Interview with Varg Vikernes
"ME" Magazine (¹1, 1993)

So let's start out with a little history of Burzum and the Norse Black Metal scene.

I really don't know about many bands in Norway/Sweden who do Black Metal. I only know of a handful and those few have done Black Metal since 1991. The bands that start playing Black Metal are a little too late to be first... by some years. I started doing what I do now in 1987 and called my project Uruk-Hai. In early 1991 I changed the name to Burzum and at the same time went more serious. In Finland there are lots of childish kids doing Black Metal... but in Norway we have the BIG ones. It's like an explosion in Norway. The big media attention during the worst period of church burnings and the six weeks I spent in jail. All the newspapers are writing about it and the population got to know what the Black Metal was about. So a lot of the kids out there were fascinated by the Black Metal concept!

Do you find there to be a rise in Satanism among the youth in Norway or is there more to it?

There is not a rise in satanic practice among youths in Norway! The youth have simply idols that appear satanic! And to identify with these idols they use satanic image. As everywhere else there are not jobs for everyone, we have to talk shit about the European Commission the whale stuff and the silly fucks in the states and elsewhere are trying to tell us to do. We have an Unrepresentative government, niggers and other shit walking our streets, and tons of churches burning. There is not any major political thing that might cause the youths rebellion. I think the people of Norway are just tired of the church that nobody believes in anyway. We are the Vikings, we are not as the government show us to the world. We lust for plundering, raping and killing like we did centuries ago. The past is alive!!! There is really not many of us here who identify with Satan. We worship our old gods and new gods that will soon reign in our realm. Some worship Satan but only fools. Satan is another god among the dying... the new gods will reign soon!

Is the government strict in censorship of your music?

No! The government gives us total freedom of expression. They're so fucking tolerant! If I were the government I would have all Black Metalers shot within days. But they're so fucking humanitarian they wouldn't harm us in any way. There are a lot of record shops in Norway that don't sell Burzum albums because Burzum is too extreme. They do all sell Mayhem and Emperor CDs though! Ha-Ha!

Views as "extreme" as you have do religious groups get after you or anyone else in the Black Metal community?

I receive lots of protests! But actually I get ten times more support from people than I do protests! I do find that curious but I also see it as proof to my theory that Norse man and women are more brutal than the government allow us to be. Another reason for getting this much support from the Norse masses is Atheism. Very few find Christianity worthy of their beliefs. So here is Norway if we burn the Christian churches people think it is great! They don't believe in the Christian shit anyway. If you enter a Norwegian church on a Sunday, you will find 2 or 3 old hags sitting and their priest making a fool of himself on "stage". At the most there might be some 6 to 7. Thousands of years ago an army of Christians came and forced us to lay down our old beliefs and to start believing in god, if we didn't we were killed. Chopped down like a tree! So people simply said, "Sure I believe in god and this Jesus fellow" so they were not killed. It is like this today, we still don't really believe in god. So when I scream "War against the Christian Church" people find it obvious. And I find it boring as there is nobody to fight but some old hags. Some years ago me and a friend went out to beat up some Christians, we brought big rocks to throw and a couple clubs. We found a lot of people along, but none were Christians. We actually asked people kindly if they were Christian and found a lot of people who said, "Of course not, are you serious?" When people are not Christians they don't bother protesting against us.

So what do you think of some of the other Black Metal bands worldwide... do they hold your views also?

Burzum and Darkthrone have brains... Profanatica are total idiots. The aim of Profanatica is to desecrate and profanate everything holy. At the same time, they find grave desecrating stupid and pointless. By saying this they prove themselves to be a lie... fucking self-contradictive idiots! I also don't care much about Acheron. I find their music to be boring and uninteresting. Worshippers of Anton LeVay! HA! They probably don't know shit and only repeat what Anton LeVay says. I really don't care too much about who is Black Metal and who's not. Burzum will always be Burzum no matter what people may call my style. Call it white metal, death metal, thrash metal or whatever; I won't change anyway. When I see bands like Profanatica I find them false as they don't mean what they say. Pure fake image! That's why we hate Profanatica category bands (Profanatica, Bestial Summoning, Impaled Nazarene, the rest of the Finns, Samael, Venom, Sodom, Destruction).

