Thor's Hammer, or Hljómar, was an

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran *Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

primarily active in the 1960s. Outside of Iceland, they are known among music collectors for their rare releases on

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...

, sung in English and recorded in London for export. The most famous of these is the 1966 EP ''Umbarumbamba'', regarded as one of the rarest released records in the world and known to fetch prices into the thousands of dollars when a copy surfaces. Their style can be described as

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

, fuzz rock, and

freakbeat Freakbeat is a loosely defined subgenre of rock and roll music developed mainly by harder-driving British groups during the Swinging London period of the mid-to late 1960s. The genre bridges British Invasion R&B, beat and psychedelia. Etymolo ...

, with noticeable influences from both

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

and

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

History

Formed in Keflavik in 1963 under the name Hljómar (literally "''Chords''"), they soon became popular in Iceland at a time when local rock music was a rarity. By the mid-1960s they were recording in London on Parlophone Records for the international market, including the EP ''Umbarumbamba'', now a valuable collector's item. This record was recorded as a tie-in with a movie starring the band also entitled ''Umbarumbamba'', but the film was not a success.'' Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964-1969''. Liner notes, p.85.

Rhino Records A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

: 2001. From these sessions also came the singles "Once" and "If You Knew". The band even attempted a single entitled "Stay" in the United States on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, which was produced by John Simon, known for his work with The Band and

Big Brother and the Holding Company Big Brother and the Holding Company is an American rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1965 as part of the same psychedelic music scene that produced the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Jefferson Airplane. After some in ...

's album '' Cheap Thrills'' with

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

. In 1969 a number of Thor's Hammer members went on to form the prog-flavored band

Trúbrot Trúbrot were an Icelandic psychedelic/progressive rock band active in the late 1960s and early 1970s. History The band was formed in 1969 as an Icelandic supergroup composed of members of the bands Hljómar and Flowers.Asbjørnsen, Dag Erik. ' ...

, which recorded four albums until itself splitting in 1973. Continual interest in the band among collectors of 1960s rock music lead to the 2001 Ace Records compilation album ''From Keflavik With Love'', which collects all of the band's English-language output, including the tracks from ''Umbarumbamba'', "Once", "If You Knew", and "Stay", as well as a number of their Icelandic tracks. Rúnar Júlíusson died on 5 December 2008 at the age of 63 after going into

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...

. The group's collected work is featured on the anthology, ''

From Keflavík, With Love ''From Keflavík, With Love'' is a retrospective anthology issued in 2001 by Big Beat Records consisting of twenty songs by Thor's Hammer (Hljómar), a 1960s garage rock and beat group from Iceland who were one of the best-known Icelandic grou ...

'', released in 2001 on Big Beat Records.

Band members

Rúnar Júlíusson Guðmundur Rúnar Júlíusson (13 April 1945 – 5 December 2008), alternate names: Rúnar Júlíusson or Rúni Júl, was an Icelandic pop singer, music producer and footballer from Keflavík. Football career Rúnar was a member of Keflavík � ...

(13 April 1945 – 5 December 2008) – vocals, bass *Gunnar Þórðarson – guitar, vocals *Erlingur Björnsson (1966–1969) – guitar, vocals *Engilbert Jensen – vocals, drums *Shady Owens (1968–1969) – vocals *Gunnar Jökull Hákonarson (1968) – drums *

Björgvin Halldórsson Björgvin Helgi Halldórsson (Alternate names: Bó Halldórsson, Björgvin Halldórsson or Bó Hall) (born 16 April 1951) is an Icelandic pop singer from Hafnarfjörður. He represented Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1995 with the song ' ...

(1973–1974) – vocals *Birgir Hranfsson (1973–1974) – guitar *Pétur Östlund (1966) – drums

Discography

;Studio albums *1967: ''Hljómar'' *1968: ''Hljómar'' (a second self-titled album) *1974: ''74'' ;Compilation albums *''Fyrsti kossinn - Hljómar í 50 ár'' ;Singles and EPs *1965: ''Fyrsti Kossinn / Bláu Augun Þín'' *1965: ''Fjögur Ný Lög'' (EP) *1968: ''Hljómar'' (EP)

References

External links

Allmusic entry AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

br>Hljomar biography and discography (in Icelandic)Thor's Hammer biography and discography (in Icelandic)
{{Authority control Icelandic rock music groups Keflavík