Pagan Folk Music

Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson - Edda



Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson was the shepherd-poet who revived Ásatrú, the ancient pagan faith of Iceland, as a legally-recognized religion in his homeland. This is a recording of him chanting poems from the Elder Edda, the primary written source of the pre-Christian mythology of the Northern European peoples.

I should note that Ásatrú is not a racist movement, and 99% of those who describe themselves as Ásatrúar repudiate racist politics.


TrackList:

01 - Völuspá (The Prophecy Of the Seeress)
02 - Hávamál (The Sayings Of Hár)
03 - Sigurdrifumál (The Lay Of Sigurd)
04 - Poems- Bragaping-Nótt-Ósk-Viná

Quality
192 kbps mp3



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Ælfric - Harp Runes from Allfather's Hall



Ælfric is a pagan musician who sings meticulously researched music in Old English, accompanied on an Anglo-Saxon lyre reconstructed from the famous ship burial at Sutton Hoo. Needless to say, these are all Heathen songs, many dedicated to Woden, the one-eyed god of shamanism, sorcery, and ecstasy. Notable is the final track, a setting of the Anglo-Saxon Rune poem.


TrackList:

01 - Wóden Béot
02 - Ánéagean Heriung
03 - Hæleth
04 - Gimle Béot
05 - Ósmægen
06 - Caedmon's Heriungaléoth
07 - Weorthmynd
08 - Eallfædere Árhwæt
09 - Hræfnscír
10 - Rúngerím

Quality
192 kbps mp3



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Kūlgrinda - Ugnies Apeigos (Rite of Fire)



Kūlgrinda is a Lithuanian group devoted to the reclamation of pagan Baltic folk-song and liturgical traditions. They've done some interesting collaborations with ambient musicians (e.g., Donis) and heavy metal groups, but this disc is just ancient song and traditional instruments.

Again, to avoid misunderstanding, Kūlgrinda's use of the fylfot in the album art above is simply the use of an ancient solar symbol, and has no political meaning. (The fylfot is also a common sacred symbol in Buddhist and Hindu religious iconography.)


TrackList:

01 - Saly kelio jovaras stovejo (A Poplar Stood by the Roadside)
02 - Riciau rotu (I Rolled the Wheel)
03 - Seniai buvau (So Long Ago)
04 - Snaudala (The Dreamer)
05 - Duno upe (Duno River)
06 - Ciutyta
07 - Rimo rimo tuta
08 - Dega ugnele (The Fire Burns)
09 - Kankles (Zither)
10 - Malda Gabijai (A Prayer to Gabija)
11 - Vidury lauko (In the Middle of a Field)
12 - As kanapi sejau (I Sowed the Hemp)
13 - Ejau rytelia ciuta (I Walked in the Morning)
14 - Oi kalnas kalnas (The Mountain)
15 - Uz stalo sedau (I Sat at a Table)
16 - Skranc bitela (a Bee Flies)
17 - Tykiai tykiai Nemunelis teka (Calmly, Calmly, the Fair Nemunas Flows)

Quality
192 kbps mp3




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Gjallarhorn - Sjofn



Gjallarhorn is a Finnish-Swedish group from an ethnically Swedish region of Finland. Their sound is not strictly traditional, as it incorporates a variety of world instruments -- notably African percussion and didjeridoo. But the driving fiddle and keening vocals make sure you remember this is music from the snowbound north. "Sjofn" is one manifestation of Freyja, the Norse goddess of love, battle, and divination; and the "Suvetar" in the title track is an ancient Scandinavian goddess of fertility. Oh, this one is so good...


