ULVER - Blood Inside

It is remarkable how well Ulver has aged and also the cross-over appeal they had, especially compared to same-generation bands.
It's a slightly nostalgic remark, as I was also a massive Arcturus fanboy at the time, as well as into other cool Norwegian projects like Manes (Vilosophe is quite close to BI), In the Woods..., Solefald (and elsewhere, of course maudlin of the Well / Kayo Dot). At the time it was perfectly logical.
People complain about the vocals, but I think La Masquerade Infernale is an original blueprint for Garm's rock-electronic ambitions (just listen to the first two tracks), right before Themes (which blew my mind and has forever special status, and maybe their top eccentricity).

Anyway, 2 years before Blood Inside:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Gg8zAoeNmI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_-uvdAv0xw

I should give Themes from... another try one day, I used to have it and decided it was horribly incoherent and flabby compared to bands like Arcturus (who I still have a big soft spot for) but not as convincingly loopy as 666 International (ditto)

it is incoherent and flabby but it is also legitimately batshit. i don't like it so much but you can't deny it's unique

Incoherent I get, but flabby ? If anything, and despite all the interludes, it's very focused and they take themselves very much too seriously. It's like a strange and dark industrial rock opera mixed with ambient and folk. Maybe you mean linear. But many songs either hit pretty hard, are trance-like and/or feature monstrous basslines. The Argument, A Memorable Fancy 6-7, Proverbs of Hell, Plates 12-13, Memorable Fancy 17-20, plates 21-22, Memorable Fancy 22-24 and others immediately before or after (I just mentioned the whole album). And it sounds utterly deranged / out of this world. I like to think old Blake would have been pleased. And like, who does that ? The text is easily 20 pages. I've listened to the album so much that it just seems a cool addition that it's Blake.

is there any way to listen to Nattens Madrigal without giving yourself massive tinnitus afterwards

xps it's been a while since I've heard it tbf I just remember thinking of it that way. What I should do is try to re-evaluate all the stuff I didn't like back in the day and see if I feel any different now my tastes have changed a bit. I was never into anything between Nattens Madrigal and Blood Inside.

In answer to frogbs' question: not that I'm aware of...

Nattens is unlistenable of course, it's an army of jigsaws, but maybe at low volume on headphones.