# Early Burzum riffs, explained by Varg himself (video)



## Robrecht (Aug 26, 2014)

Disclaimer: as we all know, this man did some very deplorable things and promotes some very questionable convictions, and it's hard for me not to think of that while watching him. Nonetheless, I still love his first couple of albums. This is him playing through and explaining some of those songs.





I love how he explains he wrote two-part harmonies by playing one part and humming the other one over it. Even with all the affordable and easy to use multitracking equipment we have now that wasn't available in those days, that's still my favourite way of sketching out and exploring different guitar parts.


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## Don Vito (Aug 26, 2014)

Never thought I'd see this. Wish he was playing through an amp though.


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## Alimination (Aug 27, 2014)

Dat papyrus font....


I actually kind of dig the videos. Interesting.


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## Pat_tct (Aug 27, 2014)

thought it was interesting. as low-fi as you can get i think.


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## Pweaks (Aug 27, 2014)

These videos are great. I kinda wish he would release an acoustic Burzum album.


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## OmegaSlayer (Aug 27, 2014)

And there's still someone that doesn't consider this man a genious in the art he creates.


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## Edika (Aug 27, 2014)

A Peavey PXD for 30 Euros in LIDL? Is this another of Vargs bullshit?

EDIT: If not which LIDL ?


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## WiseSplinter (Aug 27, 2014)

Terrible music really, and such production values!


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## PlumbTheDerps (Aug 27, 2014)

Some of those riffs are actually pretty melodically interesting. Not the most complex, but really cool nonetheless.


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## Floppystrings (Aug 27, 2014)

The way Varg played kind of defined the eeriness of black metal.

And never playing live, the way the songs are played has always been a mystery.


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## Don Vito (Aug 27, 2014)

WiseSplinter said:


> Terrible music really, and such production values!


I honestly think Burzum has good production, save for the first album and the Aske EP. Filisofem and Belus in particular sound huge. I think most people are thrown off by the guitar sound, and equate that to bad production, when in fact, it's a conscious choice for the music.

I wish there was a good quality upload of the song _"Morgenroede" _ on Youtube, because this is exactly what I'm talking about.

And the videos in the thread are probably better without an amp since you can hear the individual notes better. That fretbuzz is killing me though


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## Robrecht (Aug 27, 2014)

Don Vito said:


> And the videos in the thread are probably better without an amp since you can hear the individual notes better.



I agree. Although what, he "doesn't own an amp" now?  Is this some kind of ultra-advanced post-post-black-metal attitude I haven't heard of yet?

I just realized something. Varg Vikernes is the original hipster.


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## simonXsludge (Aug 27, 2014)

OmegaSlayer said:


> And there's still someone that doesn't consider this man a genious in the art he creates.


I think his very questionable views and actions defeat the genius part, which - frankly - doesn't seem so genius to me. If not rather pretty bad at times.

He's certainly not enough of a genius to tune a guitar.


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## Necris (Aug 27, 2014)

Still waiting for the claims of his musical genius to be backed up.


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## UnderTheSign (Aug 27, 2014)

I miss the days when Varg simply rejected his black metal past and said it was all over.


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## Thorerges (Aug 27, 2014)

Never thought highly of his 'genius'. A few standout tracks and cool stuff, but his highly questionable and frankly, quite stupid opinions put me off his music.


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## monkeysuncle (Aug 27, 2014)

"Notice how I use all six strings!"


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## Veldar (Aug 27, 2014)

The guy maybe he a racist asshole (trust me, I go off at people for being racist)
but I would never think to play all 6 strings like that.


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## Zalbu (Aug 27, 2014)

He's obviously a dipshit but some of his music is pretty decent and he almost comes off as a reasonable person in this. I've always wondered how he makes a living, though. Playing a 30 euro guitar without an amp, doesn't play live, travels in and out of jail and has to pay a bunch of fines for being a racist asshat... He's gotta be living on unemployment benefits or something?


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## Nile (Aug 27, 2014)

I found that pretty cool and realized I use pretty similar techniques as him without having listened to his music.


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## Necris (Aug 27, 2014)

He's either receiving welfare and has some small amount of income from royalties from his music/books/documentaries, provided said royalties aren't going straight to what he owes the Norwegian government for to pay for the damages caused by his arsons, or he's subsisting on whatever income his wife brings in (or both are on welfare). 

He admitted in an interview in 2009 that he has no income.


Dagbladet said:


> The total reconstruction cost of the churches was at the time estimated at 45 million. Insurance requirement for Vikernes was 19 million, but he says he has never paid any of it. He owes the city of Oslo 23 million after the burning of Holmenkollen chapel. He said several times in recent years, he has received a letter to pay several million dollars on short notice.
> 
> _&#8212; I have zero in income and will never be able to repay what I owe. The only way out is bankruptcy. Then I can perhaps earn my own money in five years._



Go master race, go!


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## Sofos (Aug 27, 2014)

Don Vito said:


> Filisofem (...) in particular sound huge.



I remember reading somewhere that to record Filosofem, he went to the local electronics store and asked for "The worst microphone they had". They sold him one of those crappy little microphone/headset combos from the early 90s and he used that to record the album.


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## monkeysuncle (Aug 27, 2014)

So he goes from just a few years ago calling black metal "rooted in n-word music", to re-recording old material for an album, now Burzum live!? Damn yo Varg for king of master race 2016!!!


