Mayhem & Burzum - Mayhem Versus Burzum [split] (2010) PROMO

 

 M A Y H E M

Founded by Jørn Stubberud (Necrobutcher), and Kjetil (Manheim) under the name Musta (Finnish for "black"), which they changed to Mayhem after Øystein Aarseth (Euronymous) joined in. The band name is taken from the Venom song, "Mayhem with Mercy".
During the early years, the band used either session vocalists Messiah or Maniac for live/studio commitments, and played either instrumentally, or with Necrobutcher or Euronymous on vocals during rehearsals.

By late 1987 both Manheim and Maniac had left the band, their positions were filled temporarily by members of Vomit, before vocalist Dead, and drummer Hellhammer took over in 1988.

B U R Z U M

In 1991, when Satanel disbanded, Vikernes revived his solo project, changing the name to Burzum (which translates to "darkness" in J.R.R. Tolkien's Black Speech, which is spoken by orcs and other creatures of Mordor). Handling all instruments and vocals by himself, he recorded Burzum's first four full-length albums in a span of just over one year. In addition to all that, he joined Mayhem on bass, as well.

Mayhem: Demos 85-87

A1. Mayhem
A2. Ghoul
A3. Pure Fucking Armageddon    
A4. Carnage
A5. Black Metal (Total Death Version)
A6. Ghoul
A7. Voice Of A Tortured Skull (Int)
    

Burzum: Rare Tracks

B1. A Lost And Forgotten Sad Spirit (Unreleased Version)
B2. My Key To Purgatory (Rough Mix Of "Key To The Gate")
B3. Lost Wisdom (Rough Mix)

 

Label: Not On Label.

 Unofficial Release.

 Written on label, both sides: "For Promotional Use Only". 

 

Burzum - Burzum / Aske [Comp] (1995) Reissue [2008]

Burzum is a music project that began in 1991 by the Norwegian musician and writer Varg Vikernes. It became a part of the early Norwegian black metal scene and is considered to be one of the most influential acts in black metal.

Vikernes began making music in 1988, but it was not until 1991 that he recorded his first demos as Burzum. The word "burzum" means "darkness" in the Black Speech, a fictional language crafted by Lord of the Rings writer J. R. R. Tolkien. Vikernes recorded the first four Burzum albums between January 1992 and March 1993. However, the releases were spread out, with many months between the recording and the release of each album.

In May 1994, Vikernes was sentenced to 21 years in prison for the murder of Mayhem guitarist Øystein "Euronymous" Aarseth and the arson of three churches. While imprisoned, Vikernes recorded two dark ambient albums using only synthesizers, as he did not have access to drums, guitar or bass. Since his release from prison in 2009, he has recorded several more albums. Although Vikernes is known for his political views, he does not use Burzum to promote those views, and his lyrics are non-political.

Varg Vikernes began making music in 1988 with the band Kalashnikov. The following year, the name was changed to Uruk-Hai, after the creatures from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. In 1990 and 1991, Vikernes played guitar for the death metal band Old Funeral, which also consisted of members who would later form the band Immortal. He appears on the Old Funeral EP Devoured Carcass. Vikernes left Old Funeral in 1991 to concentrate on creating his own musical visions. He had a short lived project called Satanel, along Abbath Doom Occulta. He then began a solo project under the name Burzum. The word "burzum" means "darkness" in the Black Speech, a language crafted by Tolkien. Soon after recording two demo tapes, he became part of the Norwegian black metal scene. With his demo tapes, he had attracted attention from Øystein "Euronymous" Aarseth of Mayhem, who had just recently formed Deathlike Silence Productions. Aarseth then signed Burzum to the label, and shortly after, Vikernes (under the pseudonym of Count Grishnackh), began to record Burzum’s self-titled debut album. According to Vikernes' autobiography on his website, he had intended to record the album in the worst recording quality possible (due to this being a typical trademark of the early Norwegian black metal scene), while still making it sound acceptable. Burzum's eponymous debut album was released in 1992, being the second album released on Deathlike Silence Productions. The song "War" from this album had a guest appearance from Euronymous, playing a guitar solo "just for fun", according to Vikernes.

Vikernes has stated that he had never played any live shows with Burzum, though at one point was interested in it, so Samoth of Emperor joined the band as their bassist, though only appearing on the Aske EP. Additionally, Erik Lancelot was hired to be the band's drummer, though did not record on any Burzum material, and along with Samoth did not play a live show. Vikernes had by then lost his interest in playing live concerts, and stated that he "didn't even need session musicians anymore". Therefore, Samoth and Lancelot had parted ways with Burzum. Det som engang var was released as Burzum's second album in 1993, recorded in 1992.

