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Burzum


jnurp

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3 hours ago, Thrashman said:

In terms of why Burzum has been so influential:

1. Great music. I'm not into black metal, but those early Burzum albums were something really special.

2. Cult of personality. Whatever awful shit Varg is saying or doing, he still manages to be quite captivating.

3. Underdog syndrome. As mentioned above, Varg has done some bad things. But at the same time, he's consistently been painted in what could be considered an unfair light - he was given the maximum sentence for murder, but by most accounts there was at least an element of self-defense involved; he was branded a satanist for being anti-christian; he was branded a terrorist for being racist and owning weapons...

Alright, let's go there. 

Firstly, Varg was imprisoned in a country with one of the most progressive justice systems in the world. The reason he got the maximum sentence was because he didn't just murder someone in cold blood (and I'll examine this in a minute), he was discovered with weapons and explosives (!) in his home and was also convicted for the burning of Fantoft Church, an 800 year old national treasure. This guy was totally unhinged and was a total threat to society. On top of that he was completely unrepentant for his crimes. 

As for the "element of self-defense involved", you have to be kidding, Thrashy. Varg turns up at Euronymous's apartment at 2am in the morning, knocks on the door, Euro opens it and is standing there in his underwear and Varg let's loose, chases him down the stairwell and stabs him dozens of times in the back including once through the skull. Then he and the coward Snorre Ruch get back in the car and drive home to Bergen. 

It was completely premeditated, with their lame "returning videos" and "atm card" alibis coming completely unstuck by even the most pedestrian of police work. Then once Euro was dead and unable to defend his reputation, Varg goes on about how he thought Euro was planning on killing him so he got in first. The guy is totally insane. Put all this together and that's why he got the maximum sentence in Norway, the softest place in the world for jail time. 

And now he's been out of prison for years and is living the life he wants to lead, putting out albums, raising a family, while Euronymous is gone forever. It's a real tragedy. 

I still really love Burzum's music, but let's not call his treatment "unfair". 

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It took me a long time to get into Burzum. I loved his vocals, but I usually go for more complex music. "Aske" used to be the only one I enjoyed, but I finally started warming up to the other pre-prison stuff (especially "Filosofem") by listening to it while I was painting. That's pretty much the only time I put any Burzum on, it's not stuff I'd listen to in the car or around the house, but something about the dark, contemplative atmosphere is perfect for me when I'm making art. I have yet to get anything out of the keyboard or post-prison BM albums.

It also took me some time to come to terms with listening to music made by a murdering racist nut job. The "mystique" factor does nothing for me. I feel like it's overall a good thing to be able to separate the artist from the art, and I don't think enjoyment of music needs a moral justification, but I do understand the perspective of people who won't listen to the music because of his actions and views.

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First and foremost, I'm a fan of his music, and psychologically, individuals like Varg are interesting to me. Likewise, Hellhammer's utter indifference to Euronymous' murder as well as other events that shaped the black metal world is also interesting to me. I've never been bothered by Varg's politics or views because it's not important to me. There many bands whom I disagree with politically or otherwise. There are many companies and people that I cannot agree with, that espouse beliefs and put them into practice having greater impact upon the world than one man with some words and a few ideas. It's incredibly odd to me that people these days are bothered moreso by words than actions; people seem to be more offended by his beliefs than the fact that he killed someone. 

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10 hours ago, Thrashman said:

The first album I heard was Burzum/Aske, in '95, when a friend bought it and played it to me. The first cut is often the deepest, and that might be my number one.

Hvis Lyset Tar Oss would probably be number two, not least because I could sit and stare at the cover all day long.

At the number three spot... Filosofem came to me second, in '96. I was writing for fanzines at the time, and was sent the CD for review. Dunkelheit in particular blew me away, and I actually ended up interviewing Varg:

Burzum_Interview.jpg

Det Som Engang Var would be next, another classic.

Then Belus, which I think is an excellent album in spite of all the looping.

I'm not really familiar enough with the others to rank them, but it would probably go something like:

6. Umskiptar

7. Fallen

8. Sôl Austan, Mâni Vestan

9. Hliðskjálf

10. The Ways of Yore

11. Dauði Baldrs

You like The Ways of Yore over Dauði Baldrs?  I like Varg's dungeon synth stuff, but have yet to really get into his new stuff.