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## JoeyW (Aug 27, 2014)

I'm always super interested in Black Metal "Stuff" but the music is something I've never understood. I don't understand the argument that the "Vibe" is what's important since that sorta contradicts music to me. I DO understand that others do enjoy it, I just don't.

That all being said I think Varg is a tool and he sucks at guitar. Hilarious how he kinda goes off on tangents while trying to explain the parts- "Nobody recommends doing it that way, probably because you can't make money off it" whaaaat a douche


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## Veldar (Aug 27, 2014)

JoeyW said:


> I don't understand the argument that the "Vibe" is what's important since that sorta contradicts music to me.



I disagree, music is all about creating a vibe, the old school black metal is meant to sound like your stuck in a Norwegian forest fighting for survival.


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## Les (Aug 27, 2014)

I'm not going to comment on the man himself, his actions, or even his "philosophy"...

I just find it interesting to hear the what the guitar was actually doing during those tracks, because on the album, you sure as hell can't tell. But hey, Black Metal, right?


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## kamello (Aug 27, 2014)

Sofos said:


> I remember reading somewhere that to record Filosofem, he went to the local electronics store and asked for "The worst microphone they had". They sold him one of those crappy little microphone/headset combos from the early 90s and he used that to record the album.




 oh god!


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## ilyti (Aug 27, 2014)

That made my day. Like many others, I too had a Burzum phase 10 years ago. It's hilarious to watch every train wreck he gets himself into. Truly spectacular.

And lets be honest, we all use various pieces of furniture as amps from time to time. My first amp was a bookcase. I still can't quite nail his oak table tone though. I'll have to wait for Line6 to make a patch of that.

Btw, it deserves mentioning that he bought his guitar at Aldi. That's like the K-Mart of Europe. Ever played a K-Mart guitar? No wonder it has fretbuzz even with dat FLAWLESS picking hand and dexterity.

...okay, one more thing. Who freaking edited this?! It seems like he's about to start talking and then it cuts. He knows he did a bad job, and yet he posts it. Is that self-deprecating hipsterism?


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## Floppystrings (Aug 28, 2014)

ilyti said:


> ...okay, one more thing. Who freaking edited this?! It seems like he's about to start talking and then it cuts. He knows he did a bad job, and yet he posts it. Is that self-deprecating hipsterism?



He said he hasn't picked up a guitar in two years in this video, and I believe him.

He was probably tired from hunting animals with spears in full armor.


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## Sofos (Aug 28, 2014)

kamello said:


> oh god!



Here it is from Wikipedia (I remember reading it in Lords of Chaos as well)

"The album was recorded under purposefully bad conditions. No guitar amplifier was used; Vikernes plugged his guitar into the amplifier of his brother's stereo and used an old fuzz pedal.[3] For the vocals, he asked a sound technician for the worst microphone he had, and ended up using a headset"


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## Antiproduct (Aug 28, 2014)

You guys can read? He is not using a 30&#8364; guitar from Lidl (in the vid) because it sounds (obviously) like shit. He says that the 30&#8364; guitar is an acoustic guitar he wanted to use but decided against.
That he has no amp makes me curious, he used to have a 6505 but he maybe sold it to be able to get some food or something like that.

I honestly think that this is one of the funniest vids ever because I didn't expect to see something like this ever from this man. It has purely comedy aspects (font, way he describes his sound and how he doesn't care at all) and a reason more to believe that he would be actually to be a cool guy to hang out with if he hadn't all this weird vision of jews and socialists in Europe 
The whole thing with putting these videos up is just to earn some money imho. Things like that goes viral pretty fast and some people eventually will buy his records. I think thats the reason why he showed the old tracks and none of the new. Also to promote their channel.
Which is so weird because he never seemed like he would ever go public outsite his website. Not so easy to have kids and no money I guess.

It's cool to see this though because I like his music and ever wondered how created his wall of sound. Some of his views are still very questionable and this videos show once mroe that you should never trust his words haha


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## Emperor Guillotine (Aug 28, 2014)

I've never listened to Burzum, and despite Varg's well-known history.....I always thought he was this total creeper freak of an old man.....this video (hearing him talk and completely NOT explain shit at all) actually makes him appear human and to have somewhat of a sense of humor because it is so terrible.

F--king weird.


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## Floppystrings (Aug 28, 2014)

Varg has always had a bit of a charming personality.

So did Ted Bundy.


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## simonXsludge (Aug 28, 2014)

JoeyW said:


> I don't understand the argument that the "Vibe" is what's important since that sorta contradicts music to me. I DO understand that others do enjoy it, I just don't.


To me, the vibe of music is among the most important things. But one doesn't have to use the shittiest of shitty productions to create a vibe. If the music isn't capable of creating a vibe, even with a more solid production, then it might just have none to begin with.

Varg is simply the proto hipster (besides all the other shit), that's why he used all of that junk to make exceptionally bad recordings.


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## Thorerges (Aug 28, 2014)

Its very ironic that degenerates living on welfare like him are actually in favor of white supremacy.


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## jephjacques (Aug 28, 2014)

Varg is a shithead of the highest order, don't watch his videos, don't give him any attention, let him die alone, unrespected, and unloved


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## Emperor Guillotine (Aug 28, 2014)

simonXsludge said:


> Varg is simply the proto hipster (besides all the other shit), that's why he used all of that junk to make exceptionally bad recordings.


^ This.  All these frickin' indie-garage-blues-hipsters where I live try to make their shit sound lo-fi...and it is so stupid and annoying considering we live in a world where the highest production and engineering quality is preferred and appreciated. Darn hipsters, man...


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## Robrecht (Aug 28, 2014)

Thorerges said:


> Its very ironic that degenerates living on welfare like him are actually in favor of white supremacy.


This. So often the case, never ceases to amaze or amuse.



jephjacques said:


> Varg is a shithead of the highest order, don't watch his videos, don't give him any attention, let him die alone, unrespected, and unloved


And this, kind of. Part of me wants to agree (he's a shitheat allright), even though I started this thread. Silence can be the strongest form of opposition. That kind of ties in with something I love about the QC universe, by the way: instead of wasting time arguing with bigots you simply show us a world where tolerance is the norm. You simply set the example (shifting the burden of persuasion to the real world: really, why aren't we more like QC?).

On the other hand, I'm kind of partial to the idea that not talking about things allows them to fester, and that there's inherent value in discourse. There's discussion and intelligent disagreement in this thread, just like I have come to expect from SSO, as well as a consensus about the basic fact that his intolerant views are fundamentally wrong. True, we're giving him attention (and views on his YouTube channel, which I'm uncomfortable with), but that's not the same as endorsing his ideas.

Whether we keep silent about him or not, I have no doubt that there are discussions to be found on the internet where his views are parroted without criticism. This thread can serve as a counterbalance to those discussions for some kid googling him who doesn't know any better.

Anyway. Sorry for going off on a tangent, I'm really just thinking out loud here.


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## Necris (Aug 28, 2014)

JoeyW said:


> I'm always super interested in Black Metal "Stuff" but the music is something I've never understood. I don't understand the argument that the "Vibe" is what's important since that sorta contradicts music to me. I DO understand that others do enjoy it, I just don't.
> 
> That all being said I think Varg is a tool and he sucks at guitar. Hilarious how he kinda goes off on tangents while trying to explain the parts- "Nobody recommends doing it that way, probably because you can't make money off it" whaaaat a douche



"Nobody recommends you to do it that way, probably because there is no way for them to make money on you doing it like that..."

Really, I'm surprised you _didn't _know that in the early 90's one of the cornerstones of the global Jewish conspiracy was to find a complete nobody in Norway who would start an obscure band in a fledgeling genre of music and tell said person how to write their music so that they could make money off of it. Varg knew even then.


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## Xaios (Aug 28, 2014)

"I have no real amp, so I just use the table as amp..."

I imagine this is how a lot of black metal was recorded.


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## UnderTheSign (Aug 28, 2014)

ilyti said:


> Btw, it deserves mentioning that he bought his guitar at Aldi. That's like the K-Mart of Europe. Ever played a K-Mart guitar? No wonder it has fretbuzz even with dat FLAWLESS picking hand and dexterity.


So apparently, true Aryans who don't support capitalism still shop at Aldi (while living off of welfare!)



monkeysuncle said:


> So he goes from just a few years ago calling black metal "rooted in n-word music", to re-recording old material for an album, now Burzum live!? Damn yo Varg for king of master race 2016!!!


Welcome to Varg 101. Just do a full 180 on everything you said 3 years ago.


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## Grand Moff Tim (Aug 28, 2014)

After all these years schlepping Mesas all over the world, James Hetfield could've just been using himself as an amp the whole time. Bet he feels like a real chump.


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## The Mirror (Aug 28, 2014)

That was weird and at the same time entertaining as hell...

I'm just sitting here having read 2 hours about Burzum, Varg and the NSBM Scene. 

I'm fascinated and simultaniously disgusted by that guy. A few hours ago I knew nothing about Black Metal (well, nothing but the fact that I can't stand listening to it) so... thanks for the videos. I had an interesting evening.


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## octatoan (Aug 28, 2014)

^ Yeah. I've done that kind of research for whole evenings and then scratched my head asking myself what I was doing with my life.


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## Xaios (Aug 28, 2014)




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## ilyti (Aug 29, 2014)

Grand Moff Tim said:


> After all these years schlepping Mesas all over the world, James Hetfield could've just been using himself as an amp the whole time. Bet he feels like a real chump.


Dude... it's all coming together. "Mesa" is "table" is Spanish. Hetfield has been playing the table all along!!!


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## abandonist (Aug 29, 2014)

I think Varg is great.


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## 7stg (Aug 29, 2014)

monkeysuncle said:


> So he goes from just a few years ago calling black metal "rooted in n-word music", to re-recording old material for an album, now Burzum live!? Damn yo Varg for king of master race 2016!!!






Necris said:


> "Nobody recommends you to do it that way, probably because there is no way for them to make money on you doing it like that..."
> 
> Really, I'm surprised you _didn't _know that in the early 90's one of the cornerstones of the global Jewish conspiracy was to find a complete nobody in Norway who would start an obscure band in a fledgeling genre of music and tell said person how to write their music so that they could make money off of it. Varg knew even then.



&#8220;He is a hero&#8221;: Why the KKK is raising money for Ferguson police officer who shot Michael Brown - Salon.com


> willing to put Jewish controlled black thugs in their place.



This explains so much. So, the Jews control everything and secretly conspire with black people who take their marching orders from the Jews all conspiring to destroy the white race. This somehow brought about black metal. Also, Michael Brown was caught in this cabal which is why he had to die...

It all makes so much sense.


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## Grand Moff Tim (Aug 29, 2014)

ilyti said:


> Dude... it's all coming together. "Mesa" is "table" is Spanish. Hetfield has been playing the table all along!!!