15 May 1994 saw the release of Hvis lyset tar oss, a new album of previously recorded material from 1992. Burzum remained as a solo project until 1994, when Vikernes was arrested for the murder of Euronymous and the burnings of several churches in Norway. During his time in prison, Vikernes released his next album, titled Filosofem, on 1 January 1996. Recorded in March 1993, Filosofem was the last recording Vikernes made before his imprisonment. Burzum / Aske, a compilation comprising the Burzum album and Aske EP, was released in 1995. While imprisoned, Vikernes managed to record two other albums in a dark ambient style. They were released as Dauði Baldrs (1997) and Hliðskjálf (1999).

In 1998, all Burzum albums released up to that point were re-released as vinyl picture discs in a special box set called 1992–1997; however the Filosofem album didn't contain "Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte" due to its length. The regular vinyl issue of Filosofem on Misanthropy had tracks 1–4 plus "Decrepitude II" on side 1 and "Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte" on side 2.

Soon after being released, Vikernes started writing new tracks (nine metal tracks and an ambient intro and outro) for an upcoming Burzum album. According to Vikernes' recounts, several record companies were interested in releasing his first album in eleven years. He stated about the new album, "I want to take my time, and make it the way I want it. It will be metal, and the fans can expect genuine Burzum."

The album was going to be originally titled Den hvite guden ("The White God"), but he later decided to change it to Belus, which was released by Byelobog Productions (byelobog is the transliteration of "белобог" in Slavic languages, meaning "white god") on 8 March 2010. It was also announced that a movie would be released in 2010, based on Varg Vikernes' life in the early 1990s. The movie would mainly draw inspiration from the book Lords of Chaos, with the film being of the same name. Vikernes expressed his contempt towards both the movie and the book upon which it is based.
A second new album of original Burzum material, Fallen, was released on 7 March 2011, followed by a compilation album, From the Depths of Darkness, containing re-recordings of tracks from Burzum's self-titled album and Det som engang var, on 28 November 2011. A third new studio album of original material, titled Umskiptar, was released in May 2012. Sôl austan, Mâni vestan ("East of the Sun, West of the Moon"), Burzum's first electronic album since 1999, was released in May 2013. On April 27, 2013, a song was posted on the official YouTube channel of Vikernes, titled "Back to the Shadows." In a blog post, Vikernes stated that "Back to the Shadows" will be the last metal track released by Burzum.
The album ''The Ways of Yore'' was released on June 2, 2014.

Burzum's music features characteristics common in black metal, including distorted, tremolo-picked guitar riffs, and harsh vocals. Earlier Burzum albums feature very low production quality, which has improved in albums created after Vikernes' release from prison. Burzum's early music shows heavy Tolkien influence; for example, Vikernes' early moniker "Count Grishnackh" is taken from an orc character called Grishnákh in Tolkien's works. The choice of the name for the project reflects both this influence and the desire for anonymity: Burzum is a word of the Black Speech of Mordor meaning "darkness" (though Vikernes views what Christians consider "darkness" as "light"), and is one of those found on the Ring-inscription of the One Ring (the final part of the Ring inscription being "...agh burzum-ishi krimpatul", or "...and in the darkness bind them").
Musically, Burzum has progressed from black metal to classical-influenced ambient music characterised by minimalist tendencies and dark atmospheres. Vikernes' music is characterised by hypnotic repetition and simple song structures; this trademark sound has been present on Burzum's black metal and electronic albums alike. Vikernes has described Burzum as a kind of "spell" or recreation of an imaginary world tied in with Pagan history. Each album, he claims, was designed as a kind of "spell" in itself, with each beginning song intending to make the listener more susceptible to "magic", the following songs to inspire a "trance-like state of mind", and the last song to carry the listener into a "world of fantasy" (dreams, for the listener would fall asleep-Burzum was supposed to have been evening music). Vikernes claims the intent to create this fantasy world came from dissatisfaction with the real world. He has stated the "message" of Burzum can be found in the lyrics of the first song of the first album ("Feeble Screams from Forests Unknown").

-Tracklist:

A1 Feeble Screams From Forests Unknown     7:28
A2 Ea, Lord Of The Depths     4:51
A3 Spell Of Destruction     5:39
B1 Channelling The Power Of Souls Into A New God  3:26
B2 War     2:30
B3 The Crying Orc     0:57
C1 My Journey To The Stars     8:10
C2 Dungeons Of Darkness     4:52
D1 Stemmen Fra Taarnet     6:09
D2 Dominus Sathanas     3:01
D3 A Lost Forgotten Sad Spirit     11:09

-Line up:

  • Varg Vikernes:  All instruments, vocal.

Label: Back On Black.

Released in a gatefold jacket.
Recorded in Grieghallen Lydstudio, January (Burzum) and August (Aske) 1992 a.y.s.p.
Tracks 1-8: recorded in Grieghallen (Bergen, Norway), January 1992 during the full moon.
Track 10: recorded in Grieghallen, April 1992.
Tracks 9, 11: recorded in Grieghallen, September 1992.
All tracks published by Amazonian Music Publishing (UK).

