I can’t add anything to the subject of the cult metal icon Count Grishnackh that hasn’t been said before - the man is a certifiable legend far beyond the limited scope of the black metal scene not only for his extraordinary music, but also for his reclamative pagan warrior ethos and a handful of notoriously nefarious deeds - well, depending on whose side you’re on I guess - including various Norwegian Christian church burnings and the murder of fellow black metal icon Euronymous.
Varg Vikernes, the man behind Burzum started out in ’91 making true cult black metal - grim, brutal, bleak, suffocating - all the usual terms to describe the best artists. After his arrest in 1993 for the murder of Mayhem’s Euronymous he continued to make music from prison but replaced his harsh black metal sound for a sort of primeval pagan new age music that was meditative and gentle and yet strangely foreboding and deeply unsettling. Casios have never sounded so powerful and majestic.
Despite what you might think of the man and his actions, there’s no denying the quality of the music. Anthology proves that in one concise 9-track album that spans both the early black metal days and the Odinist new age years. Vikernes received 21 years in the killing of Euronymous but is up for parole in 2008. Whether or not he’ll see his parole is up for question as there was a successful escape from prison not too long back... When he does get out one thing is certain - black metal fans will be very curious to see what direction Vikernes pursues both musically and personally. In the meantime old fans may find this Anthology a great look back at one of the finest artists in the scene and those new to Burzum can find in Anthology an excellent introduction to one of the cornerstones of the cold, grim, brutal and bleak world of true cult black metal.