Yo soy la mesa...

...Boogie.


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## Gothic Headhunter (Aug 29, 2014)

abandonist said:


> I think Varg is great.



You're either very good at sarcasm or very bad at contex


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## Grand Moff Tim (Aug 29, 2014)

Gothic Headhunter said:


> You're either very good at sarcasm or very bad at contex



Which are you bad at, spelling or proofreading?


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## Gothic Headhunter (Aug 29, 2014)

Proofreading


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## Defi (Aug 29, 2014)

Meh, the world isn't a happy place and some people have views that differ from mine. Doesn't stop me from enjoying their music. It's not like their views are transplanted when you listen to it, you take what you want to from it, let it inspire you. That's art, no?

And I definitely did enjoy burzum, jesus dod is my favorite track by them. I think filosofielmsplegm whatever, is a great album. This was interesting.

It is weird to think while I'm watching this how it seems like something he would not be into, and that he is a murderer.


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## Vhyle (Aug 29, 2014)

We all know how much of a raging assbag he is. But these videos were interesting nonetheless. I wonder what prompted him to do this.

Also, I've never used a table as an amp.


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## Andromalia (Aug 29, 2014)

Never got into Burzum and not really understanding it. It sounds bad, and 20 years after people are swooning because he tremolo picks ALL SIX STRINGS OMG. 
I can understand not having a big recording budget but recording badly on purpose just defeats me.


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## Chemical-Pony (Aug 29, 2014)

Aren't people into him _because _he's a murderer and burnt down churches? As if the notoriety gives some kind of authenticity to his material. If he was just a regular guy would anyone have heard of him and would anyone care that he can 'use all six strings'.


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## Aescyr (Aug 30, 2014)

I saw these videos last week sometime, he wrote some of the best black metal of the 90s and thankfully most of it is completely removed from his political views.

I've read a lot of his blog over the years and a couple of his books out of curiousity. He does construct his arguments quite well and even comes across as being very intelligent. He's just... you know... wrong. 

Putting aside some of this extreme views he does seem like he could be a pretty cool person to talk to. He definitely has a deep knowledge of history and culture.


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## Necris (Aug 30, 2014)

Knowledge of his own revisionist history that supports his belief in the superiority of the white race and his own warped view of culture, maybe. Actual history and culture, no.

Vargs views have less in common with reality than dog shit has in common with chocolate. The only reason he comes across as intelligent is because he and his ideas are rarely, if ever, challenged; in interviews or otherwise. Seeing him react to those rare moments where his idiocy is acknowledged and recognized for what it is never fails to be a treat; without fail he becomes a petulant child ranting about how "they know I'm right, they're just afraid to admit it", most recently I saw it when he learned his hypothesis that whites are an entirely separate species from blacks and asians was dismissed as bullshit.


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## AndruwX (Aug 30, 2014)

Oh c'mon guys, don't be so hard on him.
He's jus too cute.


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## Floppystrings (Aug 30, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> Aren't people into him _because _he's a murderer and burnt down churches?



No, unfortunately Burzum was kind of good, if the music totally sucked no one would give a crap, and it would be easily ignored. 

I am sure there are a lot of people that just listen to the first album, and don't get it. The quality was horrible, it wasn't the controlled kind of bad you hear on Filosofem.

Here is a short history lesson on Burzum's music, here the worst quality (listen to those uneven bass drums, absolutely horrible) :



Here is later Burzum that was more refined (Fuzz pedal into a stereo, cheapest mic etc.) :



And here is some music re-recorded properly, revisiting the "mid era" :



Now, I could totally see someone hating Varg as a person, most Burzum fans do, but when it comes to the music, sadly, some of it is pretty original, creative and hard to pass off as total crap.

I think we can agree about that the majority of people that listen to Burzum don't approve of the crazy shit he says or approve of stabbing someone to death.

The Sex Pistols wore swastikas, Eric Clapton went on a racist rant once, Roger Waters might hate Jews... Music is full of asshats.


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## warhead (Aug 30, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> Aren't people into him _because _he's a murderer and burnt down churches? As if the notoriety gives some kind of authenticity to his material. If he was just a regular guy would anyone have heard of him and would anyone care that he can 'use all six strings'.



Actually, yeah.......I would like Burzum a lot even if he was just a regular guy. I was listening to this music even before I knew all the bullshit that happened in Norway.........


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## Deep Blue (Aug 30, 2014)

I think you guys are putting too much emphasis on the "all six strings" thing. He wasn't claiming to be an amazing guitarist because of it, he was saying that because most people that cover the song only use two or three strings on the riff.

I greatly dislike the guy as a human being, but as far as black metal goes he wrote some top-tier music.


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## ilyti (Aug 30, 2014)

Floppystrings said:


> Roger Waters might hate Jews...


This strikes me as both probable and amusing, but I wont rush to judgement. What is this based on?


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## Chemical-Pony (Aug 30, 2014)

ilyti said:


> This strikes me as both probable and amusing, but I wont rush to judgement. What is this based on?



He's a vocal critic of the actions of the Israeli government, which isn't the same thing as hating Jews. But it's not a topic I want to get drawn into on a music discussion board.


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## Chemical-Pony (Aug 30, 2014)

Floppystrings said:


> Here is a short history lesson on Burzum's music, here the worst quality (listen to those uneven bass drums, absolutely horrible)



Thanks for the videos. The first one was apalling; I couldn't find anything of merit in there at all. The second was a bit better, though still I found it kind of repetitive. I don't really understand the reasoning behind having deliberately terrible sound quality. The last one was more interesting for sure, but not something I'd choose to listen to. As it's not my genre I don't really know how his contemporaries match up in terms of orginality.


