Briefly explaining Black Metal's history (1986 - present)

Mayhem started black metal with a release of "Deathcrush" in 1986, which sounded like rock with one difference. High pitched screeches and blast drum beats. Mayhem became a cult band in 1993, with the release of "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas" which brought to the Norwegian eye that they were in fact what the public had dreaded - Satanists. Burzum a solo project by Count Grishnach, also known as Varg Vikernes, was also popular among the underground scene in Norway. He also used some of his bass work on the album De Mysteriis. Mayhem and Burzum were very close, and in fact even produced each other's albums. The problem with Varg and guitarist Øystein Aarseth (known to the black metal scene as Euronymous) was that they didnt see eye to eye on the satanic beliefs. Varg was a Levayan Satanist (non-thiestic, more psycological), and Øystein was a Theistic satanist (he even referred to himself as a 'Satanic Terrorist'). They often got into fights and delayed the production of EP's. The one who was most bothered was Per Yngve Ohlin, who was known as 'Dead' from a childhood expierience which almost claimed his life. Yngve was a manic depressant and often remarked on the fact that Varg and Øystein were fighting was one of the reasons. Yngve also worked in a small record shop, known as Helvete (owned by Øystein), which all the mayhem and burzum tapes were sold. On 8 April 1991, Yngve committed suicide in the basement of Helvete. He left a note reading "Excuse the mess". When Øystein found the body within two hours, he took photos and even made a macabre necklace out of a piece of Yngve's skull. When Øystein called Jørn Stubberud (aka Necrobutcher) he said that Dead had done something great, and it was the best thing he ever did for the band, however Jørn didnt think so. Jørn had known Yngve for over 12 years and was a great friend of his. When the news of Yngve's photo hit the public, Varg had the last straw. He traveled from Bergen to Oslo, and began to yell at Øystein and finally ended up stabbing him 23 times in the neck, head, back, and chest. Varg was sentanced to 21 years, due to his affiliations with the arsons of seven churches in the Bergen area.

Black metal has calmed down alot in recent years. Many of the recent black metal artists (i.e. Gorgoroth, Nargaroth, and Satanic Warmaster) have remarked on the early years being no different from the present, except that the artists dont kill each other. Nargaroth recieved some credit for his song "The day that Burzum killed Mayhem", which spiked the interest of Necrobutcher, and Jan Axel "Hellhammer" von Blomberg (drummer, Mayhem). Gorgoroth, who's most recent singer, Kristian Eivind Espedal (Gaahl) was affiliated with a black mass in Krakow, Poland. The entire band and Kristian put on a spectical where Sheep were dismembered on stage, and the heads were put on horrific pikes. Women and Men were crucified naked on large wooden crosses onstage, and the band was drenched in a macabre mixture of goat, sheep, and cow blood. The band was fined 10000z(~$4,658 USD) for putting on this concert. Kristian has also been arrested for brutally beating a man and forcing him to drink his own blood.

To this day, true black metal is still feared by the public eye. Many christian organizations fear this genre of music, because of its lyrics about satanism, the occult, and torture. