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Review/Critique: Hvis Lyset tar oss

Hvis Lyset tar oss

Burzum


*Sorry for the Delay, I came down with the flu recently so it put a damper on most of my YoC reviews. I'll try and get through these as fast as possible for you all!*

Review/Critique: When trying to get into new genres of music, there are often a decent amount of growing pains. It's inevitable as you try to expose yourself to new things that there are going to be some things you have trouble seeing the appeal of. For myself and many others, something that tends to be off putting are harsh vocals. They've certainly grown on me over the last year, but I would be lying if I said I particularly enjoy them. I was totally enamored with Through Silver in Blood for example, but the screaming on Hvis Lyset tar oss just didn't do it for me. So I'm going to try and go a bit more in depth on why that may be, and give you my honest feedback on the album - which is hopefully the first of many black metal albums I will listen to in an attempt to become a bigger fan of the genre.

         My biggest problem with the vocals in this album when compared to other albums with harsh vocals, is that really the vocals in Hvis Lyset tar oss are exclusively screaming. There is no break, it's just screaming from start to finish in a language I don't understand. I thing occasional screaming in music can really add a lot, but if I'm being honest in this case I just ended up tuning them out. They didn't really add much of anything in my opinion, maybe some atmosphere but that's it. I much prefer screaming in music when it's used as to emphasize pain or grieving. When it's used exclusively for an entire album it just becomes monotonous. I think that ended up being my biggest problem with the album as a whole, but as you can see from the rating above I still quite enjoyed it. The instrumental bits in the album are kick ass, they reminded me a decent amount of Black Earth but more intense. It has a similar vibe and atmosphere to Hvis Lyset tar oss but more metal. It was dark, gritty, moody, perfect for Halloween. I think I would've probably enjoyed the album as a whole more if there weren't even any vocals at all, but then I wouldn't have really felt like I was exposed to anything new. The vocals in this album clearly appeal to a lot of people, so maybe with a bit more exposure it will be something I will grow fond of too and later I'll be singing this album's praises like crazy. After all I didn't say the vocals didn't fit, just that I didn't see the appeal. Overall I don't have all that much more to say about this album. It was an interesting foray into a new genre for me with a decent amount of character, but wasn't anything to write home about. It didn't blow my mind or anything, it was just a solid album in a genre I'm still trying to break into.

Normally I include a favorite tracks section here, but since the album is only 4 songs long, it feels a bit silly. If you have to know though, the first and last songs were definitely the ones I preferred (the last one having no vocals at all). With that said I'm going to get into the short recommendation and then we can wrap this review up.

Recommendation: I recommend this album to pretty much anyone who likes dark ambient and/or metal variants of music with harsh vocals. I think too if you're trying to get some exposure of the dark ambient / black metal genre, it isn't a bad place to start. It isn't particularly crazy or jarring, it's just different enough to peak your interest and give you some good insights into a new genre.


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And that's my review of Hvis Lyset tar oss! Again, sorry it took so long to come out. This is my second time getting horribly ill this year, really hoping I don't get sick again for a long long time. Next up will be The Shining, i'm really looking forward to it.

Until then!

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