Belus

Burzum | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 19, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Plastic Head Distribution
• ASIN: B0031KF4BG
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,361 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Lukans Renkespill (Lukan's Scheme)

2. Belus' Død (Belus' Death)

3. Glemselens Elv (The River Of Forgetfulness)

4. Kaimadalthas' Nedstigning (Kaimadalthas' Descent)

5. Besøk Til Kelio (Visit to Kelio)

6. Alvenes Dans (Elven Dance)

7. Alvegavene (The Elven Gifts)

8. Sverddans (Sword Dance)

9. Keliohesten (The Kelio Horse)

10. Morgenrøde (Dawn's Red)

11. Belus' Tilbakekomst (Belus' Return

Editorial Reviews

Highly anticipated 2010 release from the Norwegian Black Metal legends, their first album in 11 years! This long-player is entitled Belus after the name of the ancient European solar deity of light and innocence. The album is not a religious album or an anti-religious album, nor is it a political one, but an attempt to explore the myths about Belus and unveil the oldest roots of our cultural heritage. The album deals with the death of Belus, his somber journey through the realm of death and his magnificent return. In essence the album and the story of Belus is meant to be an entertaining story about something that once upon a time played a major role in the forming and shaping of Europe.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A few things you should know about 'Belus', March 21, 2010

By 

Edward Waverley - See all my reviews

This review is from: Belus (MP3 Download)

Interesting how things change. 'Burzum' (meaning 'the darkness') has released an album dedicated to Belus, the Indo-European deity of light. Far from being contradictory, however, Varg's opposition to Judeo-Christianity hasn't wavered a bit - just his conception of where he stands in relation to it. Originally he thought of himself as a force of darkness, but now he sees Judeo-Christianity itself as the darkness, and so opposes it with a force of light.

The music itself is both dark and bright, sunlight and shadow. On one track the guitars form a cold pre-dawn mist, on another they dance like a rainbow on a waterfall.

'Belus' Død' is a powerful and older piece, dating back to the time of 'Filosofem', and indeed its opening riff was also used in a less powerful way on 'Dauði Baldrs'. Now, played on guitar, it sounds truly overwhelming. On the other hand, 'Sverddans' ('Sword Dance') features music Varg wrote when he was sixteen, sounding like raw death metal à la Darkthrone's 'Goatlord', and this doesn't fit in very well with the other pieces.

More recent compositions like 'Glemselens Elv' ('The River of Forgetfulness'), 'Keliohesten' ('The Horse of Kelio') and 'Morgenrøde' ('Dawn') are strong, hypnotic, shimmering and deeply beautiful.

The lyrics, now translated into English and other languages on the Burzum website, are excellent.

While 'Belus' isn't as good as Varg's masterpiece 'Hvis Lyset Tar Oss', it stands alongside his other albums and is musically perhaps most similar to 'Filosofem'. It's good to see Varg out in the 'world' again, continuing his artistic mission and offending so many repressed, politically correct idiots by his mere existence. 'Belus' is an album I will listen to many times in the future.

Welcome back...

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rich Storytelling, April 2, 2010

By 

ethios4 (norman, OK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Belus (Audio CD)

Belus is a "musical and lyrical description of the the White God (alias Apollon, Baldr, Belenus, Belus, Bragi, Byelobog, Jarilo, et cetera) and the annual events of his life." according to Varg Vikernes. The entire album tells the story of Belus through words and music.

Comparisons to previous Burzum albums are inevitable I suppose, but not really all that relevant. Artists are people and evolve over time. The most you can hope for is for an artist to stay true to what made them great in the first place, and I believe Belus shows that Varg has remained very true. He has progressed immensely as an instrumentalist and vocalist, and matured as a songwriter. If the goal of an artist is self-expression than I think Varg succeeds tremendously. I experience very strong, subtle, diverse emotions listening to Burzum, and not just the one-dimensional moods of most metal music.

Belus is a long-form work. The goal here is not to blast you with impressive feats of virtuosity or complexity; the goal is to tell a tale with words and music. This is a very meditative album and may take several listens to get the meaning of. I recommend reading the lyrics as well, which can be found in many languages at [...].

The production is much cleaner than previous albums in many ways, but also somewhat muted sounding. It almost sounds muddy to me at times, but closer listening reveals many many layers going on. The vocals are very different from previous Burzum vocals. Much more controlled, but also much quieter in the mix. I really really loved Varg's old vocal style, but the new style does work better for storytelling. It is still a strong, harsh voice, but much less like a soul experiencing total anguish. There is even a good amount of sub bass on this album!

Here's a run through of the songs:
1. The Intrigues of Leuke (Introduction)
A simple intro...just the sound of a hammer beating metal, implying the secretive work of Leuke, who kills Belus.

2. The Death of Belus
This song begins with a familiar melody from Daudi Baldrs. Great catchy riffs that set the tone for everything to come. Leuke murders Belus. A great sense of danger and adventure. Be sure to read the lyrics!

3. The River of Forgetfulness
An excellent song describing the funeral(?) of Belus. This song gets stuck in my head for days! Such a mixture of majesty and sorrow in this song. The lyrics are very meaningful as Belus begins the journey to the underworld, while promising to return.

4. The Descent of Kaimadalthas
This song ups the intensity quite a bit. The tale of Belus's travels in the land of the dead. A great sense of adventure. The spoken parts are very evocative.

5. Sword Dance
The battle between Belus and the winter spirit. This is battle music! Winter spirit, you shall die! This is the most intense song of the album because it is the battle between summer and winter!

6. The Horse of Kelio
The aftermath of the battle. The spirit of winter has been defeated, but the feeling of intensity lingers as the world recovers.

7. Dawn
The first Sunday of spring. A strong feeling of reverence and power, and yet sorrow perhaps for what has happened. This song amazes me with it's complexity and subtlety of emotions.

8. The Return of Belus (Conclusion)
This is an instrumental song that invites reflection on the tale of Belus. It is very long and meditative and completes the mood of the album very well. I think of cycles of the seasons, the promise of spring is also the promise of autumn. Opposites dancing around each other for eternity.

It is entirely possible I have just butchered the tale of Belus due to my ignorance of the story. I knew nothing of it before this album, but now I am much more interested in learning the rest. This album has come to be very meaningful to me as spring is now arriving and world comes alive. As I walk down my street I look into the giant oak trees and see that little bit of mistletoe and think of Belus....

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad..Not great, April 23, 2010

By 

Nate (California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Belus (Audio CD)

i think people are hyping this album up a bit too much, i have found a time and place to enjoy this album but all in all its just another decent black metal album with the all too like muffled guitars and drumkit sounding like its under 1000 pounds of blankets, for some reason i was kinda excited to hear what varg had come up with over the years and perhaps i was expecting more, i see some people breaking the songs down as if there sum intricate piece of music but the riffs and drums on this album are really just pretty basic and typical metal riffs..ill end my rant here.