Bergtatt – Et eeventyr i 5 capitler (translated as "Spellbound – A Fairy Tale in 5 Chapters") is the debut studio album by the Norwegian band Ulver, issued in February 1995 via Head Not Found. The album was recorded at Endless Lydstudio in Oslo in November and December 1994 with Kristian Romsøe as engineer and co-producer.
The album was praised for its production atmosphere and was described as "mysterious, melancholic, eerie, and oddly tranquil". The archaic Dano-Norwegian lyrics were influenced by Scandinavian folktales and inspired by Baroque poets such as Ludvig Holberg and the hymn-writer Thomas Kingo.
Background
Bergtatt, the first part of what has become known as "The Trilogie – Three Journeyes Through the Norwegian Netherworlde", was released during the rise of the Norwegian black metal subculture in Norway in the early 1990s. Separated from the more straightforward black metal sound of their contemporaries, Ulver incorporated elements of Norwegian folk music, utilizing acoustic guitars, droning low choirs, flutes, melody-focused songwriting and clean vocals
In an interview with Rob Hughes for Unrestrained Magazine in 2007, Kristoffer Rygg reflected, "We were influenced by a period known as the Kingdom of Denmark–Norway (1536–1814)—the language and literature of that era combined with the superstition and folklore of the Middle Ages. It was the kind of stuff we were learning about in school at the time. When it comes to music, we were already listening to a whole slew of other things, and already had our two next records in mind, so by the time Nattens madrigal (1997) was released, we had developed a strong urge to explore something else. We had also acquired the knowledge of how to do so in the meantime."
Critical reception
AllMusic praised the album, writing, "Bergtatt is not the heaviest or most aggressive black metal around by a long shot; nor is it the most evil or blasphemous. What makes the album stand out, along with the varied vocal styles and the excellent songwriting, is its unique atmosphere—mysterious, melancholic, eerie and oddly tranquil." Going on to acknowledge Bergtatts influence on Agalloch, Cormorant, Alcest and October Falls,