1 hour ago, FatherAlabaster said:

It took me a long time to get into Burzum. I loved his vocals, but I usually go for more complex music. "Aske" used to be the only one I enjoyed, but I finally started warming up to the other pre-prison stuff (especially "Filosofem") by listening to it while I was painting. That's pretty much the only time I put any Burzum on, it's not stuff I'd listen to in the car or around the house, but something about the dark, contemplative atmosphere is perfect for me when I'm making art. I have yet to get anything out of the keyboard or post-prison BM albums.

It also took me some time to come to terms with listening to music made by a murdering racist nut job. The "mystique" factor does nothing for me. I feel like it's overall a good thing to be able to separate the artist from the art, and I don't think enjoyment of music needs a moral justification, but I do understand the perspective of people who won't listen to the music because of his actions and views.

The simplicity of Burzum is actually something that I really like.  It made the writing of music seem more doable to me.  Beyond that, it is really cool that Varg was able to achieve the atmosphere that he did, despite the structural simplicity of his songs.  I like to listen to Burzem while painting too.

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On 8/19/2017 at 7:50 PM, Balor said:

You like The Ways of Yore over Dauði Baldrs?  I like Varg's dungeon synth stuff, but have yet to really get into his new stuff.

Yore right actually (see what I did there?)

Seriously though, I'm now thinking perhaps it would be:

6. Hliðskjálf
7. Sôl Austan, Mâni Vestan
8. Dauði Baldrs
9. Umskiptar
10. Fallen
11. The Ways of Yore

Hard to rank Burzum albums, it would seem.

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4 hours ago, Vampyrique said:

First and foremost, I'm a fan of his music, and psychologically, individuals like Varg are interesting to me. Likewise, Hellhammer's utter indifference to Euronymous' murder as well as other events that shaped the black metal world is also interesting to me. I've never been bothered by Varg's politics or views because it's not important to me. There many bands whom I disagree with politically or otherwise. There are many companies and people that I cannot agree with, that espouse beliefs and put them into practice having greater impact upon the world than one man with some words and a few ideas. It's incredibly odd to me that people these days are bothered moreso by words than actions; people seem to be more offended by his beliefs than the fact that he killed someone. 

I feel like I'm stalking you but I assure you this isn't the case. 

I've noticed this phenomenon too, particularly on the internet regarding Varg the racist vs Varg the murderer. It's almost as if murder is kind of a fantastical event, whereas racism is an uncomfortable reality that resonates more easily with us? I don't know. 

I recommend reading Metalion's Slayer Mag Diaries - the autobiographical portions - to get a sense of how Metalion really regrets his own response to Euronymous's death and how he recognises the damage this has done to him psychologically. Same with Necrobutcher but to a slightly lesser extent. Metalion is really articulate about how he and the others should have taken it more seriously, because they lacked a lot of closure regarding his loss and it's really only as they get older that they realise how significantly it's affected them. It's a great read, check it out. Same with Dead's suicide - for instance Necro was the only member to go to his funeral. 

 

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16 minutes ago, Requiem said:

I feel like I'm stalking you but I assure you this isn't the case. 

I've noticed this phenomenon too, particularly on the internet regarding Varg the racist vs Varg the murderer. It's almost as if murder is kind of a fantastical event, whereas racism is an uncomfortable reality that resonates more easily with us? I don't know. 

I recommend reading Metalion's Slayer Mag Diaries - the autobiographical portions - to get a sense of how Metalion really regrets his own response to Euronymous's death and how he recognises the damage this has done to him psychologically. Same with Necrobutcher but to a slightly lesser extent. Metalion is really articulate about how he and the others should have taken it more seriously, because they lacked a lot of closure regarding his loss and it's really only as they get older that they realise how significantly it's affected them. It's a great read, check it out. Same with Dead's suicide - for instance Necro was the only member to go to his funeral. 

 

Look up the youtube documentary on Mayhem (I think it is called "On the Road with Mayhem" or something).  It focused entirely on Necrobutcher, and discussed his response to Dead's suicide in depth.  It was really interesting.