TrackList:

01. Suvetar/Goddess of Spring
02. Tova Och Konugen/Tova and the King
03. Dejelill Och Lagerman/Dejelill and Lagerman
04. Minuet from Jeppo/Polska
05. Minuet from Jeppo/Polska
06. Kom Helge Ande/Come, Holy Spirit
07. Näcken och Jungfrun/The Water-Sprite and the Maiden
08. Su Ru Ruskadirej
09. Bergfäst/Mountain Haunted
10. Orvais Minuet
11. Lille Dansa/Dance a Little
12. Hjaðningarima
13. Sinivatsa/Dolphin Calling

Quality
FLAC



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A Silver Thread to Weave the Seasons




TrackList:

01. Seed
02. The Silver Thread
03. The Rainbow-Gilded Leaves of Autumn
04. Peppermint and Clover Honey
05. The Clouds of Red Twilight
06. Evening Air
07. Summer's Night
08. My Heart Is an Acorn Buried in the Black Earth
09. Odalisque
10. Fleance
11. Rain of Days
12. Listen, Listen, Listen
13. Leaves About Our Feet, We Reached for the Moon
14. Devotional One
15. Devotional Two




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The Silver Skein Unwound




TrackList:

01. Wasp-Sting, Thorn, And Arrowhead
02. A Bottle of Breath
03. The Prayer of the Circling Birds
04. Last Lost Love Song
05. Secrets Round in Skin
06. Through the Trees Again
07. Bless the Lady, Bless the Rose
08. Ephrata Sacred Heart
09. Midgard for Dreamless Sleeper/The False Bird
10. The Hidden Heart
11. For Those with Ears to Hear Us
12. Let the Towers Fall
13. Arrowhead, Thorn, And Wasp-Sting



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Lanterna Lucis Viriditatis




TrackList:

01. Sunshine in the Eyes of Death
02. The Eyelit Path
03. Sword Baptismal
04. Solomon's Song
05. The Way of Green Osiris
06. John Barleycorn
07. The Red Crossed Knight
08. It's Hard to Dance with the Devil on Your Back
09. Sleep then, with the Incense of Orchids around You
10. The Face of God
11. Estampie
12. Moongazer
13. The Lantern of the Greening Light




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The Long-Lost Friend: A Patchwork




TrackList:

01. Long Lost Friend (Cobweb'ed Version)
02. Leafwalker
03. Footprints of a Ghost Girl
04. My Ghost
05. Through the Trees (A Prophecy)
06. The Song of the Last
07. Footprints Filled with Rain
08. Treehugger-Decay
09. The Unbinding String (Epistle to Prydwyn)
10. Listen, Listen (Agape Mix)
11. Osiris
12. On That Long Ago Lazy Day
13. Dark Globe
14. Golden Hair
15. Man Should Surrender
16. The Heart and Star of Sacred Memory
17. The House Carpenter
18. The Lantern of the Greening Light
19. The Long Lost Friend




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The Glinting Spade




TrackList:

01. Two Wax Dolls
02. To Thrum A Glassy Stem
03. Cipher's String On The Tree In The Dream Of The Queen
04. Bow Star
05. A Bee At The Dolmen's Dell
06. Arrowsmith's Fire
07. Milk Star

Quality: 192 kbps (would LOVE a quality upgrade for this rare album!!!)




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In Gowan Ring - Hazel Steps Through a Weathered Home




TrackList:

01. The Orb Weavers
02. Hazel Steps
03. The Seer and the Seen
04. Kingdom of the Shades
05. Morning's Waking Dream
06. A Poet's Lyre
07. Wind That Cracks The Leaves
08. Two Towers
09. Untitled

Quality: FLAC



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The Owl Service - A Garland of Song



The Owl Service is a British folk/rock band formed in 2006 by multi-instrumentalist Steven Collins, named after the 1967 novel by Alan Garner.

It's very witchy music, lyrically and atmospherically... and the homage to Garner in the band's name seals it for me.

Lovers of classic Fairport will adore this!

