LIBRARY
Interview with Varg Vikernes
"Witchcraft" Magazine (¹3, 1994), by Stefan Löns
Much confusion and misinterpretation clouds the Northern horizon, which I hope will have been cleared, at least partly. You have heard about burglaries, church-burnings, death-threats, and grave-desecrations. You have heard about the Black Metal Mafia / Church of Satan controversy, and about the murder of Øystein Aarseth / Euronymous from Mayhem. But it is not much if anything at all... This "interview" is made up from my personal correspondence with Norwegian Black Metal Mafia dir kamerad Varg Vikernes / Greifi Grishnackh.
***
You told me you did not want to talk about Burzum.
I do not want to talk about my opinion about Burzum, because who cares anyway? And what others say or think about Burzum is of no interest to me either. I have not answered all your questions as I find much of what you asked about uninteresting to talk about... People can have their own interpretation of Burzum which makes it more interesting that just saying, "It is like this or that..." Burzum is a dream to be dreamt individually.
Any other unreleased material besides that from "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss"?
The other unreleased full-length album of Burzum is "Filosofem" meaning "disparaging assertion proposed in a philosophical erudite language", with songs like "Burzum - the Spirit of Aether", "Beholding the Daughters of the Firmament", "Albedo?", "Circumambulation of the Transcendental Pillar of Singularity" and "Filosofem". Very weird and original production. The best I have ever done. Release date scheduled sometime in late 1994 or early 1995.
Samoth from Emperor is credited for playing the bass on "Aske", did you to intend to complete the Burzum line-up at the time?
No; Burzum is a one-man band. Samoth will never be let close to any of my doings again. Ever.
How come?
Samoth wimped out when the storm got too heavy and now he wants to be with us again. Let him submit and kneel only to be accepted as a thrall - the lowest ranks of value.
Most of the lyrics on the new albums you wrote in Norwegian - not in English.
I express myself better in my own tongue, and it lights the national fire in the Norwegian people. Thinking about it, I did not back in 1991, but I look at it as a development for the better. Burzum is not a band. It is a Norwegian movement, a Norse movement: the rise of the North, which is why I use the beautiful Northern tongue.
And which of the Norwegian dialects do you speak?
I speak Bergensk, a dialect we speak only in and around Bergen. We have Bokmål, Nynorsk, and Gammalnorsk as the three only Norwegian speeches. Samnorsk is nothing. We have Samisk, the foul language of the Lapps, but they are not Norwegian, they come from the Kola peninsula and Finland, and they are a minority living in Northern Norway. My dialect is the closest to Gammalnorsk of all the dialects. Gammalnorsk is old Norwegian or Norse, the language the Vikings spoke. Still, it is mostly Bokmål. Nynorsk is a bastardization of all the dialects. Nynorsk is translated as "new Norwegian". I hate and boycott it. I understand Swedish and Danish very well, Icelandic fairly well, and German... In modern Norwegian, we have very boring vocabulary. Like "strife" in Norwegian is strid, but in old Norwegian we also use sverdting (court of swords), økstid (axe-time), ufred (un-peace) and many more. It once was a colorful speech, but was einst var. So yes, I speak Bokmål with strong Gammalnorsk influences, quite different from the Oslo dialect, which is the most commonly used.
Why change the name from Burznazg to Cymophane and why not release "Det Som Engang Var" under the "Anti-La Vey" reference?
Burznazg was a plan never to see the light. Never did I release anything under that name. Cymophane is a concept that belongs to Burzum. The "Aske" album was released by Deathlike Silence Productions only because I was imprisoned, which unabled me from doing it myself. I told Euronymous to write that it was licensed from Burznazg on the cover. But it was his - Euronymous' – contribution to the cover to put this "Anti-La Vey" shit. I find "Anti-whatever" a very childish thing to use for a label for releases. With Cymophane, we call our releases "Eye", which suits perfectly with the essence of my ideology. Also, Cymophane is a red, green, or brown gem formed as an eye. Κυμοφανής means "wave to appear" in Greek; talking here about Burzum - about heathenism.
Where did the idea come from?
I think that the Church of Satan lacks insight in racial matters. It is an American "institution", and as we all know, the United States are a mixture of many races. And I do not like that American bastard-race ideology in my people. We are pure people with pure archetypes and with own archetypal ideology. Anton La Vey's ideology has certain Jewish elements which are contradictive to ours. To keep it short, that was the main reason. To awake the Norse spirit - the Viking spirit - I need not Satan but our Wotan. In Norway, Wotan is one-eyed, thus the eye!
What is it about America?
