Mayhem
4 vinyl records found
Mayhem is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 1984 and widely recognized as one of the genre's founding forces. Their early catalog and live presence shaped the black metal sound, though the band's history is inseparable from the violence and tragedy that marked the Oslo scene in the early 1990s.
About Mayhem
Mayhem started in 1984 when guitarist Øystein Aarseth, bassist Jørn Stubberud, and drummer Kjetil Manheim took their name from a Venom song and began playing covers of Black Sabbath, Venom, and Motörhead before writing original material. The early demos and 1987 EP Deathcrush on Euronymous' Posercorpse Music label established their reputation in underground circles, with the Deathcrush release limited and quickly sold out before reissue through Deathlike Silence Productions in 1993. By the late 1980s, the addition of Swedish vocalist Per Yngve Ohlin (Dead) and drummer Jan Axel Blomberg (Hellhammer) pushed the band toward increasingly extreme live performances marked by corpse paint, self-harm, and animal remains on stage.
The period from 1990 to 1993 saw the recording of De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas at Grieg Hall in Bergen, but was darkened by Dead's suicide in April 1991 and Euronymous' murder by former bassist Varg Vikernes in August 1993. Recorded with session musicians including Varg Vikernes and Attila Csihar, the album was released in 1994 and became one of black metal's most influential records. The surviving members Hellhammer, Maniac, and Necrobutcher reformed Mayhem in 1995 with guitarist Rune Eriksen, later adding Attila Csihar as vocalist and Morten Iversen as guitarist. Post-reunion work incorporated more experimental approaches, with Ordo ad Chao from 2007 earning the Spellemann Award for Best Heavy Metal Album.
The Groove Hunter currently tracks 5 editions of Mayhem releases, including pressings of Deathcrush with Black and Red Splatter vinyl and multiple editions of Live in Bischofswerda 21st June 1997, documenting both the band's early output and their live presence following their reformation.
