Burzum "Umskiptar"

Umskiptar (Old Norse for Metamorphosis) is the ninth studio album by the Norwegian one-man band Burzum, released on 21 May 2012 through Byelobog Productions. It has been described by Varg Vikernes as a "return to the roots", with a priority on atmosphere. The album's lyrics are taken from an Old Norse poem entitled Völuspá. The album was leaked two months before its release date, due, according to Vikernes, to a former PR agent of his having "sent promotional copies of the entire album to left wing extremist magazines" without his knowledge or consent.

The cover art is taken from the painting Nótt by Norwegian painter Peter Nicolai Arbo. It is Vikernes' final heavy metal album.

Despite featuring "a stripped-down" viking metal sound that "pays homage" to the likes of Bathory and early Enslaved, Umspkiptar retains "the fuzzy riffing and low production values" of Burzum's previous black metal releases. SputnikMusic's Kyle Ward described the album's style as "an odd bastardization of the usual black metal sound." The album also rarely features harsh vocals.


The track "Alfadanz" features a "submerged" piano intro and repeating simple riffs. "Gullaldr" is a ten-minute-long spoken word track, overlaid with guitar plucking. "Níðhöggr" finds Vikernes whispering over field recordings, a bass drum, and a "distant, wobbly tone." The vocals are buried "between sheets of black-metal guitar screech" on the track "Heiðr," while "Valgaldr", is described as "an eight-minute bog in which he wraps ghoulish harmonies around distorted riffs," with a sound compared to "Iron Maiden on Thorazine."

Artwork presents Peter Nicolai Arbo's painting of the goddess Nótt, the night is personified. 

English translations of song titles:
1. Soaked in Blood
2. Deities
3. Elven Dance
4. The Sacred Tree
5. Honour
6. Esteem
7. Song of the Fallen
8. Gallow Forest
9. Black from the South
10. Golden Age
11. Attack from Below


Recorded in Grieghallen Studio in Bergen in September 2011.
Mastered at Whitfield Mastering, London.