Alas, not all American people are wastes. Indeed, many great men enter the arena of the elite from the United States. I have no prejudice but from experience, I know America to be an area of junk with a junk-mentality.
Which perfectly describes our Western World...
Cheap plastic. Anton La Vey may be a great man, but the cheapness of America is still very visible. Plastic rituals, plastic bible, plastic symbolism, and so on. There is nothing American without a bit of tastelessness.
Deathlike Silence Productions supported the "Never stop the madness campaigns for the use of hard drugs", which I like very much...
Alas, that was one of my ideas. Euronymous used it, and presented it as if it was his. As usual... But I have various reasons for uttering such a sentence. First of all, I think that people can use as much and as hard drugs as they want to. Why should I care about them when they can choose their own ways? If they choose hard drugs, they are either weak, or perhaps fed up with normal life, so let them rot. Personally, I do not even smoke or drink any alcohol, why should I? Let the weak kill themselves! Hail methylenedioxy, floating in a dream of X.T.C.
More propaganda, like "Make war, not love"?
Talking about these poor drug-addicts, I think this one suits fine: "Pity is contempt..." But "Make war, not love" is a total twist of the peace-wave that we have these days. Also the "Make love with war" is a reflection of our spirit. Axioms like "Altruism is the slyest servant of degeneration" and "Strife is evolution - peace is degeneration" are the ones I feel should be spoken and heard among my brethren.
Anyone in the Black Metal scene will have heard about the Black Metal Mafia; and I guess you are the one authority being very personally involved?
I have been working with the Black Circle since 1990, and nobody heard about our once hermetic/esoteric order. The moment Euronymous "joined", well, only with that big foul mouth of his, the underground knew all about us, or rather let us say about Euronymous' interpretation of us - which ruined the circle in most ways. Then my first imprisonment came. This made people interested in what was going on in Norway. Euronymous told them all and added some of his own stupidities like claiming not to have any feelings left in "Kerrang!" magazine. He also claimed that we worshipped the devil. I worship Odin, thus myself.
I can tell you I "worship" Satan, thus myself, because I do not believe in Satan as the anthropomorphic deity from the Judeo-Christian theology either.
Aye, Wotan is Satan, simply translated as "opponent" from the Hebrew. But the Hebrew Satan is not Wotan. This is the Satan I do not want in any ways. Satanic Jewish elements. Also, I dislike the Hellenic elements, the pure Greek philosophies. Homosexuality is not only disgusting, but it is also the deceit of one's race. Let it be Greek - we do not need another dego! Unfortunately, the Greek detestableness is bi-sexual and not homosexual. Obliteration of the degos would be great!
Will you name some of your affiliates for printing purposes?
I think people do not need to know exactly who are a part of our movement. They can tell by one thing though. Do they hail me, Greifi Grishnackh from Burzum? Fenriz from Darkthrone? And Demonaz Doom Occulta from Immortal? If so, they are of our war company. If not, they are fools! Words spoken by others than we are not words of the Norwegian tribe known as the Black Metal Mafia!
And on your activities?
Alas, do not listen to all that is said about us. Rumors are the mightiest weapons of Christians and humanists. Let not such low-lives fool you. They are all Jews in mind too! Also know that words coming from my mouth may sound sour to other tribe-members. We are all - well, most of us are `- individuals with our own thoughts and ideas.
It was reported that Euronymous stopped all activities related to "Satanism" (in whichever form that was supposed to be). And there certainly was no love lost between the two of you...
Reason, and you will see the "true" Euronymous. How did he die? Like a man? Or like a child trying escape his opponent(s)? I truly dance and piss on his Christian grave! For no man would have died the way he did if we are to believe the police telling of the splendid tale of Euronymous' pathetic death. Aye, there was a lot of feeling between us, and that is because I dislike hypocrite and weak people. And he fooled me not.
What I do not understand is why did you ever get involved with the dego?
Euronymous lived five hundred kilometers from my place so seldom did I meet the guy. It took me half of weekly a year contact by phone, mail and some visits to find out what a loser he was. A good actor and a good liar.
What kind of evidence is against you (if any), and what kind of trouble can you get into if convicted?
I am charged with: first-degree murder: no comment, four church-burnings: no comment, one attempted church-burning: no comment, three or four grave-desecrations: no comment, seven or eight burglaries: no comment, theft and storage of three hundred pounds of dynamite: guilty, and possession of illegal weapons: guilty, and some other minor stuff. My guilt - if guilty - will be proven when the trial comes up in April.
Several other members have had their lot of problems with the authorities...
Well, the crimes that a dozen and more of us are charged with I will not speak of.