Diana Collier; vocals, percussion
Steven Collins; electric, acoustic and bass guitars, banjo, sitar, vocals, piano, organ, drones, glockenpsiel, percussion
Dom Cooper; vocals, percussion
Katie English; flute, melodica, glockenpsiel, percussion
Jo Lepine; vocals, percussion
Jason Steel; acoustic guitar, banjo, vocals
Nancy Wallace; acoustic guitar, concertina, vocals


TrackList:

01. A Garland of Song (Folk Revival)
02. Child Ballad no.49 (or The Rolling of the Stones)
03. Hoodening
04. The North Country Maid
05. Katie Cruel
06. The Lammas
07. Oxford City (or The Jealous Lover)
08. Turpin Hero
09. The Dorset Hanging Oak
10. Apple Tree Man
11. Child Ballad no.219 (or The Gardener Child)
12. Corn Dollies
13. Flanders Shore

Quality: 192 kbps



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Sedayne -- Hinterlands/Haxan Autumnus (WWW Edition)



Sedayne's music might be described as medieval, acid, ecstatic, shamanic, improvisational. He reaches so deeply into the folk traditions of the British Isles that he burrows entirely through the earth we all know and emerges in some prehistoric dream-time. A forgotten spirit animates his music. I will never forget hearing him sing an unearthly version of "Robin Sick and Weary" in which all of a sudden the ancient mythological roots of its narrative hit me with overwhelming force, and made me realize with my heart as well as my mind that the traditions of my pagan ancestors are alive in the folklore that's been handed down to us.


TrackList:

i) Assiduus Custis Ruris
ii) Hex Winter : The Eternal Lamentation of the Damned
iii) Totentanz
iv) Hunting and Gathering Prelude & Hearthcharm Custos Rari Nemoris
v) Harvest Myth 2005 #1

All compositions & performances by Sedayne: citeras alpha & beta / crwth / bodhran / kemence / daff / riq / iron, brass & wooden animal bells / bird whistles / gongs / singing bowls / cymbals / stones / dumbek / melodica / saz / end & cross blown bamboo flutes / rabab / pocket cornet / accordion / wind whistle / C clarinet / toilet duck / trees / whistle flutes / crow / jay / lip siren.

Quality: 192 kbps



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Hedningarna -- Karelia Visa



Hedningarna is a well-known Swedish and (on this album) Finnish band whose name means "the Heathen." This album represents old traditions gathered in the region of Karelia, now in Russia.

From Amazon: "For much of their career they have explored the runesongs of ancient Finland, particularly in the area called Karelia that straddles the Russian border. This album goes into the oldest Karelian traditions by collecting tunes and lyrics in the old Russian villages that still speak the old language and sing the old songs. Not that this is a traditional album in any way. In typical "heathen" style, the band reinterprets freely and inventively, pulling instruments from many Nordic and northern European countries, adding technology carefully but conspicuously, crafting an electric folk music that stays carefully out of the rock realm and holds true to the folk process. This album follows closely the powerful path created on Kaksi!, the first Hedningarna album to explore the deeper Finno-Ugric roots of the eastern border regions. It is less violent and aggressive, but also darker and more contemplative."

When I hear many of these songs, my hair stands on end, and I see the old shamans of the north dancing under the stars.


TrackList:

01 Veli
02 Mitä Minä
03 Alkusanat
04 Neidon Laulu
05 Ukkonen
06 Metsyn Tyttö
07 Ståpäls
08 Viima
09 Heila
10 Vispolska

Quality: 320 kbps



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Sedula -- Kalėdų Rytą Saulė Pražydo



An ensemble of six female singers, the Lithuanian group Sedula presents interpretations of ancient Lithuanian songs, accompanied by kanklės (the Lithuanian type of zither), violins, skudučiai (multi-pipe whistles), percussion and other instruments. "Interpretations of Sedula are remarkable for their idiosyncratic, transparent and spellbindingly undulating sound of women’s voices. On stage they wear beautiful costumes recreated after the 15th-16th c. examples."

Baltic folk tradition is particularly heavily-laden with surviving pagan elements, since the Balts were not finally Christianized until the 18th century. For example, the refrain "leliumai" heard in many songs, is derived from the name of Lelou, the Earth Mother. A sketch of the history of Lithuanian religion can be found here:

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The title of the "Christmas" album below is instructive: in English, "Christmas Sunrise Flowered." Christian faith is here added (as elsewhere in Europe) as a new layer on the ancient pagan waiting for sunrise and renewed life after the longest night of the year.


