Review by Ben for Burzum - Anthology (2008)

A nice overview I guess, but Anthology is not a best of, nor does it contain anything of value for long term fans.

There are several Burzum compilations out there and I’m not certain any of them are legitimate. If any of them should be considered official however, it would have to be this one. Released on Candlelight Records in 2008, it’s the only one that doesn’t contain any bogus tracks (ie. not actually by Burzum), and also the first one not to have originated as a bootleg. This doesn’t remove all confusion from the equation however, as there is plenty surrounding this particular release. Firstly, it often goes by the name Lord of Darkness, despite not mentioning the words on the cover, which is made more confusing by the fact that there’s a separate bootleg compilation that’s been floating around since 2005 with the same name. That bootleg contains the same tracks (with a couple added to the start) as another compilation that came out in 2002, which just so happens to also be called Anthology. Still with me?! In the end, this Candlelight compilation is by far the most professionally produced, having only legitimate Burzum tracks running in correct chronological (release-wise anyway) order with decent packaging. The only questions remaining are: does the compilation give the listener a good overview of Burzum, and does Anthology have anything to offer long term fans?

The answer to that first question is probably going to come down to personal taste more than anything else, but personally I don’t think Anthology quite gets it right when it comes to track selection. Starting from the top, Feeble Screams from Forests Unknown might seem an obvious choice, given that it was the opening track from the debut self titled album, but there are far better tracks on that release. Spell of Destruction, A Lost Forgotten Sad Spirit or even A Journey to the Stars would have been more representative of that album, but it’s far from the worst decision you could make. No real complaints about second track Stemmen fra tårnet, as it’s the logical choice off the Aske EP, yet the two selections from Det Som Engang Var are strange to say the least. Lost Wisdom is a decent track that settles in after a strangely rocking opening, but the inclusion of Svarte troner, which is basically a two minute ambient outro is odd to say the least. It might give first time listeners the chance to experience the ambient side of Burzum, but considering the focus given to that aspect later on the compilation, and the fact that the compiler ignored great tracks such as En ring til å Herske and Snu mikrokosmos tegn, it’s a bit underwhelming.

Hvis Lyset Tar Oss is perfectly represented by the classic Det Som En Gang Var, which is my vote for greatest black metal track in the history of the universe, and while the two selections from Filosofem would not be the ones I would have made, they are perfectly acceptable. The exclusion of the brilliant Dunkelheit can be excused for the simple reason that it appears as a bonus video on the compilation, so doubling up would be pointless. I do have to question why they would choose Gebrechlichkeit II though, as it’s basically a broken down version of Gebrechlichkeit I, which is a more effective example of the ambient black metal found on that album. It really doesn’t make much difference which track was chosen from Dauði Baldrs as they’re all of a similar low quality, but I guess Bálferð Baldrs is a good choice given its an ambient recreation of Jesus' Tod which appeared two tracks earlier. Probably the biggest gripe I have with Anthology is the use of the brain bashing Ansuzgardaraiwô off Hliðskjálf, and would have preferred to see Der Tod Wuotans or Einfühlungsvermögen, but I’m not sure many Burzum fans would be too fussed, given their general disdain towards Varg’s ambient releases.

It should be apparent by now that I don’t think Anthology is a great representation of the magnificent music released under the Burzum moniker. It does however successfully display the development of sound that Varg undertook from the early days through to his imprisonment, which I guess is what inexperienced listeners would find the most value in. I believe the real purpose of Anthology is to introduce Burzum to an American audience, since no Burzum albums have been released in the country to date, but I’d just hope that anyone checking it out would not assume that this is the best that Burzum has to offer, as it is far from that. To answer the second question I raised earlier regarding long term fans, well there is simply nothing here to tempt them into tracking Anthology down. There are no new, unreleased or rare tracks to be found, so I see no reason to recommend it to anyone that already owns the full length albums. It would have become so much more interesting and valuable if they’d included Et Hvitt Lys Over Skogen, the track Varg recorded for Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, but which didn’t end up on the final release. As it is, the only way to hear that is to track down the 2002 Anthology.