The dego stated that "One should be able to kill just because one hates life". I say should be able to kill just because one loves life - higher life - in which case this would be much a sweater place to live in.
Aye, I am not close to, but identical to being able to kill "just because I love life".
How active is the Black Metal Mafia now? What are your principles and goals?
Little have I done to elucidate our erudition. Thus far, only equivocal speech has been uttered by me. And a change is needed. We are the remains of what once was, the prosperity of proud German heathen tribes. Our - well, my - principles are pride, strength, courage, bravery, pureness, honesty, honour, faithfulness, elitism, and mercilessness; just like our fathers' principles. I am not an egoist - for I would die defending any of my tribe. Aye, "foolish"; but I believe in my principles, and would rather die following them than breaking them. Only thus can I reach my goal, which is umbrage for others, and always will be; perhaps?
Best memories and worst experiences so far?
Best and worst is in many ways the same; just like good and bad, it depends on how you see it. My "worst" experiences are my "best" memories. Like being chased by a pack of rabies-infected dogs through the streets of Baghdad; I outran them and climbed and jumped over a wall; and I was like crushing my jaw and getting cuts in my face and blood all over; but still, these things - among others - make me feel alive with the will to live. I cannot talk about it all, and I guess you understand. Four months of isolation-cell was rather bad, but it strengthened me for sure, thus it is both good and bad. It always is. Strife is evolution.
What the hell were you doing in Baghdad?
Well I was younger and I had to go with my parents. Still it very interesting experience to stay there for a year. Visiting the ruins of Babylon and many other historical sites. I like Iraq in many ways, but Norwegen über alles.
Some personal views you would like to share?
There are rumours about me being a Nazi. Well, I am not. I am a Norseman with Norse ideology - the morals of the Vikings. I do not hate other races: I love my own race, and I wish to keep it pure and beautiful. The swastika - actually the Hakenkreuz - is nothing for me but the hammer of Thor cleaving through the darkness of matter. The mightiest weapon ever. It is the "god" of the Jews who oppresses us with his "right" and "wrong", and "good" and "evil". This is why I speak badly about him and his inept followers - be them Jews or whatever. Crush them, gas them, whatever, but get them out of our heathen Europe. No mercy. This is nothing but true reason, evolution. Do not forsake your own race, you would forsake only yourself, for you are a part of it. I am truly proud to be what I am a son of Wotan! We are the body of the proud king of Achses. We are all one!
Anything to conclude...
Never forget your archetypes - those you can never change, only oppress, as Christendom has been doing for hundreds of years. If you are Satanists, remember who the people of "god" are! Wotan's reconquest has begun - join us! Second wave is at hand.
I do not want to talk about my opinion about Burzum, because who cares anyway? And what others say or think about Burzum is of no interest to me either. I have not answered all your questions as I find much of what you asked about uninteresting to talk about... People can have their own interpretation of Burzum which makes it more interesting that just saying, "It is like this or that..." Burzum is a dream to be dreamt individually.
Any other unreleased material besides that from "Hvis Lyset Tar Oss"?
The other unreleased full-length album of Burzum is "Filosofem" meaning "disparaging assertion proposed in a philosophical erudite language", with songs like "Burzum - the Spirit of Aether", "Beholding the Daughters of the Firmament", "Albedo?", "Circumambulation of the Transcendental Pillar of Singularity" and "Filosofem". Very weird and original production. The best I have ever done. Release date scheduled sometime in late 1994 or early 1995.
Samoth from Emperor is credited for playing the bass on "Aske", did you to intend to complete the Burzum line-up at the time?
No; Burzum is a one-man band. Samoth will never be let close to any of my doings again. Ever.
How come?
Samoth wimped out when the storm got too heavy and now he wants to be with us again. Let him submit and kneel only to be accepted as a thrall - the lowest ranks of value.
Most of the lyrics on the new albums you wrote in Norwegian - not in English.
I express myself better in my own tongue, and it lights the national fire in the Norwegian people. Thinking about it, I did not back in 1991, but I look at it as a development for the better. Burzum is not a band. It is a Norwegian movement, a Norse movement: the rise of the North, which is why I use the beautiful Northern tongue.
And which of the Norwegian dialects do you speak?
