Not really. I tried it for a while and it wasn't my thing. But I'm really glad that film makers Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell chose to make a documentary about this misunderstood musical and social movement.
It took me a while to finish "Until the Light Takes Us" mostly because I could only watch it in small pieces. One of the more powerful segments describes how a young musician from the band Mayhem shot himself in the head with a shotgun. A bandmate comes to find Per Ohlin with his brains falling out of his skull... And then he decides to take pictures of the scene.
I heard about this story a while back from my friend, Jeff, but I was a little shocked to see the actual photo on the documentary. Now I'll admit I'm pretty much numb to violence these days. I've been desensitized by years of increasingly realistic violent video games and TV. But what impacted me the most is how personal it must be to take a photo of your dead friend. Although friend might be too strong a word in this case. Supposedly Ohlin was very closed-off and these groups don't exhibit much cohesiveness or camaraderie.
The documentary continues and focuses heavily on an interview from Varg Vikernes, the creator of Burzum. He was sentenced to 21 years in prison for stabbing a bandmate to death as well as burning four churches. His recollection of events seems to elucidate his motives. I have a lot of interesting quotes from him:
"We not only suspected there might be a third world war; we hoped that there would be a third world war. Not because that we enjoyed destruction so much but because we knew that if you want to build something new you have to destroy the old first."
"It's hard to know what to do to oppose something because dissident voices are not tolerated in contemporary society."
The Christian churches, to Vikernes, are a monumental disrespect to Norwegian heritage. He describes that one church was deliberately built on a Pagan ritual ground as an insult. "So if they have no respect for the Norwegian culture, why on Earth should Norwegians respect their culture?"
The more this man speaks, the more I find myself agreeing with him. One big difference is that I don't believe these actualities necessitate more violence. I simultaneously like his ideals but dislike the conclusions he has drawn from them. Still, I can't help but respect him to an extent.
But that's like saying I respect Hitler. So in principle, I cannot agree with Varg's actions but I will respect some of his ideologies.
Another powerful image: Varg smiles briefly in the courtroom after receiving the maximum penalty in Norway. I can only guess what's going on in that man's mind. And it seems all too human and beyond my perception.
"It's very hard to recognize the truth when you are bombarded by lies all the time - every minute of the day."
Overall, it's a very thought provoking documentary. The power of lyrics in music can really become ingrained in our minds... so is there a point when we begin to adopt these ideas as our own? How much do they affect the decisions we make? If I listened to death metal without a grain of salt... my mother would be very worried about me. It seems that a grim lifestyle both causes and is caused by these themes of darkness and despair.
"The truth is, of course, to be found... but in a sea of lies it's just impossible to find it..."
I'm going to go ahead and keep searching. You should watch this film.
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