BURZUM
So, here we are in 2020 with a new Burzum album. I don’t even know if there is still the debate over whether we should be listening to Burzum or not (because of Varg’s political leanings, etc). Is that a thing anymore? It now seems so long ago since the last conversation I had about it. To be fair to this as an album, I just approached it as such. In fact, I think I stopped really listening to Burzum after the second ambient album in the 90s, so I’m a little out of touch with the latest albums before ‘Thulean Mysteries’. I was aware that Varg had created his role-playing game MYRFAROG. I’ve never played it but it seems to have pretty good reviews and this album is meant to be an accompanying piece to the game. In fact, to Varg, in an interview accompanying the press release with this album, Burzum is now all but dead and this album was created by accident. Or, at least, was created in bit parts over five years and finally became the album I’ve been listening to for the past week.
This is an ambient album. Let’s just get that bit in right away. There is no metal so, if that’s what you’re after, turn back now! It’s quite a different ambient album to what I remember Burzum coming up with before. Although there is the occasional nod to dungeon synth it feels to share more common ground with the likes of early Tangerine Dream or Vangelis. You have to like morphing keyboard textures and soundscapes to like this album as that’s what you’ll get. It’s an easy listen which can almost bypass you but, with more time, you start to find the depths. Track three, ‘Forebears’, for example, is where the use of textured distortion adds a certain dimension that grabs you rather than just washing over. In fact, the preparedness to use dynamics and distortion on the keyboard sounds on tracks like ‘The Lord of The Dwarves’ and ‘The Road to Hel’ is a great juxtaposition to the more mellow ambient sounds.
There is an undeniable maturity to this album compared to earlier ambient works. Think of Mortiis and where he went with ‘The Stargate’ compared to his earlier works. It’s that sort of jump. Is it welcome? Well, yes. Ironically, considering this wasn’t music that was planned it sounds quite rounded in both composition and recording. There are some vocals by Varg on the album. The vocals remind me of Ragnarok UK - it’s kind of shaky but, because of this, it really gives a folky edge. I mean this in the best of ways (for both Burzum and Ragnarok UK). We get the first vocals on track 10, ‘The Great Sleep’, with more on 14, ‘Heill Óðinn, Sire’. There are also some spoken sections like on ‘The Land of Thulê’ and ‘A Forgotten Realm’, and the more I listened to the album the more I started to hear the broad range of tracks.
I think the physical release is split over two discs / vinyls of music but I’ve only got the download so it is all of 23 tracks. I do get the feeling you have to listen to it all as a full album rather than individual tracks. Ultimately, it works really well as a mood in the background and I think this was the desired effect, but as a complete feeling album I’m not too sure. But I’m not going to knock it too much on that account. If I want an ambient album to listen to I must admit it probably wouldn’t be my first choice, but I appreciate this wasn’t its original job. It did inspire me to dust down my own keyboards and have a play, though, so I’ve upped my original score of 7 to 8 as there was obviously something inspiring in it that made me want to be creative.
This is an ambient album. Let’s just get that bit in right away. There is no metal so, if that’s what you’re after, turn back now! It’s quite a different ambient album to what I remember Burzum coming up with before. Although there is the occasional nod to dungeon synth it feels to share more common ground with the likes of early Tangerine Dream or Vangelis. You have to like morphing keyboard textures and soundscapes to like this album as that’s what you’ll get. It’s an easy listen which can almost bypass you but, with more time, you start to find the depths. Track three, ‘Forebears’, for example, is where the use of textured distortion adds a certain dimension that grabs you rather than just washing over. In fact, the preparedness to use dynamics and distortion on the keyboard sounds on tracks like ‘The Lord of The Dwarves’ and ‘The Road to Hel’ is a great juxtaposition to the more mellow ambient sounds.
There is an undeniable maturity to this album compared to earlier ambient works. Think of Mortiis and where he went with ‘The Stargate’ compared to his earlier works. It’s that sort of jump. Is it welcome? Well, yes. Ironically, considering this wasn’t music that was planned it sounds quite rounded in both composition and recording. There are some vocals by Varg on the album. The vocals remind me of Ragnarok UK - it’s kind of shaky but, because of this, it really gives a folky edge. I mean this in the best of ways (for both Burzum and Ragnarok UK). We get the first vocals on track 10, ‘The Great Sleep’, with more on 14, ‘Heill Óðinn, Sire’. There are also some spoken sections like on ‘The Land of Thulê’ and ‘A Forgotten Realm’, and the more I listened to the album the more I started to hear the broad range of tracks.
I think the physical release is split over two discs / vinyls of music but I’ve only got the download so it is all of 23 tracks. I do get the feeling you have to listen to it all as a full album rather than individual tracks. Ultimately, it works really well as a mood in the background and I think this was the desired effect, but as a complete feeling album I’m not too sure. But I’m not going to knock it too much on that account. If I want an ambient album to listen to I must admit it probably wouldn’t be my first choice, but I appreciate this wasn’t its original job. It did inspire me to dust down my own keyboards and have a play, though, so I’ve upped my original score of 7 to 8 as there was obviously something inspiring in it that made me want to be creative.
LABEL:
FORMAT:
Byelobog Productions
Album
THULÊAN MYSTERIES
Review by Paul Sims
RUNNING TIME:
92:22
RELEASE DATE:
6th March 2020
TRACK LISTING
1) The Sacred Well; 2) The Loss of a Hero; 3) ForeBears; 4) A Thulêan Perspective; 5) Gathering of Herbs; 6) Heill auk Sæll; 7) Jötunnheimr; 8) Spell-Lake Forest; 9) The Ettin Stone Heart; 10) The Great Sleep; 11) The Land of Thulê; 12) The Lord of the Dwarves; 13) A Forgotten Realm; 14) Heill Óðinn, Sire; 15) The Ruins of Dwarfmount; 16) The Road to Hel; 17) Thulêan Sorceryl; 18) Descent into Niflheimr; 19) Skin Traveller; 20) The Dream Land; 21) Thulêan Mysteries; 22) The Password; 23) The Loss of Thulê
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:
Norway
"You have to like morphing keyboard textures and soundscapes to like this album as that’s what you’ll get. It’s an easy listen which can almost bypass you but, with more time, you start to find the depths."
