Inventive - "Hvis Lyset tar Oss" Review (89%)
Out of all the essential second wave black metal albums, none are as raw and inventive as Hvis Lyset Tar Oss.
Legions of metal listeners will swear that Hvis Lyset Tar Oss is the pinnacle of metal's evolution, a brilliant conceptual work decrying the fall of European spiritual values to the false light of Middle Eastern religions.
As commercial black metal acts like Dimmu Borgir and Gorgoroth now play to an ever shrinking fan base, barely able to perform in live concerts, Burzum appeals to a new generation of listeners and continues to captivate the imaginations fans both old and new.
Hvis Lyset Tar Oss is, alongside Burzum's following release Filosofem, a monumental landmark in black metal history.
Despite being comprised of relatively simple musical ingredients, at least on the surface, Hvis Lyset Tar Oss embodies everything that the original Norwegian black metal movement was supposed to signify.
In fact, Hvis Lyset Tar Oss sets the bar so high that every black metal album release before or after seems lacking in character.
This is black metal genius at its finest.
Inventive
Something remarkable about Varg Vikernes' music is that no two Burzum albums sound alike.
There is something new at each release.
Honestly, can you tell me the difference between the first and second Immortal album?
They all just sound the same.
And let's not even talk about the utterly forgettable commercial death metal bands such as Deicide, Suffocation, Behemoth and so on.
But Burzum pushes the genre's limit at each one of his releases.
There is a very distinctive sound of the self-titled debut, another one on Det Som Engang Var, a different perspective on Hvis Lyset Tar Oss, etc. And that's not even mentioning all the non-metal albums released by Burzum.
The only other artist I know of capable of such distinctiveness and originality release after release is the notorious Phantom, but there really isn't any other band of such caliber in the black metal scene or elsewhere.
I should also mention that this album has proved its longevity like few others around.
If you want a metal album you can listen to time and time again, instead of some disposable release you will listen to three times and forget, listen to Hvis Lyset Tar Oss.
You won't regret it.
Wait til nighttime, turn out the lights and let yourself be absorbed by the darkness of Hvis Lyset Tar Oss.
Hvis Lyset tar Oss score: 89/100.
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