violin, and flute, and the providential Michael Cashmore on guitar, here truly in a state of grace (as always, for that matter: a life, his, that seems to unfold exclusively in the name of our greatest delight). Only occasionally does the sound become tinged with "apocalyptic", with the sporadic insertion of dark synths and atmospheric effects that stain and contaminate the traditional instruments.

Read's firm and never rowdy singing serves as a careful counterpoint to the melodies woven by the instruments: at times melodic, at times minimal, recited, or merely whispered, it manages to maintain throughout the album's duration a high degree of inspiration and sentiment, so it becomes necessary and justifiable to forgive him some off-notes (and there are quite a few, I assure you!).
Ian Read is therefore not an impeccable singer (what could he then have to boast about, given that, strictly speaking, he is truly mediocre...), nor is it an orchestra that shines with the magnificence and perfection of that of his cousins Current: smudges and inaccuracies pour copiously into our eardrums, however, eventually, this aspect becomes an extra gear for the band, conferring charm and spontaneity even where the songwriting doesn't maintain stellar levels.

The first part of the album is something sublime, truly the best the genre can offer. The opener "Lord of Secrets" is, for example, a true gem of refined and crystalline beauty, where Read's evocative and minimal singing perfectly marries the prodigious work of the ever-excellent Cashmore and the original medieval-style flute inserts. The following "Militia Templi" is instead one of those pieces worth listening to apocalyptic folk for, a track of unique intensity that reveals the talent of an artist who truly knows how, when he wants (and he doesn't always want), to go beyond. More than a shiver, believe me, will run down your spine during the endless final trail, where a crescendoing guitar sets the pace for the female whispers and the dark and evocative counterpoints of Read.
With the third track, "Seeker", we catch our breath, and it's the arcane voice of Freya Aswynn (also present in "Swastikas for Goddy" by Current 93, as if to underline the continuity of the two projects), accompanying us in a dark invocation.

The beauty of Fire & Ice is certainly that of knowing how to build extremely evocative atmospheres with simplicity and without resorting to blatant tricks. The following "The Old Grey Widowmaker" and "Huldra's Maze" confirm what has just been stated, constituting a perfect example of what I define as "cosmic folk": suggestive and airy ballads capable of making the listener take off and float, suspended, in other dimensions. Also thanks to the atmospheric background of the synths and the ethereal female counter-songs.

It's a shame that not the entire album maintains these levels. In the second half, in fact, there is, in my opinion, a drop in intensity and inspiration, due mostly to the presence of revisited traditional folk songs, or tracks that strongly draw inspiration from popular culture. Gone are the vaguely apocalyptic atmospheres, making way for tracks like "The Rising of the Moon" and "Ershebeth" (sung even in German), which I frankly find cheesy and a little embarrassing. But there's a risk you might not agree with me, given that these are tracks that are gradually performed live and thus enjoy a certain consideration from the artist himself. It might then be that you like traditional folk, and you can therefore rest easy and confidently purchase the album in question.

As far as I'm concerned, a first part of five stars and a second of three, which together do not make a masterpiece (in my opinion, Ian Read has never written a true masterpiece, rather beautiful songs whose beauty however is regularly and irremediably dulled by less inspired episodes), but certainly a work worthy of maximum respect, and that constitutes the ideal passage to penetrate the enchanted and ancient world of Fire & Ice (together, of course, with the unmissable debut "Guilded by the Light" and the more recent "Runa," in my opinion the most interesting articles currently offered by the house).