Turning back to those three early Ulver albums
The Old Conception of Black MetalThe thoughts of Ulver’s Kveldssanger came to me the other day. Specifically the design aspect I’d mentioned before — the use of ſ (long s) throughout the layout, including the spelling of the title — Kveldsſanger. (The reader may remember me telling about the “Kveldsfanger” confusion which had happened to me, and clearly to one producer of tapes in Poland, back in the day.)
What was bothering a little, each time I thought of the first two albums of Ulver, was that I’d never known the meanings of texts provided on the last pages of booklets to those albums. The texts were in Norwegian I thought (now I read somewhere it is old Danish, which I’m inclined to think is rather an imitation), the language I never had possession of. Surprisingly, googling did not help — couldn’t find even proper quoting of those texts, as if no one ever deciphered them in full, besides a few excerpts in someone’s master’s thesis. So it was interesting for me to finally fill this gap (of probably minor importance).
Bergtatt — Et eeventyr i 5 capitler
In the design of Bergtatt we find no long s yet. (But, of course, my {un}favourite typewriter double straight quote ".)
Ulver er een ærlig Formidling aff Følelser & Tanker rettede mod Fandens Kræffter oc Natten dend sorte. Vi holder stærke Ofverbefvisninger om, at der existerer Væsener, der optræder i andere Former oc under andere Forhold, end dem, Mennisker generelt ere vandte med. Giennem Ulver hafver vi forsøgt at tægne et musikalsk Billede aff een anden Virkelighed: een mytisk Forestillingsverden, der hverken falmer, forandres, eller synker i Glæmsel. Ieg haaber ocsaa, at de giennem lange & høstmørcke Nætter i Slutningen aff Aar 1994 ev, needskreffne Ord, skald være et tilfredsstillende Accompagnement til de musikalske Stæmninger...
Mit Sigtepunkt hafver været at skabe et ofverveldende melankolsk & sorrigfuldt Eeventyr med Udspring i ældere norsk Folckedigtning. Bergtagelsessagn er et særnorsk Omraade, der Det Onde effter siigende markerer sig stærkere end andere Stæder, der Væsener fra det Hinsidige ere med paa, at forme Menniskers Liiv — Ulvers Kunstform skald understreege netop disse dunkle & grimme, men samtidig hengifvent vackre Siider aff norsk Ofvertroe.
Bergtagelsestraditionerne varierer stærkt i Fortellermaade, men samtlige dreyer sig i Udgangspunktet om Troen paa, at Mennisker, der forsvandt i ældere Dager, vaer blefvne lockede ind i Fjeldet til et liivsvarig Hulderegteskab giennem et skjæbnesvangert Møde med de Underjordiske.
Det eeneste Remedie, man beholdt, for at faae dend bergtagne frelst tilbage til Verdnen udenfor, vaer at ringe med Kirckeklocker udenfor Aastedet. Lâ nu disse Fjelds berøfvende Dører forblifve lukkede — Trolddommen maa aldrig brydes! Vænd Christendommen din Ryg.
Vogt Eder for Dagens Lys…
«Bergtatt» er i det fulde & heele dedicered til Mørskemaktene
With the help of Google Translate and ChatGPT a possible translation can be compiled, some parts of which still do not make complete sense to me. [Square brackets indicate my interpolations into quoted material, or corrections of errors, or suggestions for improvement.]
Ulver is an honest channel of emotions and thoughts directed towards the devil’s forces and the black night. Firmly are we convinced of the existence of beings that appear in such forms and under such conditions which are different to what humans are generally familiar with. Through Ulver, we have attempted to draw a musical picture of another reality: a mythical fantasy world that neither fades, nor changes, nor sinks into oblivion. I also hope that, through long and autumn-dark nights at the end of the year 1994, the chosen words shall be a satisfactory accompaniment to the musical moods...
My aim has been to create an overwhelming(ly) melancholic and sorrowful magic tale stemming from older Norwegian folk poetry. “Mountain bewitchment legends” (Bergtagelsessagn) is a domain unique for Norway, where evil supposedly manifests stronger than in other places, where beings from the beyond are involved in shaping the lives of humans — Ulver’s art form should highlight precisely these dark and grim, yet at the same time devotedly beautiful aspects of Norwegian superstition.
The “Bergtagelse” traditions vary greatly in the way they are being told, but all of them revolve around the belief that people who disappeared in the older days were [in fact] lured into the mountains through a fateful encounter with the underworld beings — for a lifelong marriage to a hulder.
The only remedy retained to bring the bewitched back to the world outside was to ring the church bells in the areas surrounding the “crime scene.” Now let these depriving doors of the mountain(s) remain closed — the spell must never be broken! Turn your back on Christianity.
Beware of the light of the day…
Bergtatt is entirely dedicated to the Dark Powers
Kveldssanger
I still haven’t found the source of the image on the disc itself. If anyone knows the source and especially has the original scan or photo — please, share it with me. I’m unsure that I shall suspect any Maria Jaquete (whoever she is) to be its author. (And, even though I found no proof of it, I believe Maria Jaquete was a single-time occasion when Tania Stene wished to appear under another name.)
