There was an earnestness in Burzum's music until "Filosofem" that is largely missing here. Maybe sitting in jail sucks your life-force out of you, which would certainly affect your music. But perhaps trying too hard to make a brooding and mystical album instead of letting it become what it could be is more to blame in this case. The trance like and sylvan feel, of surface innocence with just the smallest hint of the sinister lurking beneath that made early Burzum ambient tracks like "Tomhet" so amazing is gone - covered over by a painful heavy-handedness.

One can argue that a great artist is one who can push the limits of their creativity without exposing them to the audience. While some may find this to be a fulfilling and mystical record, the infrequent times I still listen to this record, I tend to fall asleep.

© 1999 the barrow man