Under license from Misanthropy Records. Cymophane Productions.

Back on Black is a division of Let Them Eat Vinyl Ltd.

Fantoft Stave Church, Norway.

Burzum - Filosofem (1996) Reissue [2008]

Varg Vikernes recorded the first four Burzum albums between January 1992 and March 1993 at the Grieg Hall in Bergen. However, the releases were spread out, with many months between the recording and the release of each album. During this time, Vikernes became a part of the early Norwegian black metal scene and met Mayhem guitarist Euronymous. He also allegedly took part in burning down four churches, along with other members of the scene. In August 1993, Vikernes stabbed Euronymous to death outside his apartment in Oslo. He was arrested a few days later and, in May 1994, was sentenced to 21 years in prison for both the murder and the church arson.
The opening track on Filosofem, "Burzum", was the first song Vikernes wrote as Burzum. It had been recorded in September 1992 for the Hvis lyset tar oss album, but Vikernes was unhappy with it and re-recorded it for this album six months later. According to a statement made by Vikernes on burzum.org, the master tapes for the version of "Burzum" meant for Hvis lyset tar oss were lost by the Norwegian prison system.
The album was recorded under purposefully bad conditions in order to retain a raw lo-fi sound. No guitar amplifier was used; instead Vikernes plugged his guitar into the amplifier of his brother's stereo and used old fuzz pedals. For the vocals, he asked a sound technician for the worst microphone he had, and ended up using an old helicopter headset.

The music of Filosofem continued Vikernes' experimentation with minimalism, repetition, and ambient music within black metal. The tracks are all quite long (the shortest being just over seven minutes), and are typically composed around very few musical motifs. For instance, "Jesu død", a track of over eight-and-a-half minutes, is primarily based around variations of a single riff. The epic "Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte", Burzum's longest ambient song to date, repeats a simple melody for nearly the entirety of the runtime, switching from a bass ostinato to a harmony ostinato midway through the piece. Furthermore, the first three songs are in the key of E minor.
"Burzum", the opening track, features a prominent melody played by a synthesizer that sits atop the distorted guitars and vocals. The two "Decrepitude" tracks compliment each other, with ".i." featuring vocals and keeping the guitars in the foreground; while ".ii." is instrumental and instead focuses on the sound effects and keyboard melody in the background of ".i.".
The album cover and booklet contain artwork by Theodor Kittelsen. The front cover is named Op under Fjeldet toner en Lur (Norwegian for "Up in the Hills a Clarion Call rings out").

2 × Vinyl, Reissue, Gatefold.

-Tracklist:

Disc 1

Side A:
1.  Burzum     07:05
2.  Jesu Død   08:39

Side B:
3.  Beholding the Daughters of the Firmament     07:53
4.  Decrepitude I     07:53
         
Disc 2

Side A:
1.  Rundtgåing av den Transcendentale Egenhetens Støtte     25:11 

Side B:
2.  Decrepitude II     07:52

 

-Line up:

  • Varg Vikernes: All instruments, vocals, lyrics 

 

 

Label: Back On Black.

Recorded at Breidablik Studio in March 1993 (actually recorded by Pytten in Grieghallen, but this fact was not credited until the Byelobog Productions 2010 reissue).

Here is the German tracklisting as printed:

1. Dunkelheit

2. Jesus' Tod

3. Erblicket die Töchter des Firmaments

4. Gebrechlichkeit I

5. Rundgang um die transzendentale Säule der Singularität

6. Gebrechlichkeit II

However, contrary to popular belief, the more accurate tracklisting is the "Norwegian version", in which the Norwegian-titled tracks have Norwegian lyrics and the English-titled tracks have English lyrics. This is the version found on the back of the booklet, and the version that Varg considers to be correct, as reflected in an interview:

"The "Filosofem" ("Philosofem")* album: this album contains the first real Burzum track, titled "Dunkelheit" on the album (but the real title of the track is "Burzum". "Dunkelheit" is just the German translation of "Burzum"), that I originally wanted to include on the Hvis lyset tar oss album (but the recording was very poor, so I didn't use it). I changed the name to Burzum from Uruk-Hai when I made this song (I think in August 1991). The album is a bit weird, and far from perfect, but it is okay. Unfortunately, this is the album that sounds the most like the new Burzum music."

* correct English should be "Philosopheme".

"Burzum" (meaning "darkness") is a word from the black speech of Mordor, a language created by J.R.R. Tolkien.

The album cover and booklet contain extensive artwork by Theodor Kittelsen. The front cover is titled 'Op Under Fjeldet Toner en Lur' (Norwegian for 'Up in the Hills a Clarion Call Rings Out'), which features a woman playing a birch trumpet.

"Rundgang um die transzendentale Säule der Singularität" is one of the songs on the Gummo soundtrack (as an edit).