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## Floppystrings (Aug 30, 2014)

ilyti said:


> This strikes me as both probable and amusing, but I wont rush to judgement. What is this based on?



You can read about it on wiki.

I used it as the last example because it's the most silly to me, Pink Floyd is so mellow the idea of Roger Waters having to explain himself is weird.


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## Darknut (Aug 30, 2014)

love it, varg is awesome


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## Rotatous (Aug 30, 2014)

I don't necessarily find Varg's views or things he says offensive in the slightest. I can think of many more things to be offended by in this world, not one single man's view - his views will not change my perception of his music.

That being said, its pretty clear Varg isn't computer savvy. So what? I like Filosofem, but as far as Burzum and black metal in general goes thats about all I've been able to get into.


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## Zalbu (Aug 30, 2014)

Rotatous said:


> I don't necessarily find Varg's views or things he says offensive in the slightest. I can think of many more things to be offended by in this world, not one single man's view - his views will not change my perception of his music.


Really? Not even the whole "murdering people" part?


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## Rotatous (Aug 30, 2014)

Zalbu said:


> Really? Not even the whole "murdering people" part?



No, not really. Thats not a comment on my own views, and I'm not saying by any stretch of the imagination that I share his views. I'm just saying that when I listen to his music, that I really don't care, and that I really don't have to perceive his opinions through it.

I can't say Im really into Burzum anyways though


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## abandonist (Aug 30, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> Aren't people into him _because _he's a murderer and burnt down churches?.



Partially, yes. If your music is about darkness and evil, and you've lived the life, you have more credibility to talk about it. I find nearly all lyrics laughable because they have nothing to do with how the person actually is.


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## Chemical-Pony (Aug 30, 2014)

abandonist said:


> Partially, yes. If your music is about darkness and evil, and you've lived the life, you have more credibility to talk about it.



You say that like it's a good thing, which is what I find disturbing. But at least you're honest about it.


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## Kwert (Aug 31, 2014)

Andromalia said:


> Never got into Burzum and not really understanding it. It sounds bad, and 20 years after people are swooning because he tremolo picks ALL SIX STRINGS OMG.
> I can understand not having a big recording budget but recording badly on purpose just defeats me.





Because that's the aesthetic. Black Metal is largely about creating a particular type of atmosphere, often something very abrasive, suffocating and isolating. While minimalist production may have started from a place of DIY, low budget recording, it quickly incorporated itself into the overall aesthetic of what black metal is.

While people may not like Varg (or even Burzum), he's still one of the pioneers of the genre and his music was hugely influential on what was to come afterwards.


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## abandonist (Aug 31, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> You say that like it's a good thing, which is what I find disturbing. But at least you're honest about it.



It is a good thing.


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## gorthul (Aug 31, 2014)

Am I the only one who tried to play guitar while the guitar touches a table after watching those videos ?


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## abandonist (Sep 1, 2014)

I used a wall as a kid.


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## AndruwX (Sep 1, 2014)

I don't want to get into a polemic discussion...
But it is said that Varg killed Eronymous in self-defense (or paranoia maybe)

What do you guys think?


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## Mprinsje (Sep 1, 2014)

AndruwX said:


> I don't want to get into a polemic discussion...
> But it is said that Varg killed Eronymous in self-defense (or paranoia maybe)
> 
> What do you guys think?



He is the only one to tell (and know), and so far (haven't really looked into it though,) no one who could know has claimed otherwise.

he has given a pretty detailed account about what happened and i think it's pretty believable.


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## AndruwX (Sep 1, 2014)

Mprinsje said:


> He is the only one to tell (and know), and so far (haven't really looked into it though,) no one who could know has claimed otherwise.
> 
> he has given a pretty detailed account about what happened and i think it's pretty believable.



I was reading a lot about blacl metal bands back then and man, those people were pretty ....ed up in the head. That inner circle shit give me the creeps. I mean I am not exactly the most christian guy in the world, but seriousyl... I did know that Varg burned some churches, but 22? God damn, talk about picky.


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## jvms (Sep 1, 2014)

AndruwX said:


> I was reading a lot about blacl metal bands back then and man, those people were pretty ....ed up in the head. That inner circle shit give me the creeps. I mean I am not exactly the most christian guy in the world, but seriousyl... I did know that Varg burned some churches, but 22? God damn, talk about picky.



Read about the Scandinavian Christianization. It was ....ing traumatic, and that's why people there don't usually like Christianism. Christians killed and raped his ancestors and destroyed his country's culture and religion. He wasn't an asshole or a punk ....ing up churches, he was just fighting against a corrupt and hypocritical organization who ....ed up his people. Not saying it's right or wrong, I have my own opinions about it, but I'm just telling you why he was doing it.


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## Chemical-Pony (Sep 1, 2014)

jvms said:


> Read about the Scandinavian Christianization. It was ....ing traumatic, and that's why people there don't usually like Christianism. Christians killed and raped his ancestors and destroyed his country's culture and religion. He wasn't an asshole or a punk ....ing up churches, he was just fighting against a corrupt and hypocritical organization who ....ed up his people. Not saying it's right or wrong, I have my own opinions about it, but I'm just telling you why he was doing it.



Absolute crap.