I speak Bergensk, a dialect we speak only in and around Bergen. We have Bokmål, Nynorsk, and Gammalnorsk as the three only Norwegian speeches. Samnorsk is nothing. We have Samisk, the foul language of the Lapps, but they are not Norwegian, they come from the Kola peninsula and Finland, and they are a minority living in Northern Norway. My dialect is the closest to Gammalnorsk of all the dialects. Gammalnorsk is old Norwegian or Norse, the language the Vikings spoke. Still, it is mostly Bokmål. Nynorsk is a bastardization of all the dialects. Nynorsk is translated as "new Norwegian". I hate and boycott it. I understand Swedish and Danish very well, Icelandic fairly well, and German... In modern Norwegian, we have very boring vocabulary. Like "strife" in Norwegian is strid, but in old Norwegian we also use sverdting (court of swords), økstid (axe-time), ufred (un-peace) and many more. It once was a colorful speech, but was einst var. So yes, I speak Bokmål with strong Gammalnorsk influences, quite different from the Oslo dialect, which is the most commonly used.
Why change the name from Burznazg to Cymophane and why not release "Det Som Engang Var" under the "Anti-La Vey" reference?
Burznazg was a plan never to see the light. Never did I release anything under that name. Cymophane is a concept that belongs to Burzum. The "Aske" album was released by Deathlike Silence Productions only because I was imprisoned, which unabled me from doing it myself. I told Euronymous to write that it was licensed from Burznazg on the cover. But it was his - Euronymous' – contribution to the cover to put this "Anti-La Vey" shit. I find "Anti-whatever" a very childish thing to use for a label for releases. With Cymophane, we call our releases "Eye", which suits perfectly with the essence of my ideology. Also, Cymophane is a red, green, or brown gem formed as an eye. Κυμοφανής means "wave to appear" in Greek; talking here about Burzum - about heathenism.
Where did the idea come from?
I think that the Church of Satan lacks insight in racial matters. It is an American "institution", and as we all know, the United States are a mixture of many races. And I do not like that American bastard-race ideology in my people. We are pure people with pure archetypes and with own archetypal ideology. Anton La Vey's ideology has certain Jewish elements which are contradictive to ours. To keep it short, that was the main reason. To awake the Norse spirit - the Viking spirit - I need not Satan but our Wotan. In Norway, Wotan is one-eyed, thus the eye!
What is it about America?
Alas, not all American people are wastes. Indeed, many great men enter the arena of the elite from the United States. I have no prejudice but from experience, I know America to be an area of junk with a junk-mentality.
Which perfectly describes our Western World...
Cheap plastic. Anton La Vey may be a great man, but the cheapness of America is still very visible. Plastic rituals, plastic bible, plastic symbolism, and so on. There is nothing American without a bit of tastelessness.
Deathlike Silence Productions supported the "Never stop the madness campaigns for the use of hard drugs", which I like very much...
Alas, that was one of my ideas. Euronymous used it, and presented it as if it was his. As usual... But I have various reasons for uttering such a sentence. First of all, I think that people can use as much and as hard drugs as they want to. Why should I care about them when they can choose their own ways? If they choose hard drugs, they are either weak, or perhaps fed up with normal life, so let them rot. Personally, I do not even smoke or drink any alcohol, why should I? Let the weak kill themselves! Hail methylenedioxy, floating in a dream of X.T.C.
More propaganda, like "Make war, not love"?
Talking about these poor drug-addicts, I think this one suits fine: "Pity is contempt..." But "Make war, not love" is a total twist of the peace-wave that we have these days. Also the "Make love with war" is a reflection of our spirit. Axioms like "Altruism is the slyest servant of degeneration" and "Strife is evolution - peace is degeneration" are the ones I feel should be spoken and heard among my brethren.
Anyone in the Black Metal scene will have heard about the Black Metal Mafia; and I guess you are the one authority being very personally involved?
I have been working with the Black Circle since 1990, and nobody heard about our once hermetic/esoteric order. The moment Euronymous "joined", well, only with that big foul mouth of his, the underground knew all about us, or rather let us say about Euronymous' interpretation of us - which ruined the circle in most ways. Then my first imprisonment came. This made people interested in what was going on in Norway. Euronymous told them all and added some of his own stupidities like claiming not to have any feelings left in "Kerrang!" magazine. He also claimed that we worshipped the devil. I worship Odin, thus myself.
I can tell you I "worship" Satan, thus myself, because I do not believe in Satan as the anthropomorphic deity from the Judeo-Christian theology either.
Aye, Wotan is Satan, simply translated as "opponent" from the Hebrew. But the Hebrew Satan is not Wotan. This is the Satan I do not want in any ways. Satanic Jewish elements. Also, I dislike the Hellenic elements, the pure Greek philosophies. Homosexuality is not only disgusting, but it is also the deceit of one's race. Let it be Greek - we do not need another dego! Unfortunately, the Greek detestableness is bi-sexual and not homosexual. Obliteration of the degos would be great!
Will you name some of your affiliates for printing purposes?
