"Hvis Lyset Tar Oss" by Burzum
Lineup:
Kristian "Varg" Vikernes a.k.a. Count Grishnackh: All vocals and instruments.
TOTAL: - 44:37
Released: 1994
Label: Misanthropy Records
Released after the phenominal "Det Som Engang Var" and written and recorded at around the same time, this album seems to be the plateau between the black metal Burzum of "Burzum," "Aske," and "Det Some Engang Var" and the electronic "Daudi Balders" and "Hlidskjalf."
Det Som Engang Var- 5/5
Talk about putting your best foot foreward. This song at first contains an electronic intro focused on a flute sound for about 3:00. This is a very great addition to the song, creating a nice feeling of anticipation and anxiousness but at the same time makes you want to stay in that same moment. After this opening the speed picks with the heavily distorted guitar and bass but the keyboard effect stays on during the duration of the song, helping to carry the main guitar riff very well. Soon after this we get an introduction to Varg's shreiking vocal style which in itself is very different from the normal black metal frey. At about 9:00, the song slows down and goes into a very drum focused phaze and stays like this until the end of the song.
Hvis Lyset Tar Oss - 4/5
Directly after the slow flushing out of Det Som Engang Var, we come to the title track. One thing about this song that sets it apart from the rest of the album is the fact that it contians no keyboards. This song stays at the same pace and uses the same base riff during the whole song. While this works well for most of the song, it just feels like it is a minute longer than it ever should have been.
Inn I Slottet Fra Droemmen - 5/5
A very good followup to the title track, this song manages to keep it's **** together for the whole 8 minutes. Containing more riffs and contains a fair ammount of keyboards. The one thing that separates the effects on this song from the one's used on Det Som Engang Var is that they act like effects on this song, rather than carry the song in the foreground. The guitar work is solid and very good sounding, and everything stays in the very Burzum-style of minimalism.
Tomhet - 5/5
And the album ends with a sign of things to come. A song that is completely made useing a keyboard. The whole song stays very slow and creates both a feeling of hope and dispair. One thing about this song that I noticed is while the song generally stays the same, any slight change in the sound being used or the speed or the volume changes the song very much. Brilliant writing here.
This album stays as one of Varg's greatest albums. Though I wouldn't recomend Burzum for everyone. Varg's vocals maybe very hard for most people to get used to and those looking for a big production are not going to find it here. The minimalism of anything Burzum might bore some. But a big recomendation to anyone looking for something a little different in black metal, all metal, and music in general, this album this a great introduction to the work's of Varg Vikernes.
Final Score - 5/5