Scandanavia's been Christian for about 1000 years now. No-one has any kind of connection to pre-Christian pagans, so don't give me rubbish about 'his people'.

I'm not a Christian either but there's no excuse for burning down churches.


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## ilyti (Sep 1, 2014)

I'm from Denmark and most neo-pagans there are very reasonable, kind and open minded people. They certainly were not the type to burn churches, and they largely embraced these ancient beliefs, not out of rage against Christendom, but out of an emotional attachment to the (fairly romanticized) past. Save a few big butch biker types who wear Thor's hammers because they look cool. And that too is very unlike what the black metal scene was going for. They were just misanthropic cynical teenagers.

Oh and also none of them are going to Valhalla because they don't die in battle. (Except maybe Euronymus? Does that count as battle?) Either way it's a sausage fest. No women allowed. 

Most people in Scandinavia either don't care one way or the other about the church, or they dislike the church because of its present involvement in politics/media and whatnot. It has nothing to do with what happened 1000 years ago.


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## abandonist (Sep 1, 2014)

Why is everyone so goddamn soft these days?


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## Zalbu (Sep 1, 2014)

abandonist said:


> Why is everyone so goddamn soft these days?


Not wanting to support a racist batshit murderer isn't being "soft", it's having a properly calibrated moral compass.



Chemical-Pony said:


> Absolute crap.
> 
> Scandanavia's been Christian for about 1000 years now. No-one has any kind of connection to pre-Christian pagans, so don't give me rubbish about 'his people'.
> 
> I'm not a Christian either but there's no excuse for burning down churches.


Well, Varg did say that he had heathen motivations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varg_Vikernes#Arson_of_churches


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## AndruwX (Sep 2, 2014)

Well, Varg is indeed a very intelligent person...


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## jvms (Sep 2, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> Absolute crap.
> 
> Scandanavia's been Christian for about 1000 years now. No-one has any kind of connection to pre-Christian pagans, so don't give me rubbish about 'his people'.
> 
> I'm not a Christian either but there's no excuse for burning down churches.



I'm not giving you rubbish or crap, I'm telling you his motivations. You could look it up and actually read interviews about it before posting about it, don't you think?


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## fps (Sep 2, 2014)

jvms said:


> Read about the Scandinavian Christianization. It was ....ing traumatic, and that's why people there don't usually like Christianism. Christians killed and raped his ancestors and destroyed his country's culture and religion. He wasn't an asshole or a punk ....ing up churches, he was just fighting against a corrupt and hypocritical organization who ....ed up his people. Not saying it's right or wrong, I have my own opinions about it, but I'm just telling you why he was doing it.



Absolute rubbish. His people, haha.


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## Chemical-Pony (Sep 2, 2014)

jvms said:


> I'm not giving you rubbish or crap, I'm telling you his motivations. You could look it up and actually read interviews about it before posting about it, don't you think?



Well lets see. I'm really unhappy about what the Vikings did to 'my people'. All that raping and pillaging. So I think I'll burn down a few branches of Ikea. That can be my revenge and right some of the wrongs of the past. At the very least I can burn some ABBA CDs. And what about those nasty Romans as well? They did awful things to 'my people'. I thought I could burn some Italian restaurants to the ground. That'll show them.

And then I ought to committ some murder as well. Then people will really take me seriously, and I'll be really cool. Then I can give interviews and talk about my motivations, and everyone will think I'm really deep and intelligent.


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## abandonist (Sep 2, 2014)

Brother, it sounds like you have a plan!


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## Defi (Sep 2, 2014)

On the people who don't understand the bad production:

Do you listen to metal? With screaming/growling, etc? You think that's supposed to sound good and pleasing? When you first heard it did it make you uncomfortable and then grow on you?

It's not for everyone, but it's pretty easy to see the artistic merit of the approach. If you listen to Agalloch none of their stuff sounds like btbam, or whatever other super compressed metalcore band these days does, but god damn does it lend itself perfectly to the atmosphere they create. Oops, atmosphere and metal don't belong together, right. Burzum was not meant to be a band of riffs (... irony of that being posted in a thread started to show him playing his riffs), they are about atmosphere. I know metal, especially on a guitar forum... well, metal in general is very guitar oriented. This is where black metal differs. The standard black metal musician could not care a damn less about sweep picking or tapping or how clean they play. It's not to say they have no talent, they just focus more on the music, the feeling, the atmosphere, the message, the inspiration that stuff (or just rip off '90-'93 norwegians). It paints a picture. Riffing metal just sounds cool but it doesn't inspire the imagination or provoke thought. My two cents.

edit: another reason varg was respected was because he played every instrument on his albums, and mostly did everything in one take. to him that was very important.

I think the music world would be a shitload more interesting if everyone mixed and produced their own shit. Dogmas and idioms would fade and originality would succeed, and lazy bands would give up. There is a degree of ignorance to this statement but the gist is there.



On the people not understanding Varg's motivations for crimes:

It wasn't JUST that the people did those things 1000s years ago, it's that to him the ideologies they set in place at that time are STILL poisoning the earth. man doesn't like christianity, feels like he needs to fight it, opts for poetic justice. I don't blame him, I don't like religion either (GRAINS OF SALT FOR EVERYONE). But he went about it the wrong way. Burn a church down and they will blame it on their opposer, rebuild it and be stronger about their faith (and you end up in jail)... Being all assholy like Richard Dawkins isn't going to work either... Temptation is the key 

blanket statement: just playing devil's advocate here. sorta.