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10 hours ago, Requiem said:

As for the "element of self-defense involved", you have to be kidding, Thrashy. Varg turns up at Euronymous's apartment at 2am in the morning, knocks on the door, Euro opens it and is standing there in his underwear and Varg let's loose, chases him down the stairwell and stabs him dozens of times in the back including once through the skull. Then he and the coward Snorre Ruch get back in the car and drive home to Bergen. 

It was completely premeditated, with their lame "returning videos" and "atm card" alibis coming completely unstuck by even the most pedestrian of police work. Then once Euro was dead and unable to defend his reputation, Varg goes on about how he thought Euro was planning on killing him so he got in first. The guy is totally insane. Put all this together and that's why he got the maximum sentence in Norway, the softest place in the world for jail time.

It probably would have set a bad precedent to let "premeditated self-defense" stand up in court.

I don't believe Varg was seriously trying to cover up what he'd done though, he knew he was going away. I think he and Euro both could have just walked away from the situation in regards to the friction between them. But that's just an opinion on a personal matter between them, so I don't know. Varg's an intelligent guy and he thrives on controversy. I think he understands this well and also manufactures a lot of it now. "All press is good press." Because of that, I think it's a mistake to demonize him. I don't agree with his views, but I don't feel like I have to in order to listen to his music.

 

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46 minutes ago, Requiem said:

I feel like I'm stalking you but I assure you this isn't the case. 

I've noticed this phenomenon too, particularly on the internet regarding Varg the racist vs Varg the murderer. It's almost as if murder is kind of a fantastical event, whereas racism is an uncomfortable reality that resonates more easily with us? I don't know. 

I recommend reading Metalion's Slayer Mag Diaries - the autobiographical portions - to get a sense of how Metalion really regrets his own response to Euronymous's death and how he recognises the damage this has done to him psychologically. Same with Necrobutcher but to a slightly lesser extent. Metalion is really articulate about how he and the others should have taken it more seriously, because they lacked a lot of closure regarding his loss and it's really only as they get older that they realise how significantly it's affected them. It's a great read, check it out. Same with Dead's suicide - for instance Necro was the only member to go to his funeral. 

 

I don't mind the occasional stalker. They possess a level of loyalty and companionship that one cannot simply buy! 

But I agree, you would think too that more people would care that Euronymous was killed, being an iconic and influential figure, but whilst he is praised so is his killer, even more so, and in a very sensationalized manner.  

Personally, I think anyone should be allowed to engage in a philosophical debate no matter what their views are. I would argue that discomfort over an issue is a sign that discussion needs to be had. Intellectual discourse between spokespersons of particular beliefs should be encouraged rather than censored. If Varg’s perspective, or anyone else’s, is flawed then the argument will fall flat and likely end in self detonation.  

It’s so amusing to me how so many metalheads are fine with the idea of burning churches and incessant Christian bashing and will go to great lengths to justify it but simultaneously vehemently argue against all other forms of discrimination. The level of cognitive dissonance is astounding but I’m aware that there is a correlation between political views and personality type and this affects behaviour greatly and I'm convinced that this is a major factor. 

I own The Slayer Mag Diaries and on occasion peruse through it. It's a great archive of old interviews. The autobiographical portions were actually my favourite part. He seems like a genuine person. 

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On 20/08/2017 at 9:45 AM, morbidspectre said:

It probably would have set a bad precedent to let "premeditated self-defense" stand up in court.

I don't believe Varg was seriously trying to cover up what he'd done though, he knew he was going away. I think he and Euro both could have just walked away from the situation in regards to the friction between them. But that's just an opinion on a personal matter between them, so I don't know. Varg's an intelligent guy and he thrives on controversy. I think he understands this well and also manufactures a lot of it now. "All press is good press." Because of that, I think it's a mistake to demonize him. I don't agree with his views, but I don't feel like I have to in order to listen to his music.

 

Turning up to court with his long hair braided and wearing metal shirts after his arrest does suggest that even in what should have been his darkest hour he was still getting a buzz from the attention. He's a very odd chap, that's for sure. 

 

On 20/08/2017 at 10:12 AM, Vampyrique said:

 

I own The Slayer Mag Diaries and on occasion peruse through it. It's a great archive of old interviews. The autobiographical portions were actually my favourite part. He seems like a genuine person. 

It's just a fabulous book. What a remarkable historical document those old Slayer mags are, and his autobiographical portions offer not just an intriguing insight into the scene , but are also really touching in a human sense. 

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