Burzum – Belus (2010)

April 7, 2015

Burzum’s comeback record effectively split his fanbase in half. Many called out for the lost ferocity of old, yet equally he was praised for his progressive approach to rebirthing the project (heading in a more folky and mature direction). Personally, I don’t see what the problem is – the metal re-recording of “Belus Doed” from Daudi Baldrs sounds like it could have fallen off the arse end of Filosofem, give or take the shitty drum machine. “Glemselens Elv” is a majestic 11 minuter of beautiful hypnosis; the way the guitars just lap over each other like waves caressing distant shores is truly fantastic. Yes, it’s a bit repetitive, but I love Swans, so that’s not a problem!

The real problem for Burzum I think started with the follow up album, Fallen, which is basically a tired re-hashing of Belus. As far as shocking comebacks go (GUT takes the fucking cake for me, personally), I think Burzum could have done a lot worse than Belus. People ragging on the lost sounds of old need to realise that this man has been in prison for 16 years, and has started a small family. He is not the same angry fucked up youngster he was when Burzum began in 1991. The biggest downside is the enormously lazy drum programming. But the riffs are spot on; khold, grimm and frvstbittvn as fvvkkk, svvvn. \m/