TrackList:

01. Vidury lauko grūšelė auga, kalėda
02. Atbėga alnis devyniaragis
03. Leliumai, anta dvaro, leliumai
04. Sodai, sodai, leliumai
05. Sakalėli sierasai, žalia rūta kalėda
06. Vaikštinėjo povelė po dvarų
07. Oi, tu, bitaite, lyliumoj
08. Tu, žvirblali lėktasai
09. Ir inmine šešurėlis martelai mįslį
10. Nei jus gaidziai gieda, leliumai
11. Kam tavo, vaikeli, akelės šviesios, kalėda
12. Oi, dvarai, dvarai, leliumoj
13. Ant ūlyčių, ant placiųjų
14. Oi, šokam, šokam, šešioš panos
15. Grįskim, mergos, jievaro ciltų
16. Kalėdų rytų Saulė pražydo
17. Oi, atvažuoja, lėliu Kalėda
18. Oi, ant kalno bačelė
19. Už girių, girių ugnelė dega
20. Atvazuoj Kalėdos, do Kalėdziene

Quality: VBR ~192 kbps mp3



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Sedula -- Šiuolaikinis žvilgsnis į viduramžius




TrackList:

01. Ant kalnelio jovaras žydėjo
02. Gedula liepa
03. Ei, liustas, liustas
04. Vaikštinėjo povelė
05. Leiskis, saule
06. Kupal rože, ratilio
07. Užteka saulužė
08. Oi, kieno rakteliai
09. Jurja, geras vakaras
10. Skumbinoj kunklaliai
11. Mano tėvo didis dvaras
12. Aisūs kunklaliai
13. Čiulba, ulba karvelėlis
14. Lioj, bajoroite
15. Oi, tu, bijūn, bijūnėli
16. Gali lauko liepala
17. Sauleli rauduona
18. Oi, šokam, šokam šešios panos
19. Supkit, meskit mani jaunų
20. Ant kalnelio, ant aukštojo
21. Už jūrų, už marių
22. Oi, jau mano mielas
23. Sakalėli sierasai
24. Vai martela, vai vuogela mano
25. Sėjau vosilkų
26. Atvažuoj Kalėdos, do Kalėdzienė
27. Vilniaus mieste gražus daržas
28. Ulioja bitela
29. Berneli mano, raiteli mano
30. Skumba, skumba kunkliai
31. Dūzgia bitelė, dūzgia
32. Kap aš augau, sadulia
33. Oi, kad aš augau pas motinėlę

Quality: VBR ~224 kbps mp3





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Kira -- The Way Home


Relocated from the dulcimer thread...

This is an album by a Druid from Oregon who plays all manner of zithery things, primarily Appalachian dulcimer, and sings beautiful songs inspired by various pagan and gnostic sources. She doesn't seem to have a web presence any more, but as I can remember her name is Kira Westfall. Unfortunately I misplaced the image files and so have no other information about the release. I am not sure it ever came out as a CD.


TrackList:

01 - Rise
02 - Crystal Cave
03 - Seven Years
04 - The Waiting
05 - Leaf
06 - Siren
07 - Summer
08 - Persephone
09 - Perfect Mind
10 - Insight

Quality
192 kbps mp3



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V.A. - Pagānu Gadagrāmata (1999)


First of folk series celebrates pagan year
Andris Straumanis
April 05, 1999

UPE Recording, the Rīga-based music production company run by singer and disc jockey Ainars Mielavs, in February released the first of what it promises will be a series of recordings chronicling the vast catalog of Latvian folk songs. Pagānu gadagrāmata (Pagan Yearbook), the brainchild of Uģis Prauliņš, is not, however, the typical collection of folk songs.

In fact, Latvian audiences unaccustomed to what’s been happening in the field of "world music" might be taken aback by the cycle of songs on this album. Pagānu gadagrāmata is not an introductory library of folk tunes. Rather, it is a concept album tied to the theme of the passing of the seasons. During the course of 15 tracks, the listener is carried from the atkūsnis (thaw) that occurs around Easter time, forward through spring, summer, autumn and winter.

