Reykjavík Grapevine - des. 2021, Blaðsíða 7

Very little is known about this goddess,
but what little we’ve been able to piece
together from the Poetic and Prose
Eddas, she must have served a vital
function among the gods. While many
were involved, directly or indirectly,
with the propagation of violence, Eir
stands out as a healer.
Her primary abode was the top of a
mountain called Lyfjaberg, or “healing
mountain,” which the sick and injured
could climb to be cured. In fact, it is
attested that once a year, she and her
staff would hold a ceremony to pre-
emptively cure the entire community
of any diseases that might befall them
in the year to come. This is certainly no
mean feat, and is probably why Snorri
Sturluson named her a particularly
important goddess.
Unfortunately, given that this
community was prone to violence and
war, it was also her responsibility to
visit the sites of battle. There, it fell on
her shoulders to decide who would live
and recover from the violence, which
we can’t imagine felt great to someone
devoted to healing others.
Today, her name lives on in the Fire
Emblem franchise, God of War, and
also in an east Reykjavík nursing home
that bears her name. Unfortunately, all
attempts to find Lyfjaberg itself have
turned up nothing. Maybe it was closed
due to overcrowding.
7 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 12— 2021

Inspector Spacetime
“Bára”
Just before they brought the groove
to last month’s Live From Reykjavík
festival, Inspector Spacetime
delivered this breezy slab of tight,
funky French-flecked disco to get
us all warmed up. In the video the
trio take to an ice rink, wrapping
themselves in a fur-coated eighties
Bond villain vibe. And they manage to
dance without slipping and falling on
their arses, (at least not in the final
cut). JP

Magnús Jóhann & Skúli Sverrisson
‘Án Tillits’
Magnús Jóhann Ragnarsson and
Skúli Sverrisson combine forces on
their new album, ‘Án Tillits’. It’s filled
with beautiful songs featuring so!
piano from Magnús, accompanied by
Skúli’s magical acoustic bass playing.
Standout track “Mógrá” is a reflective
piece that urges you to take a moment
for yourself and relax. RH
Damon Albarn
‘The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure
The Stream Flows’
In an interview in the last issue of
The Grapevine, Albarn details how
this album was composed from the
landscape he saw from his living
room window in Iceland. Listening
to “Royal Morning Blue”—one of the
record’s focal points—it’s easy to hear
what inspired him. This lush piece
carries an undercurrent of joy and
expansiveness, marking Albarn at his
absolute best. Definitely one to add to
your playlist. ASF
NEW MUSIC PICKS
JUST SAYINGS
The saying: "A! hafa/nota eitthva! fyrir/
sem gr"lu á einhvern" ("To have or use
Gr"la on someone") means, in short,
that you can scare someone shitless
and sway him to do whatever you want
by invoking Gr"la. Gr"la is actually the
mother of the 13 Yule lads and is a troll.
According to legend, she snatches up
unruly children and boils them alive
before eating them. Gr"la is possibly the
most terrifying troll in Icelandic folk-
lore and all Icelanders have PTSD after
their parents threatened them with her
wrath if they don’t behave. Therefore,
December is the month all Icelandic
children are on their best behaviour,
not because of all the gifts they could
receive from the Yule Lads, but because
of the fear of being eaten by a psychotic
ogress. This saying, "to use Gr"la on
someone", can also be used on grown
ups because, well, we were all kids at
one time right? VG
First
THE WORLD’S
LARGEST
ALL VEGAN
SUPERMARKET
Faxafen 14 · 108 Reykjavík · veganbudin.is
???
The Child-Eating Troll
GODS OF ICELAND
Superpowers:
Heals the sick and wounded
Weaknesses:
The awesome responsibility of
being a war medic
Modern Analogy:
Florence Nightingale
Eir, the Healer
The Norse Florence Ni"htin"ale
Words:
Andie Sophia
Fontaine
Image:
Wikimedia