Nuggets II: My Life by Thor’s Hammer

The success of Rhino’s 1998 Nuggets boxset justified a follow-up. The sequel covers the rest of the world since the first volume only chronicled the USA.

Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969 emerged in 2001. It features music from countries such as Iceland, Uruguay, and Japan. I’m profiling and rating each of the 109 tracks, working backwards.

Track 92 – My Life by Thor’s Hammer

From: Keflavik, Iceland

Credits

4/12. MY LIFE – Thor’s Hammer (Iceland)
(Gunnar Thordarson/Petur Ostlund)

PERSONNEL/GUNNAR THORDARSON: vocals, lead guitar * ERLINGUR BJORNSSON: rhythm guitar, vocals * RUNAR JULIUSSON: bass, vocals * PETUR OSTLUND: drums
Producer(s) unknown
Recorded in London, England
From the EP Umbarumbamba, Parlophone #CGEP-62 (1966) [U.K. export for Iceland]

Thor’s Hammer

Hlijomar (in English, the Sounds or the Chords) formed in Keflavik, Iceland, in 1963. They quickly became Iceland’s biggest band, supporting some visiting British acts on their Icelandic tours.

They named themselves Thor’s Hammer for English-language recordings made in London. Thor’s Hammer recorded the 1966 EP, Umbarumbamba, for Parlophone. It’s now a collector’s item. There’s an online auction from 2007 where a copy sold for US $1775.

Formed in 1964 in the city of Keflavik, Hljólmar began their recording career early the following year and quickly became popular with Icelandic teens. Their initial releases were sung in their native tongue, but the group and their record company quickly realized that to export the group’s popularity, they would need to sing in English and adjust the band’s name accordingly.

In late 1965 Thor’s Hammer traveled to England for recording sessions, which included ones for tracks that were to be used in an upcoming movie starring the band, called Umbarumbamba. Among the songs recorded was “My Life,” a wild yet melodic rocker, bursting with harmonies and some crackling fuzz guitar work. The song was released on an EP, issued in conjunction with the movie in the fall of 1966. The film was something of a flop, however, and the record consequently sold poorly.
Mike Stax, Nuggets II liner notes

My Life

‘My Life’ is one of the strongest songs on Nuggets II. It combines the pop sense of The Beatles with the aggression of The Who. Drummer Peter Ostlund has a similar free-flowing style to Keith Moon. It should be on oldies stations everywhere.

The Aftermath

Bassist Rúnar Júlíusson also played football for Iceland.

The members later formed Trúbrot, a progressive rock band. The 2001 compilation From Keflavik With Love, collects all of the band’s English-language output, as well as some of their Icelandic tracks.

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8 Comments

80smetalman

August 17, 2025 / 7:38 am Reply

I vaguely remember this band.
- Aphoristical
  
  August 17, 2025 / 11:34 am Reply
  
  There’s also the one with two rs, which might be more your thing?
  
  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorr%27s_Hammer
EclecticMusicLover

August 17, 2025 / 11:25 am Reply

Not a bad song, and with their sound and vocals, they really could have passed for British.
- Aphoristical
  
  August 20, 2025 / 7:42 pm Reply
  
  Yup, definitely Anglophiles.
Badfinger (Max)

August 17, 2025 / 11:44 am Reply

My Life… it’s like bottled chaos with those drums…I like it because it’s like a burst of adrenaline. They probably mixed those drums a little too loud for radio….but I love it….that fuzz guitar in the background has a great tone.
- Aphoristical
  
  August 20, 2025 / 7:43 pm Reply
  
  I like how they mixed the drums loud because the drumming is the best bit – whole band’s cool though.
Matt P (movingtheriver.com, soundsofsurprise.com)

August 18, 2025 / 9:02 pm Reply

Surely Andy Partridge heard this before doing The Dukes…
- Aphoristical
  
  August 20, 2025 / 7:49 pm Reply
  
  Yeah, can hear some similarities for sure. Plus Partridge seems like he’d be a big sixties pop nerd.