Burzum
Hlidskjalf
[Misanthropy]
I'm sure anyone who's had the slightest interest in this release has
already sought out (and found) numerous wordy write-ups complete with
commentary on the underlining "story" of Hlidskjalf, so I'm going to
make my review of this as brief as possible - plus, as I've only
listened to this a handful of times, so I don't think I've given this
quite enough time to "sink in" yet...
First off, I'd like to say what a wonderful job Misanthropy have done on the packaging for this - as with all the other BURZUM releases, this comes in digipac form, and the artwork/stills that accompany this are top notch - this has got to be the best presentation of Varg's work so far (not counting the hardback book version of "Filosofem")...anyway, let's move on to the music...
On the one hand, this is an excellent release, and definitely Varg's best (non-metal) work to date - the patches and synth timbres used this time around are MUCH fuller and more realistic than those employed on "Daudi Baldrs". Varg's song writing has also improved dramatically - each song has a very distinct feel from the others - the work as a whole has taken on a much more soundtrackish/ambient flair to it, and while still based on simple patterns, they're very effective and don't come off as the work of an "ex-black metaler" gone the way of the synth (such as some other illuminable others with ridiculous prosthetic facial appendages who will go unmentioned)...BUT (and here's where I have a slight problem with "Hlidskjalf"), this is so far removed from BURZUM proper that it really should have been released under a different name. Ok - some might argue that "Daudi Baldrs" should also have not been labeled as BURZUM, and perhaps they're right, but I'll play devil's advocate - I would disagree with them because yes, while "Daudi Baldrs" had absolutely nothing to do with "metal", the song writing on it was still VERY much in the vein of the previous BURZUM output - it was merely a case of Varg using other instruments in order to achieve his final goal...but "Hlidskjalf", while having similarities to "Daudi Baldrs", has none to the previous output. I guess it could also say the same thing by stating the following : "Daudi Baldrs" was merely one step removed from older BURZUM - it had the same song writing and same feel, but different instrumentation. "Hlidskjalf" is one step removed from "Daudi Baldrs", but in the *opposite* sense : the instrumentation is the same this time around, but the song writing is quite different - gone is the trademark BURZUM use of "repetition" (something that I *really* enjoyed actually), and with the lack of this important feature, "Hlidskjalf" is left as having little (if anything) to do with the BURZUM of the past...and that (to me) is a problem. Varg really should be releasing this under his own name (or another pseudonym)...
So what's the final word ? Well, regardless of the fact that I have a hard time calling this a BURZUM release, it's an excellent album. I'm sure that those who enjoyed "Daudi Baldrs" will also enjoy this, as will those who happen to like ambient/soundtrack work. All others should approach this with caution.
© 1999 chorazaim
First off, I'd like to say what a wonderful job Misanthropy have done on the packaging for this - as with all the other BURZUM releases, this comes in digipac form, and the artwork/stills that accompany this are top notch - this has got to be the best presentation of Varg's work so far (not counting the hardback book version of "Filosofem")...anyway, let's move on to the music...
On the one hand, this is an excellent release, and definitely Varg's best (non-metal) work to date - the patches and synth timbres used this time around are MUCH fuller and more realistic than those employed on "Daudi Baldrs". Varg's song writing has also improved dramatically - each song has a very distinct feel from the others - the work as a whole has taken on a much more soundtrackish/ambient flair to it, and while still based on simple patterns, they're very effective and don't come off as the work of an "ex-black metaler" gone the way of the synth (such as some other illuminable others with ridiculous prosthetic facial appendages who will go unmentioned)...BUT (and here's where I have a slight problem with "Hlidskjalf"), this is so far removed from BURZUM proper that it really should have been released under a different name. Ok - some might argue that "Daudi Baldrs" should also have not been labeled as BURZUM, and perhaps they're right, but I'll play devil's advocate - I would disagree with them because yes, while "Daudi Baldrs" had absolutely nothing to do with "metal", the song writing on it was still VERY much in the vein of the previous BURZUM output - it was merely a case of Varg using other instruments in order to achieve his final goal...but "Hlidskjalf", while having similarities to "Daudi Baldrs", has none to the previous output. I guess it could also say the same thing by stating the following : "Daudi Baldrs" was merely one step removed from older BURZUM - it had the same song writing and same feel, but different instrumentation. "Hlidskjalf" is one step removed from "Daudi Baldrs", but in the *opposite* sense : the instrumentation is the same this time around, but the song writing is quite different - gone is the trademark BURZUM use of "repetition" (something that I *really* enjoyed actually), and with the lack of this important feature, "Hlidskjalf" is left as having little (if anything) to do with the BURZUM of the past...and that (to me) is a problem. Varg really should be releasing this under his own name (or another pseudonym)...
So what's the final word ? Well, regardless of the fact that I have a hard time calling this a BURZUM release, it's an excellent album. I'm sure that those who enjoyed "Daudi Baldrs" will also enjoy this, as will those who happen to like ambient/soundtrack work. All others should approach this with caution.
© 1999 chorazaim