All of the instruments, which are played by Count Grishnackh with no significant practice or rehearsal (according to him, at least), are executed with a rugged bombast that is seductive yet violent. The instrumentation and songwriting is unbelievably raw – listening to "Burzum" is perhaps analogous to listening to the rehearsal tapes of any other band. Of course, this is how Grishnackh intended it to be; all of his screams are unaltered, and are heard full-force. It is evident how raw and emotional this music is when Grishnackh's gasps for breath inbetween screams become audible. Interestingly enough, Grishnackh avoids stereotypical black metal vocals. His scream is much more violent and blatant – it seems to be a cry of anguish and hatred rather than the dark and malicious whisper-screams or gurgles that are often heard among black metal bands.

Also – aside from the vocal attack, the guitar tracks are entirely rough and raw, adding to the candid feel of the album. It takes some time to get used to this style, but once one is adjusted, the dark beauty of the album begins to reveal itself. Count Grishnackh was a good guitarist; certainly not the best, but the riffs and progressions – and the combination of repetitive rhythmic structures and vaguely dissonant melodies – which he wrote for "Burzum" are ingenious, and they have influenced the style of countless other black metal guitar players. Much of Grishnackh's guitarwork is surprisingly melodic, adding a deep sense of melancholy and despair to the album. Despite any melody, the songs never quite lose their sense of primal rhythmic violence, however. This strong sense of rhythm is aided by the drumming style, which is very primitive and minimalistic. Blast beats are never heard, and the rhythmic concept upon which many of the songs are based is a simple 1-3 rock beat with double bass. Though this is not true for absolutely every song, the album has a prominent, powerful rhythmic feel to it which is almost trance-inducing (especially on songs such as "Ea, Lord Of The Depths" and "A Lost Forgotten Sad Spirit").

Along with the aforementioned aspects, Grishnackh begins to show his taste for the epic on this album (along with his tendency to incorporate keyboards, as seen on the instrumental ambient track "Channeling The Power Of Souls Into A New God"). Many of the songs have a timeless, powerful feel – and coupled with certain lyrics, this creates an awe-inspiring atmosphere. The perfect example of this feeling is exhibited on the song "My Journey To The Stars", which is one of the strongest songs on the album, if not the strongest of all. The epic feeling, however, is not as strong as on the later album "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss"; the self-titled album has a much more raw atmosphere.

Despite the simplistic nature of the instrumentation, the harsh rawness of the recording, and the relatively poor production, "Burzum" proves to be very affecting and engaging. Certain moments on the disc are very powerful and hypnotic; this demonstrates the unique musical vision and power of Count Grishnackh. With "Burzum", he has captured the essence of black metal without all of the typical trappings like blast beats, chaotic hyper-speed songs, and tremolo picking. Burzum is truly a unique band, and with this eponymous album, has set a standard for all black metal bands to aspire toward.

written by Derek Schultz

Playing time: 47.04