Search - Ulver :: Teachings in Silence

Ulver's Musical Lobotomy

Erik Tomren | Seattle, WA United States | 08/24/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Ulver is probably best known for the 1997 black metal opus Madrigal of the Night, a release so over-the-top that even the Black Metal Hordes were left scratching their heads (while banging them, of course). With the exception of one very brief acoustic interlude, Madrigal is a textbook example of extreme metal gone extremely wrong. Scorched vocals collide with frenetic buzzsaw guitar attacks, savagely stitched together by terrorist blast beats. Part of the mythos surrounding Madrigal is that the production was intentionally flawed, a migraine-inducing mess of low-fi devastation, a burst of pure evil so raw that to this day fans perpetuate the myth that it was recorded in a forest.



Few could have guessed that after releasing three highly acclaimed "black metal" albums, Ulver would permanently disappear from the metal scene and refocus all of their energies to electronica. Teachings In Silence is a collection of two out of print EPs, Silence Teaches You How to Sing and Silencing the Singing, both released in limited editions in 2001. Teachings In Silence is headphone music for the paranoid and delusional. Beautiful ritual soundscapes are delicately layered over a bed of static and distorted, almost grunge-like, guitar licks. An occasional piano melody punctuates a diseased thought. One literally falls into a trance of sorts, gets lost in a tone or hidden rhythm, and the album is over. I cannot recommend this album enough for fans of ambient music. What strikes me as remarkable is that one cannot tell which aspects of the music are electronic and which aren't, and ultimately the listener could care less. What is clear is that unlike so many electronic artists, Ulver has an acute understanding of composition and is more than qualified to lead the listener on a musical journey. Every crackle and hiss, the sound of a skipping record, feedback, every sound element feels like it was created for a purpose. This is, quite simply, a remarkable release."

The music of life's end, beyond the wall of sleep...

Barry Dejasu | Rehoboth, Massachusetts | 08/15/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not going to go into a lengthy explanation of Ulver's metamorphosis (pun intended) from black metal to dark ambient dabblings - I'm sure that if you're a fan of them, or if you're reading this review to learn more about this album, you already know about Ulver's unique sounds from over the years.



For those not in the know, TEACHINGS IN SILENCE is a compilation of two previous EPs, SILENCE TEACHES YOU HOW TO SING and SILENCING THE SINGING. Apparently there are only 1,000 copies of this, so if you find one, you make sure to get it! Now, to actually talk about the EP itself...



"Silence Teaches You How to Sing," the leading and longest track (a wonderful 24 minutes), is something like a classical piece. It has ten main movements, separated by blurbs of static and random noise. Each movement is highly repetitive, with sparse, wordless vocals by the chameleonic Krystoffer Rygg (the artist formerly known as Garm, in this case named Trickster G). There are pulses of electronic beats, random piano and guitar notes, swirling waves of ambience, and an overall sense of otherworldly bliss.



"Darling Didn't We Kill You?," besides having one of the coolest and funniest song titles ever, is an excellent ambient piece. Mostly a repeated motif of scattered notes (piano, guitar, or synthesizer? - your guess is as good as mine...), with some random sounds of radio dial squeaks and squeals. During the "bridge," an electronic pulse builds up and seems to be a sign of a major texture change, but then it disappears and the song returns to its almost fickle rhythm.



"Speak Dead Speaker" has a sort of post-tragedy feel to it, with haunting keyboard harmonies coming in waves, with layers of static clouding the texture and bringing a kind of dream-like quality to the piece. It's like listening to the ending credits of an early-Twentieth Century romantic tragedy film set in another dimension.



There is a brief coda to "Speak Dead Speaker" which may be my most favorite moment on this disc. It's very brief, but its power is almost heartbreaking. It's a tragic-sounding motif of several violins, mournful in their texture, and even here odd electronic sounds come in, almost as a reminder that this tragedy happened in a place far outside of our worldly existence. It's a great way to end this song, and very powerful despite its short duration.



Then there is "Not Saved." Warbles, brief pulses, a single cymbal rhythm, and crystalline synthesizer notes decorate the surface of a slow electronic rhythm. Then the sound of a church bell appears, ringing in the distance during the blue that comes before the grey of dawn. It's perhaps the most repetitive track here, but it's an excellent closer, and really sets the final mood which makes this EP so special.



This album is not for everyone. I know that most would find it boring and repetitive, and while it is repetitive, it's repetitive in a meditative, relaxing way. It's classic electronic-era Ulver, and it's a must for any collector, or any fan of slow, quiet, ambient music.



Sleep now..."