Filosofem
Encyclopedia
Filosofem is the fifth release by the Norwegian
black metal
artist Burzum
. It was recorded in March 1993 and was the last recording before Varg Vikernes
' imprisonment. However, the album was not released until January 1996.
The album was recorded under purposefully bad conditions. No guitar amplifier was used, Varg plugged his guitar into the amplifier of his brother's stereo and used an old fuzz pedal. He also asked a sound technician for the worst microphone he had and ended up using a headset as the microphone.
. The front cover is titled Op under Fjeldet toner en Lur (Norwegian for Up in the hills a clarion call rings out).
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
artist Burzum
Burzum
Burzum is a musical project by Varg Vikernes . It began during 1991 in Bergen, Norway and quickly became prominent within the early Norwegian black metal scene...
. It was recorded in March 1993 and was the last recording before Varg Vikernes
Varg Vikernes
Varg Vikernes is a Norwegian black metal musician, writer, philosopher, religious and political activist, arsonist and convicted murderer.Vikernes was born near Bergen, Norway. In 1991, he founded the one-man music project Burzum, which quickly became popular within the early Norwegian black metal...
' imprisonment. However, the album was not released until January 1996.
Recording
The opening song was the first Vikernes wrote as Burzum. It had been previously recorded in September 1992 for the Hvis lyset tar oss album, but Vikernes was dissatisfied with it and re-recorded it for this album six months later.The album was recorded under purposefully bad conditions. No guitar amplifier was used, Varg plugged his guitar into the amplifier of his brother's stereo and used an old fuzz pedal. He also asked a sound technician for the worst microphone he had and ended up using a headset as the microphone.
Music
The music of Filosofem continued Vikernes' experimentation with minimalism, repetition, and ambient music within black metal. The tracks are all quite long (the shortest being just over 7 minutes) and are typically composed around very few musical motifs. For instance, "Jesu død" a track of over 8 and a half minutes, is primarily based around variations of a single riff. Opening track "Burzum" features a prominent melody played by a synthesizer, and the two "Decrepitude" tracks consist of sound effects over very sparse guitars. The album also included Burzum's longest ambient track to date, the 25-minute "Rundtgåing av den transcendentale egenhetens støtte", which has remained controversial among listeners due to its length and minimalistic composition.Artwork
The album cover and booklet contain extensive artwork by Theodor KittelsenTheodor Kittelsen
Theodor Severin Kittelsen was a Norwegian artist. He is one of the most popular artists in Norway. Kittelsen became famous for his nature paintings, as well as for his illustrations of fairy tales and legends, especially of trolls.-Biography:Kittelsen was born in the coastal town of Kragerø in...
. The front cover is titled Op under Fjeldet toner en Lur (Norwegian for Up in the hills a clarion call rings out).