This also is an album about the Latvian countryside, home of the Latvian soul. That helps explain the various "nature" sound effects scattered through the album, a somewhat trite addition to an otherwise fine recording.

Pagānu gadagrāmata is not a singalong album that lends itself well to air play, even though tracks have been featured on Radio Latvia and some commercial stations. Instead, the album is better listened to in a single sitting, maybe even with the "repeat" function of your CD player activated, so you can experience several "years" in row.

"I wouldn’t like these songs to climb the Latvian pop charts and go down as swiftly afterwards," Prauliņš writes in the liner notes. "These songs are meant to be a retrospection of a whole year for the inner self of an urban man—at places we hardly ever visit these days."

Familiar voices, such as that of Latvian folk diva Ilga Reizniece, sing traditional lyrics (dainas) but often to the accompaniment of nontraditional instruments, such as the West African xylophone, the balafon, and the hand drum, the djembe. Thus, we find Prauliņš singing "Meitas gula ābolajē"—with Prauliņš himself handling voice, keyboards, and recorder—ending with bongos that segue into Reizniece and Māris Muktupāvels singing a percussive "Ganiņš biju" on a track punctuated by the djembe and the balafon.

The arrangements are a sign that "folk" culture does not have to be restricted to a specific time in the past to be considered genuine. Consider as an example "Baladīte," a tragic ballad composed by Prauliņš with lyrics drawn from the work of poet Ojārs Vācietis (1933-1983).

Featured performers on the album are Reizniece and Muktupāvels, both of the post-folk group Ilgi; guitarist Gints Sola of Jauns Mēness; and bassist Andris Alviķis, percussionist Nils Īle, and Prauliņš. In a recent interview in the Rīga daily newspaper Diena, Prauliņš told journalist Uldis Rudaks that the idea for Pagānu gadagrāmata came to him in 1995. For some tracks on the album, Prauliņš arranged the music around the traditional songs transcribed by the Latvian folklorist, composer, and critic Emilis Melngailis (1874-1954). Other tracks, such as the instrumental “Pirmais pērkons,” are new compositions.

We hope UPE does well with this series. Latvian folk music, important though it is to Latvian ethnic identity, has received scant recent attention from recording companies in Latvia. Mielavs tells SVEIKS.com that the second album in the series, Latviešu danči (Latvian Dances), is nearing completion, and that at least one additional album is expected this year.

(Editor’s note: This review originally appeared on SVEIKS.com.)


TrackListing

01 Zaļa Zied Zālīte (Atkusnis) 02:18
02 Atiti Leldīna (Atkusnis) 05:43
03 Pirmais pērkons (Pavasaris) 03:52
04 Balādīte (Pavasaris) 04:16
05 Meitas Gula Ābolāje (Vasara) 02:20
06 Ganiņš Biju (Vasara) 01:03
07 Es Gulu Gulu (Vasara) 04:09
08 Iesēju Liniņus (Vasara) 03:07
09 Baltaitiņa (Vasara) 03:19
10 Saucējs Sauc Aiz Upītes (Rudens) 04:36
11 Aiz Kalniņa (Rudens) 04:15
12 Sauleite Lēce (Rudens) 04:08
13 Tas Vejiņš Pūta - Nāk Rudentiņis... 04:43
14 Kakeišami Tāvs Nūmyra (Ziema) 03:13
15 Vecgada Vakars (Ziema) 02:20

Quality: CBR 256 kbps



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V.A. - Līgo (2003)


An atypical contemporary record of Latvian folk music, based on traditional yet little known songs originally sung on Midsummer Night, the most important of Latvian festivities. Performed by some of the best musicians in Latvia, these are modern yet deeply rooted and sometimes almost primitive (neo-primitive?) performances of some of the oldest traditional songs in the region. A cast of singers is joined by a unique ensemble of traditional and acoustic folk instruments (kokle-zither, flutes, percussion, guitars) with more unorthodox sounds from electronic samples of sounds from music and nature, drones of didjeridu and throat singing, electric bass and global percussion. It is all given a rich sonic production by Zane Smite and the late Martins Taurins, who passed away in the summer of 2003, not long after completing this last project. This is a HIGHLY recommended recording for anyone interested in how ancient roots can become new and unique without resoring to popular cliches or technological trickery.