I think people do not need to know exactly who are a part of our movement. They can tell by one thing though. Do they hail me, Greifi Grishnackh from Burzum? Fenriz from Darkthrone? And Demonaz Doom Occulta from Immortal? If so, they are of our war company. If not, they are fools! Words spoken by others than we are not words of the Norwegian tribe known as the Black Metal Mafia!
And on your activities?
Alas, do not listen to all that is said about us. Rumors are the mightiest weapons of Christians and humanists. Let not such low-lives fool you. They are all Jews in mind too! Also know that words coming from my mouth may sound sour to other tribe-members. We are all - well, most of us are `- individuals with our own thoughts and ideas.
It was reported that Euronymous stopped all activities related to "Satanism" (in whichever form that was supposed to be). And there certainly was no love lost between the two of you...
Reason, and you will see the "true" Euronymous. How did he die? Like a man? Or like a child trying escape his opponent(s)? I truly dance and piss on his Christian grave! For no man would have died the way he did if we are to believe the police telling of the splendid tale of Euronymous' pathetic death. Aye, there was a lot of feeling between us, and that is because I dislike hypocrite and weak people. And he fooled me not.
What I do not understand is why did you ever get involved with the dego?
Euronymous lived five hundred kilometers from my place so seldom did I meet the guy. It took me half of weekly a year contact by phone, mail and some visits to find out what a loser he was. A good actor and a good liar.
What kind of evidence is against you (if any), and what kind of trouble can you get into if convicted?
I am charged with: first-degree murder: no comment, four church-burnings: no comment, one attempted church-burning: no comment, three or four grave-desecrations: no comment, seven or eight burglaries: no comment, theft and storage of three hundred pounds of dynamite: guilty, and possession of illegal weapons: guilty, and some other minor stuff. My guilt - if guilty - will be proven when the trial comes up in April.
Several other members have had their lot of problems with the authorities...
Well, the crimes that a dozen and more of us are charged with I will not speak of.
The dego stated that "One should be able to kill just because one hates life". I say should be able to kill just because one loves life - higher life - in which case this would be much a sweater place to live in.
Aye, I am not close to, but identical to being able to kill "just because I love life".
How active is the Black Metal Mafia now? What are your principles and goals?
Little have I done to elucidate our erudition. Thus far, only equivocal speech has been uttered by me. And a change is needed. We are the remains of what once was, the prosperity of proud German heathen tribes. Our - well, my - principles are pride, strength, courage, bravery, pureness, honesty, honour, faithfulness, elitism, and mercilessness; just like our fathers' principles. I am not an egoist - for I would die defending any of my tribe. Aye, "foolish"; but I believe in my principles, and would rather die following them than breaking them. Only thus can I reach my goal, which is umbrage for others, and always will be; perhaps?
Best memories and worst experiences so far?
Best and worst is in many ways the same; just like good and bad, it depends on how you see it. My "worst" experiences are my "best" memories. Like being chased by a pack of rabies-infected dogs through the streets of Baghdad; I outran them and climbed and jumped over a wall; and I was like crushing my jaw and getting cuts in my face and blood all over; but still, these things - among others - make me feel alive with the will to live. I cannot talk about it all, and I guess you understand. Four months of isolation-cell was rather bad, but it strengthened me for sure, thus it is both good and bad. It always is. Strife is evolution.
What the hell were you doing in Baghdad?
Well I was younger and I had to go with my parents. Still it very interesting experience to stay there for a year. Visiting the ruins of Babylon and many other historical sites. I like Iraq in many ways, but Norwegen über alles.
Some personal views you would like to share?
There are rumours about me being a Nazi. Well, I am not. I am a Norseman with Norse ideology - the morals of the Vikings. I do not hate other races: I love my own race, and I wish to keep it pure and beautiful. The swastika - actually the Hakenkreuz - is nothing for me but the hammer of Thor cleaving through the darkness of matter. The mightiest weapon ever. It is the "god" of the Jews who oppresses us with his "right" and "wrong", and "good" and "evil". This is why I speak badly about him and his inept followers - be them Jews or whatever. Crush them, gas them, whatever, but get them out of our heathen Europe. No mercy. This is nothing but true reason, evolution. Do not forsake your own race, you would forsake only yourself, for you are a part of it. I am truly proud to be what I am a son of Wotan! We are the body of the proud king of Achses. We are all one!
Anything to conclude...
Never forget your archetypes - those you can never change, only oppress, as Christendom has been doing for hundreds of years. If you are Satanists, remember who the people of "god" are! Wotan's reconquest has begun - join us! Second wave is at hand.
Author: Stefan Löns (© 1994 "Witchcraft" Magazine, Germany)
