Verdandi, the musical collaboration of Alice Karlsdóttir and Paul Fredric, came into being in autumn 2003. Author of "Magic of the Norse Goddesses" (Runa- Raven Press), A Master in the Rune-Gild and long-time student of Norse folklore and mythology and magic, Karlsdóttir had formerly sung traditional and original folk music live until Ian Read asked her to record the track, "Lady of the Vanir," for the album Birdking by Fire + Ice. That experience encouraged her to embark on her own project, which was set on the path to manifestation when she was introduced to Paul Fredric, known for his work with the Esoteric Darkwave project Asmodeus X. The two found an immediate musical rapport, and began formulating the materials that would become the Neo-Folk work known as The North Country. Verdandi comes from the name of one of the three Norns, female Germanic figures of might often equated with the Fates. The ancient Germanic concept of time included only two concepts--the Past and the Present, a reality that is even now reflected in the Germanic languages. The Past, Urð (what has become) was real and vast, the accumulation of all the deeds of all beings throughout time; it was real because it had already happened, and it continually reached into the Present to influence current events. The future, Skuld (that which should become) was a hazy, indefinite concept, unreal because it had not yet happened and might be turned from its course at any moment by events in the Present. It was o