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## Jarmake (Sep 2, 2014)

This reminded me how great song EA, lord of the depths (it's also spot on about the gaming company... They're the real lords of the depths.) is. I really like it. Just like "war" and such golden classics. I don't care about Varg or his views on anything, but there's something about burzum that tickles my fancy and I don't even like black metal usually.


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## Deep Blue (Sep 2, 2014)

Anyone that doesn't "get" Burzum or black metal should put Hvis lyset tarr oss on while driving down empty back roads at night. Forget about all your preconceived opinions of Varg and black metal in general. If you don't feel _something_ from this experience then I reckon black metal is just not for you (which is totally fine).


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## Defi (Sep 2, 2014)

Deep Blue said:


> Anyone that doesn't "get" Burzum or black metal should put Hvis lyset tarr oss on while driving down empty back roads at night. Forget about all your preconceived opinions of Varg and black metal in general. If you don't feel _something_ from this experience then I reckon black metal is just not for you (which is totally fine).


exactly. or go to a nice spot in the woods where you can see the stars and pop in the headphones and listen to "Rundgang Um Die Tranzendentale Saule Der Singularitat" (had to copy paste that one). That track is not "black metal", but it is burzum. And if it doesn't make you feel like you're a part of something (some people might think for example... they're in a movie), then ya, varg's art is lost on you. 

this thread has actually reignited my love for that album.


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## BucketheadRules (Sep 2, 2014)

AndruwX said:


> I don't want to get into a polemic discussion...
> But it is said that Varg killed Eronymous in self-defense (or paranoia maybe)
> 
> What do you guys think?



Wouldn't surprise me. Varg is a piece of shit, but Euronymous was apparently much worse. Varg's life may well have been in danger from him.


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## Chemical-Pony (Sep 2, 2014)

It seems to me that Norwegian black metal is the only genre of metal where image and the notoriety of the artist is more important than the actual music itself, which for the most part is fairly terrible.

No one would have heard of these bands or cared about them if it wasn't for church burnings and murder hitting the news. If you don't have the talent to become famous by making good music then become infamous. Instead of just looking vaguely comical by standing in a forest wearing corpse paint, just prove that you really ARE evil so now 'credible' and see your popularity skyrocket. Then suddenly people start taking you and your opinions seriously no matter how ridiculous they might be. In that respect black metal is very similar to gangsta rap: it's all about 'keeping it real'.


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## Defi (Sep 2, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> It seems to me that Norwegian black metal is the only genre of metal where image and the notoriety of the artist is more important than the actual music itself, which for the most part is fairly terrible.
> 
> No one would have heard of these bands or cared about them if it wasn't for church burnings and murder hitting the news. If you don't have the talent to become famous by making good music then become infamous. Instead of just looking vaguely comical by standing in a forest wearing corpse paint, just prove that you really ARE evil so now 'credible' and see your popularity skyrocket. Then suddenly people start taking you and your opinions seriously no matter how ridiculous they might be. In that respect black metal is very similar to gangsta rap: it's all about 'keeping it real'.



What you're saying is any fan of black metal has been woefully wooed by the acts of a select few in the genre over 20 years ago?


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## drmosh (Sep 3, 2014)

abandonist said:


> Why is everyone so goddamn soft these days?



soft because we dislike a racists, murdering prick like Varg?
You're so full of shit


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## simonXsludge (Sep 3, 2014)

Mprinsje said:


> he has given a pretty detailed account about what happened and i think it's pretty believable.


He has given about 10 quite different versions of what happened. Which one do you believe now?! There used to be a blog that compared all of his statements regarding the murder and it was ridiculous how many times Varg turned around and told a different story of what _really_ happened. Such a believable person.




abandonist said:


> Why is everyone so goddamn soft these days?


Oh come on now...


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## Mprinsje (Sep 3, 2014)

simonXsludge said:


> He has given about 10 quite different versions of what happened. Which one do you believe now?! There used to be a blog that compared all of his statements regarding the murder and it was ridiculous how many times Varg turned around and told a different story of what _really_ happened. Such a believable person.



I do not read everything related to Varg, i've read one or two things where he pretty much tells the same story.

Excuse me for not reading every fart Varg puts up in the internet


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## JoshuaVonFlash (Sep 3, 2014)

drmosh said:


> soft because we dislike a racists, murdering prick like Varg?
> You're so full of shit


While I agree with what you said, abandonist is just trolling.


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## Mik3D23 (Sep 3, 2014)

AndruwX said:


> I don't want to get into a polemic discussion...
> But it is said that Varg killed Eronymous in self-defense (or paranoia maybe)
> 
> What do you guys think?




23 Stabwounds; 16 in the back. No amount of Varg's bullshit would make me think that was self defense.


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## Andromalia (Sep 3, 2014)

Kwert said:


> Because that's the aesthetic. Black Metal is largely about creating a particular type of atmosphere, often something very abrasive, suffocating and isolating. While minimalist production may have started from a place of DIY, low budget recording, it quickly incorporated itself into the overall aesthetic of what black metal is.



There is a difference between minimalist and crap. I do like a lot of black metal, I do know about the minimalistic thing, but it mostly sounds as an excuse to skip the hard work for me. 
This is simple, cheap AND sounds good: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW6h0lhXW3Q

I'm not saying they all should sound like Behemoth, just that "artisanal" doesn't mean that it should sound bad.