The design of Kveldssanger uses the long s in its entirety. The following quote is edited with the round s, while the text in its original orthography is given at the very bottom of this page.
«Kveldssanger» er et musikalsk Project, primært set basered paa den Norske Folketroes mørcke Siider. Alligevel er dette ingen traditionel Folkemusikudgifvelse, men een gandsque Neofolkelig Tilpadsning aff de Følelser, vi bærer ofverfor de magiske og mytiske Ælementer aff ældere Culturtrin. Vi forsøger her at male naturmystiske & troldske Stæmninger via reent acustiske Instrumænter, oc det I hører her, er et Resultad aff seene kvælder hvor vi hafver vært at finde i creativ Længsel effter gamle Norgis stoorslaadte Historie, eeventyrske Natur og de troldbindende Fornstæmninger hun formidler.
Den Romantiske Aandsrætning, som opsto[d] i de germandske Land mod sluten aff 1700-tallet, hafver udøvet meegen Indflydelse paa dette Album, med siin Betoning aff den frie Fantasi & Æfvne til malende & fængslende at knydde Forbindelser mellem det Følelsesmæssige, oc Middelalderens liivsopfaddelse & folkelige Culturliiv.
Selff om Veemodet oc Mystiken manifesterer sig stærkt igjennem «Kveldssanger», vil en ocsaa heriblandt finde ænkelte Compositioner som ere anderledes end ovennævndte, med frisque, sværmerisque Ælementer & episke Harmonier. Disse ere fremførede for at engagere varieerende visuelle Impulser i Lydderens Sind — oc for at skaane Vedkommende fra at sidde igien med et tomt Indtryk, uden at hafve følt Rigdommen i det vi forsøger at udtrycke.
Dog vi stoort set hafver forholdt os til Norske Følelser & Stæmninger, er ey denne Udgifvelse tillagt nogen nærmere Stædsangifvelse. Musiken her fremført er essentielt et Midel til at gifve Tilhørernes Fantasi Vinger til det gamle Eeventyrland i deres Sind.
Vogt Eder for Dagens Lys…
Kveldssangene ere i det fulde & heele dedicered til Mørskemaktene
Possible translation:
Kveldssanger [“Twilight Songs” they translate it now, although “Evening Songs” is suspected to be the correct translation] is a musical project primarily based on the dark sides of the Norwegian folklore. However, this is not a traditional folk music release but rather a neofolk adaptation of the feelings we carry about the magical and mythical elements of older cultural stages. Here we attempt to paint nature-mystical and sorcerous [trollish?] moods through purely acoustic instruments. What you hear here is the result of late evenings where we have been immersed in a creative longing for Norway’s grand history, its adventurous nature, and the bewitching moods it conveys.
The Romantic movement, which arose in the Germanic lands towards the end of the eighteenth century — with its emphasis on free imagination and the ability to illustrate and bind the emotional and the medieval worldview, and popular cultural life — has exerted a great influence on this album.
Although melancholy and mysticism manifest themselves strongly throughout Kveldssanger, one will also find among them distinct pieces that differ from the aforementioned with fresh, ecstatic elements, and epic harmonies. These are presented to engage varying visual impulses in the listener’s mind — and to spare them from being left with an empty impression without having felt the richness of what we are trying to express.
While we have largely adhered to Norwegian feelings and moods, this issue is not tied to any specific location. The music presented here is essentially a means to give the listeners’ imaginations wings to the old fairyland in their minds.
Beware of the light of the day…
The Twilight Songs are entirely dedicated to the Dark Powers
Nattens madrigal — Aatte hymne til ulven i manden
The Norwegian (or Olde Dannishe?) original of this text I deciphered not, because the English translation was provided since the first pressing of the album.
The typesetting was based on a mixture of information, which had not yet been digested enough. The cases of sſ are all wrong in the image above, as ſſ should’ve been used. The case of tranſformation is also wrong, as it is a compound word and must be written with a round s.
Or a more Compleat Universal Etymological English Dictionary Than any Extant.
London: Printed for T. Cox, at the Lamb under the Royal Exchange M,DCC,XXXVI
Blackletter typesetting and Fette Fraktur
The rules of Fraktur composition must’ve not differed much between Germany and Denmark and Scandinavia. The sſ combinations were to be found in compound words when one word ended with the sound of an s and the following began with it. Otherwise, in the middle of a word, an ſſ should be used. I briefly looked into books published in Denmark in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, set with blackletter, and did not find any differences from the common German blackletter composition.
The typeface used in the design of the original trilogie is Fette Fraktur — either (most probably) the Adobe/Linotype ≈1990 version, or the 1994 URW one.
FontShop description:
Designed by Linotype Design Studio in . Published by Linotype.
This font is one of the most used broken letter fonts today. Fette Fraktur is used to invoke a nostalgic or rustic feeling and found often on restaurants with ‘hearty homemade food’ or breweries who use the ‘good old recipes’ of the founder. The font was designed in the 19th century and from the beginning intended as an advertisement typeface. The lower case letters have a gothic character with only the ornamental flourishes making them broken letters, while the capital letters are more characteristic of broken letter typefaces. One could say Fette Fraktur font is a true mix of styles, not unusual for typefaces created at the turn of the 19th century.