Has Burzum always just been you or have you at any point had a line up?

I did have a line-up in 1988 and 1989 we never did any gigs though. I decided to do Burzum alone because there was only me in 1991 and I managed to do it. I may do some live shows in Scandinavia with some session line-up... Nothing is for sure! Like I said on the debut it was just me and on the "Aske" CD I had Samoth (from Emperor) fill in on bass. I used him to see how well it would go with some sort of line-up but it didn't go that good. On all the other albums it will be myself.

So influence wise do you chalk up Venom and Bathory as the bands that really turned you on to this type of music?

I am not influenced by Venom at all!!! I think Bathory was the main influence but there are of course many others also! I listen to When, LFO, Darkthrone, Mayhem (only with Dead doing vocals), Dead Can Dance, Software, High On Fire, Von, Candlemass, early Destruction (fake guys), Hellhammer, early Kreator, early Iron Maiden, early Slayer, Sleep Chamber, Nacht Und Nebel, Coil, Vangelis, Grieg, old Kiss, old Rotting Christ and of course the sound of rain and storms. I think want it or not these are the bands that influence me.

So do you believe that Bathory and Venom were satanic or was it all just a good show?

Bathory was simply against Christianity and are still doing the same thing but in a different way. Venom though is a band that I find ridiculous... I don't know why they sang about Satan. They certainly lied about all their lyrics so they were and still are fakes!

What do people think of your music and albums? And what do people think of you as a person?

Very varied in ways of talk but musically I have so far received only positive comments. (as far as I know). There are a lot of people who hate Burzum and give Burzum bad review because they say I am a fascist. Like "Kerrang!" and most German 'zines I think. The people who fight against intolerance of fascists don't tolerate that I am one. They surly contradict themselves by doing so. They're just lowlife so why care?

So here is your soap-box if you could stand up in front of the world what would you say to them?

I really don't care about the world, I only care for myself and my homeland!!! I would surely not enlighten the world with any of my knowledge. Simply I will say, "MAKE WAR NOT LOVE"! I have nothing to tell the world... it could just rot away. I will notice the death of the world only by a lack of sales of Burzum albums and fewer letters from abroad. Why care for others over oneself? Who is the nearest being worth of being cared for? None! The world consists of mostly yellows and niggers and other colored trash anyway. Nuclear war would do just fine. The worlds tragedy would be served at my feast! I wrote that sentence in some lyrics years ago... at a time where I cared for the world. I hate it now. I have entered the ranks of the ignorant ones.

Aside from your fascist beliefs what are your religious beliefs? Do you follow a god, do you follow Euronymous?

I keep that for myself. If people knew that I would not be able to draw much advantage from it. I will say that I do not worship Satan. I say worship me! I am sooo tired of being compared to other people in Norway. When Euronymous speaks he does not speak for ME!!! He represents only himself! These are my words I do not worship Satan! I agree that there are similarities between satanic teachings and what I believe. But I do not worship him as Euronymous claims to. I have MANY views that contradict the views of Euronymous; so I get pissed when 'zines put us both up claiming to have "no Feelings left". That is how Euronymous feels... not me. I have some feelings... everybody has feelings they are necessary to exist as a living person. A person without feelings would be and imbecile staring helpless at nothing while being fed and cared for by silly nurse maids. The Church of Satan has too many silly views to be taken seriously. They support the human race, their Satanism is the best way for modern life.

I don't want the best for me or others. So I dislike them as a Lower life... some levels lower than me on the ladder of worth! Fascist?!

Anything else you want to just shout out?

I am no longer on DSP!!! The third Burzum CD will come out on Cymophane Productions in September 1993. The new album will be called "Det Som Engang Var" That'll be all! SIEG HEIL!!!