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## simonXsludge (Sep 3, 2014)

Mprinsje said:


> Excuse me for not reading every fart Varg puts up in the internet


You are excused. 

I'm just saying, before attesting this very questionable person to make believable statements about something so serious, it wouldn't hurt to do a little more research.


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## abandonist (Sep 3, 2014)

Chemical-Pony said:


> It seems to me that Norwegian black metal is the only genre of metal where image and the notoriety of the artist is more important than the actual music itself, which for the most part is fairly terrible.
> 
> No one would have heard of these bands or cared about them if it wasn't for church burnings and murder hitting the news. If you don't have the talent to become famous by making good music then become infamous. Instead of just looking vaguely comical by standing in a forest wearing corpse paint, just prove that you really ARE evil so now 'credible' and see your popularity skyrocket. Then suddenly people start taking you and your opinions seriously no matter how ridiculous they might be. In that respect black metal is very similar to gangsta rap: it's all about 'keeping it real'.



U mad?


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## Chemical-Pony (Sep 4, 2014)

abandonist said:


> U mad?



You're the one who told me that Varg being an arsonist and a murderer was a good thing.


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## Mprinsje (Sep 4, 2014)

simonXsludge said:


> You are excused.
> 
> I'm just saying, before attesting this very questionable person to make believable statements about something so serious, it wouldn't hurt to do a little more research.



Oh i certainly don't question him being very questionable (lol) and killing someone, in self defense or not is always a very wrong thing to do.


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## Defi (Sep 4, 2014)

I think killing in self defense is pretty damn acceptable, if you don't want to get killed don't go around trying to kill people. Whether or not that was the case for varg i dunno.


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## AndruwX (Sep 5, 2014)

Defi said:


> I think killing in self defense is pretty damn acceptable, if you don't want to get killed don't go around trying to kill people. Whether or not that was the case for varg i dunno.



Did Eronymous ever killed someone?


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## abandonist (Sep 5, 2014)

JoshuaVonFlash said:


> While I agree with what you said, abandonist is just trolling.



Can it be both?


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## JoshuaVonFlash (Sep 5, 2014)

abandonist said:


> Can it be both?


We can't always have it all Bandy.


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## Don Vito (Sep 5, 2014)

Floppystrings said:


> Now, I could totally see someone hating Varg as a person, most Burzum fans do, but when it comes to the music, sadly, some of it is pretty original, creative and hard to pass off as total crap.
> 
> I think we can agree about that the majority of people that listen to Burzum don't approve of the crazy shit he says or approve of stabbing someone to death.


I go in and out of listening to Burzum. I do like the music, a lot, but I'm a soft boiled guy, and I get uncomfortable every time I think about him stabbing Euronymous to death. Even if it was somehow in self defense, it was the poorest example of self defense I have ever heard. Why would you go to some guy's house at 2 AM to tell him off, when you think he's going to torture you to death? I don't think Varg is stupid like everybody else thinks, but come on. When it comes to his racial opinions, I'm also a very iffy, because I never had many(if any) white friends growing up, due to not being able to catch a football. So I feel like I'm letting all of my black and hispanic friends down somehow. So now I'm in Burzum "off" mode. I start listening to Burzum again when I'm in a mindset of "its just music". I should also mention that when I started listening to Burzum, I had no idea who Varg even was. I got into black metal during the late 00's on Youtube(Call of the Wintermoon anyone?) I was led to the song Dunkelheit through a sidebar of related songs and videos. I didn't understand what I was hearing at the time, but I loved it because it was so daring and different compared to what I was into at the time. I will always have unbiased nostalgia for the Filisofem album, and songs like Key to the Gate and Det Som En Gang Var. And while the lyrics don't have anything to do with it, Burzum also tickles my Tolkien nostalgia, so there's that. I didn't find out until later in a Guitar World interview(which I subscribed to at the time), that he was in jail for something. I did go through my edgelord phase of thinking black metal was cool and evil, and that the best bands were the ones who killed others and themselves(naturally, Dissection was also important to me at the time, and they had good songs to back), but those days are looooooooooong behind me. And I should mention that I'm writing this long winded post as a means to explain myself further. I desperately do NOT want to come off as NECROFVKKKER xX666Xx anymore(my avatar might be giving off this signal as well).

Interview with Varg Vikernes (the Guitar World interview I was talking about earlier)

All that being said, I like the new musical direction he has taken, honestly. I just can't decide if it feels right to listen to. Sometimes I hope that Burzum will one day become a distant memory, as I don't like having these debates to myself over deciding whether or not I should listen to a song or an album. Simultaneously, this is also where my pro-Burzum thinking kicks in. 



Sofos said:


> I remember reading somewhere that to record Filosofem, he went to the local electronics store and asked for "The worst microphone they had". They sold him one of those crappy little microphone/headset combos from the early 90s and he used that to record the album.


And it has the best vocals of all his albums in my opinion.


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## Defi (Sep 5, 2014)

AndruwX said:


> Did Eronymous ever killed someone?





Defi said:


> I think killing in self defense is pretty damn acceptable, if you don't want to get killed don't go around *trying* *[plotting, whatever]* to kill people. *Whether or not that was the case for varg i dunno.*



I dunno.



Don Vito said:


> And it has the best vocals of all his albums in my opinion.



Exactly, so many groups put filters or EQ the shit out of the vocals to get them to sound like varg did...

Dudes should listen to some leviathan or funeral mist if you want an idea of black metal vocals recently in comparison, no doubt with them the discomfort intention is high.


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