Here is a 24-point letraset example, which the musicians were probably also acquainted with.
Daniel Reynolds published an excellent-excellent story of Fette Fraktur a year ago — https://www.typeoff.de/2023/03/fette-fraktur-questions/ — and everyone is encouraged to study it.
Instead of a conclusion
As soon as this text was written, I discovered that the original texts and their translations were provided in recent vinyl reissues of the trilogy. Well… shit, I thought. But then both Bergtatt and Kveldssanger texts there are a little altered, while I provide them here in their original form.
Texts as written in the booklets
Bergtatt
Ulver er een ærlig Formidling aff Følelser & Tanker rettede mod Faudens
Kræffter oc Natten dend sorte. Vi holder stæeke Ofverbefvisninger om,
at der existerer Væsener, der optræder i andere Former oc under andere
Forhold, end dem, Mennisker generelt ere vandte med. Giennem Ulver
hafver vi forsøgt at tægne et musikalsk Billede aff een anden Birkelig-
hed: een mytisk Forestillingsverden, der hverken falmer, forandres, eller
synker i Glæmsel. Ieg haaber ocsaa, at de giennem lange & høstmørcke
Nætter i Slutningen aff Aar 1994 ev, needskreffne Ord, skald være et
tilfredsstillende Accompagnement til de musikalske Stæmninger...
Mit Sigtepunkt hafver været at skabe et ofverveldende melankolsk
& sorrigfuldt Eeventyr med Udspring i ældere norsk Folckedigtning.
Bergtagelsessagn er et særnorsk Omraade, der Det Onde effter siigende
markerer sig stærkere end andere Stæder, der Væsener fra det Hinsidige
ere med paa, at forme Menniskers Liiv - Ulvers Kunstform skald
understreege netop disse dunkle & grimme, men samtidig hengifvent
vackre Siider aff norsk Ofvertroe.
Bergtagelsestraditionerne varierer stærkt i Fortellermaade, men
samtlige dreyer sig i Udgangspunktet om Troen paa, at Mennisker, der
forsvandt i ældere Dager, vaer blefvne lockede ind i Fjeldet til et
liivsvarig Hulderegteskab giennem et skjæbnesvangert Møde med de
Underjordiske.
Det eeneste Remedie, man beholdt, for at faae dend bergtagne frelst
tilbage til Verdnen udenfor, vaer at ringe med Kirckeklocker udenfor
Aastedet. Lâ nu disse Fjelds berøfvende Dører forblifve lukkede
- Trolddommen maa aldrig brydes! Vænd Christendommen din Ryg.
Vogt Eder for Dagens Lys...
"Bergtatt" er i det fulde & heele dedicered til Mørskemaktene
Kveldsſanger
«Kveldsſanger» er et muſikalſk Project, primært ſet baſered paa den Norſke
Folketroes mørcke Siider. Alligevel er dette ingen traditionel Folkemuſik-
udgifvelſe, men een gandſque Neofolkelig Tilpadſning aff de Følelſer, vi bærer
ofverfor de magiſke og mytiſke Ælementer aff ældere Culturtrin. Vi forſøger
her at male naturmyſtiſke & troldſke Stæmninger via reent acuſtiſke
Inſtrumænter, oc det I hører her, er et Reſultad aff ſeene [ſeeue?] kvælder hvor vi haf-
ver vært at finde i creativ Længſel effter gamle Norgis ſtoorſlaadte Hiſtorie,
eeventyrſke Natur og de troldbindende Fornſtæmninger hun formidler .
Den Romantiſke Aandsrætning, ſom opſto[d] i de germandſke Land mod ſluten
aff 1700-tallet, hafver udøvet meegen Indflydelſe paa dette Album, med ſiin
Betoning aff den frie Fantaſi & Æfvne til malende & fængſlende at knydde
Forbindelſer mellem det Følelſesmæsſige, oc Middelalderens liivsopfaddelſe &
folkelige Culturliiv.
Selff om Veemodet oc Myſtiken manifeſterer ſig ſtærkt igjennem
«Kveldsſanger», vil en ocſaa heriblandt finde ænkelte Compoſitioner ſom ere an-
derledes end ovennævndte, med friſque, ſværmeriſque Ælementer & epiſke
Harmonier. Disſe ere fremførede for at engagere varieerende viſuelle Impulſer
i Lydderens Sind - oc for at ſkaane Vedkommende fra at ſidde igien med et
tomt Indtryk, uden at hafve følt Rigdommen i det vi forſøger at udtrycke.
Dog vi ſtoort ſet hafver forholdt os til Norſke Følelſer & Stæmninger, er ey
denne Udgifvelſe tillagt nogen nærmere Stædsangifvelſe. Muſiken her fremført
er esſentielt et Midel til at gifve Tilhørernes Fantaſi Vinger til det gamle
Eeventyrland i deres Sind.
Vogt Eder for Dagens Lys...
Kveldsſangene ere i det fulde & heele dedicered til Mørſkemaktene