Burzum

Hvis lyset tar oss (1994)

Hvis Lyset Tar Oss is the expression of the night as ambience, in the form of a dream-like trance. 

If ambience were defined as the character or atmosphere of a place; then this piece of music would be the atmosphere and character of dream structures that span the infinity of time. 

The key factors within the music are time and space, and their various interactions. The music is basic in aesthetic, but it is the softly changing layers of sound, that are effortlessly weaved into a vibrant cosmic fabric, combined with the lengthy (perhaps sparse is a better word) phrasing technique. This brings a certain depth to the music, a feeling that you are sinking into an ocean of thoughts, of the past and of the endless future. 

In the words of Varg Vikernes: "A window into a reconstructed past, and also a source of inspiration to those who are attracted to the barbarian Antiquity." This album fuctions so well as either an ambient piece or a Black Metal piece. 

The goal is that every past experience and learned trait is deconstructed and destroyed in the fire of Nihilism. We see this first with the mysticism of Det Som Engang Var (What Once Was), which lulls the listener into a false sense of security with its darkly benign intro. Darkness ensues soon after into a web of magic through repetitive motifs that grow in stature, and return from the void for a momentous final burst, like the brilliant light from the supernova of a dying star. Seemingly at odds with this approach is the scathing rage of the next two tracks that strip our senses of past conception Hvis lyset tar oss (If the light takes us) and Inn i slottet fra drømmen (Into the castle from the dream) like the boundless gravity of a super-massive black hole sucking our prior life into its eternal demise. Finally the listener is ready for the embrace of the void that is Tomhet (Emptiness), the darkness beyond, the world simply as time and space, free of perception and inhibition. That place seemingly far from our grasp, yet close enough to imagine where the creative forces of the Cosmos lie. A beautiful and resounding effigy in which we can face the dying modern world, and leave its depraved influence for something better.

Burzum (1992)

Burzum is book-ended by two of the best songs that Vikernes wrote during the most nebulous part of his often controversial black metal career. They both exemplify what is most enjoyable about this release; mainly the almost unmatched arcane energy that they create. Feeble Screams From The Unknown and My Journey to The Stars perfectly describe the content of the album with almost their names alone. The former is the fledgling, often pessimistic, beginnings of the journey into the darkness beyond. The opening riff is combative, and after cycling through variations of this theme, fleshes out a mood that threatens to consume the listener in a tempting darkness, before the song descends into a dirge-like central motif, where we begin anew the true journey into the heart of the night time world. The latter of these two songs, is the culmination of this journey, and is a celebration, rather than an ultimate resolution of the vast range of possibilities now that the listener is in a darker mood, free of the moral shackles imposed by contemporary society. The song goes through a series of mini-cycles, building tension and conflict within, before exploding in an uplifting sensation; symbolic of minds reaching out to the stars beyond, grasping the perfection of the cosmos in all its splendour.

Det som engang var (1993)

Det som engang var is as much a free-flowing narrative heavy metal album (by way of its use of harmony, albeit generally with increased use of minor scales) as it is an ambient black metal album. Both styles are most definitely present on even the most cursory of listens, for instance songs will find themselves still in a basking moment of hynotic energy, only to rise into a crescendo filled with arcane energy. The album showcases an ability to write melodic motifs and draw these through different lights (or darknesses if you prefer) to reveal alternative meanings or experiences. A world of possibilities looms that would be fully explored on Hvis lyset tar oss but on here it a voyage started, a journey into the realm of infinity. 

While we may believe 

our world - our reality 

to be that is - is but one 

manifestation of the essence 

Other planes lie beyond the reach 

of normal sense and common roads 

But they are no less real 

than what we see or touch or feel