Emerging in the mid-’80s, Mayhem quickly became one of the pivotal bands within the burgeoning black metal scene. Known for their aggressive sound and scandalous image, the band was also marked by a series of internal conflicts and tragedies, particularly surrounding the lives and deaths of two central figures, Per Yngve Ohlin, known as ‘Dead,’ and Øystein Aarseth, known as ‘Euronymous.’
Dead joined Mayhem as a vocalist in 1988, bringing a distinctive stage presence characterized by the extreme. Meanwhile, Euronymous, one of the founding members of Mayhem, was more than just a guitarist; he was also the band’s ideologue, pushing the band towards darker themes and aesthetics.
Though initially rooted in mutual artistic respect, their relationship became fraught over time. Bassist Necrobutcher once noted that the pair began to annoy each other considerably, and their friendship deteriorated. This tension even resulted in Dead allegedly stabbing Euronymous with a knife after a disagreement over music preferences.
The tragic end of Dead’s life came on April 8, 1991. He was found by Euronymous in their shared house, having died by suicide. His farewell note was both cryptic and poignant, expressing a feeling of alienation and a sense that he was living in a dream. Interestingly, he left behind the lyrics to the song ‘Life Eternal,’ a title that now seems eerily prophetic.
Euronymous’s reaction to finding Dead’s body was controversial. He bought a disposable camera and took photographs of the scene, later using them to bolster Mayhem’s ‘evil’ image. Rumors even circulated that Euronymous made necklaces from Dead’s skull fragments, a claim that band members later confirmed.
A little over two years after Dead’s death, Euronymous himself met a violent end on August 10, 1993. Varg Vikernes, known as ‘Count Grishnackh,’ and then-Mayhem bassist, murdered Euronymous at his Oslo apartment. A dispute over a contract had allegedly precipitated the confrontation that led to Euronymous’s death. Vikernes claimed that Euronymous had intended to torture him to death and had used the contract as a pretext for a meeting.
Euronymous’s body was found with twenty-three cut wounds. Vikernes was arrested within days and later sentenced to 21 years in prison, the maximum sentence in Norway, for the murder and a series of church arsons. He was released from prison in 2009. Another band member, Blackthorn, was sentenced to 8 years in prison for complicity in the murder despite not directly participating in the act.
The deaths of Dead and Euronymous permanently impacted Mayhem’s image, pushing the band further into the realms of notoriety and controversy. ‘The Dawn of the Black Hearts,’ a bootleg live recording of a 1990 Mayhem concert, was published in 1995. Despite being a bootleg, the album is regarded as one of the band’s core releases, largely because of the fame attached to the cover art, which features one of the aforementioned images of Dead taken shortly after his suicide.
