Hlidhskjalf (reissue)

VINYL FORMAT. In old Norse mythology, Hlidskjalf was the high seat of Odin (chief God in Norse mythology), which enabled him to see into all worlds. It's strange that the most recent (and perhaps final) Burzum album was named this, seeing as how his last album was named Daudi Baldrs, meaning in English "Death of Baldr". Also rooted in Norse mythology, it is said that Hlidskjalf was used by Odin to find Loki (the Norse God of Fire) after he had fled from the scene where he murdered Baldr. A connection maybe? The only person who would know this for sure would be the mastermind of Burzum, Varg Vikernes. What is unfolding before us, in Burzum's new ambient-driven style, could be a rough tale of Norse mythology, seeing as Vikernes no longer writes songs in English or even contributes vocals to the albums. Varg now spends his time in a lonely prison cell with a keyboard and a computer, meaning that Burzum is only a mere fraction of what it used to be.

The music is so far out there, so monumentally different from anything Burzum has done besides Daudi Baldrs. No, there aren't any guitars. No, there aren't any vocals. No, there isn't any bass. All we have here are electronic effects and a keyboard. It's technically not even Black Metal at all, going so far as to not even being classified as metal, the only shred of Black Metal you would find on this entire album is the name Burzum. What is created here is a very dark and brooding form of ambient, showing the dismal and bleak atmosphere that Burzum portrayed so well in earlier offerings. Most of this album can be compared to the track "Tomhet" of the classic Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, with a very slow pace and not much technicality in the music at all.

With Hlidskjalf, Burzum shows a drastic improvement over Daudi Baldrs, but still falls very far short of what Burzum has put out in the past. Varg Vikernes is a better songwriter than this, maybe if he had access to normal instruments this album would be much different, but this is the Burzum that is most likely here to stay. To call this Black Metal would be an outright lie, but to call it ambient would be much more fitting. A great album to relax to, an even better album to fall asleep to, Hlidskjalf is a great portrayal of the dark, lonely world that Burzum will dwell in, forevermore. – Sputnik Music