TrackListing

01 Kopā, kopā
02 Aplīgoju rudzu lauku
03 Zaķjīt's saldu alu dara
04 Jāņju nakti nepazinu
05 Uz avotu līgot gāju
06 Teku, teku
07 Sijāju uguni
08 Dimdaru, damdaru
09 Tā sacīja, tā bij' tiesa

Quality: CBR 256 kbps



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Of the Wand and the Moon


Danish neofolk project started by Kim Larsen in 1998. Strongly influnced by early dark folk acts such as Death In June, :Of The Wand & The Moon: play a melancholic acoustic music, often aided by various guest musicians, with lyrics mainly in English and Danish. Pagan and runic themes have a prominent role in the music...
The neofolk movement is largely comprised of musicians who've come out of various industrial or metal musical milieux, and have embraced an acoustic sound. Their aesthetic is quite dark, and they often deal explicitly with pagan themes.

Emptiness:Emptiness:Emptiness


TrackList:

01 Lost In Emptiness
02 My Devotion Will Never Fade
03 In A Robe Of Fire
04 Algir Naudir Wunjo
05 Silver Rain
06 Gal Anda
07 Here's To Misery (A Toast)
08 Can I Erase The Demon?
09 Reficul

Quality: 192 kbps




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Hagalaz




TrackList:

01 Raven Chant
02 Gal Anda
03 Lost In Emptiness
04 Silver Rain
05 I Crave For You
06 Lion Serpent Sun

Quality: 192 kbps




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Midnight Will




TrackList:

01 Midnight Will
02 A Mass
03 Brace Your Self
04 Winter Veil
05 A Dirge
06 Midnight Will (Live At HauRuck! Festival 03.03.02)
07 Winter Veil (Demo)

Quality: VBR ~224 kbps



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Nighttime Nightrhymes




TrackList:

01 Ganthr
02 I Crave For You
03 Lion Serpent Sun
04 Sól Ek Sá
05 In The Colours Of Night
06 The Substance Of Simplicity
07 Raven Chant
08 She With Whom Compar'd The Alpes Are Vallies
09 Vargold
10 Wintry Mantle
11 Nighttime Nightrhyme
12 Mauna

Quality: CBR 160-192



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Sonnenheim




TrackList:

01 Black Moth
02 Nighttime In Sonnenheim
03 Summer Solstice
04 Honour
05 My Black Faith
06 Wonderful Wonderful Sun
07 Hollow Upon Hollow
08 Camouflage
09 Lieblos Hin Zur Dunkelheit
10 Hail Hail Hail II
11 Here's An Ode
12 I Shall Feast
13 Like Wolves
14 Winter Solstice

Quality: VBR ~224 kbps



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Daemonia Nymphe - Krataia Asterope

[IMG]http://i48.*******.com/16j3gxj.jpg[/IMG]

Genre :Mediavel-Folk-Gothic
Year : 2007
Country : Greece
Size : 78.67 MB


Tracklist:

01 - Esodos - 00:01:53
02 - Krataia Asterope - 00:03:21
03 - Daemonos - 00:02:44
04 - Nocturnal Hekate - 00:03:20
05 - Mouson - 00:03:53
06 - Dios Astrapaiou - 00:03:05
07 - Divine Goggess of Fertility - 00:03:03
08 - Sirens of Ulysses - 00:05:27
09 - To Goddess Mnemosyne - 00:02:32
10 - Hymenaios - 00:02:57
11 - Ecstatik Orchesis - 00:04:22

Quality 320
Total playing time: 00:36:37



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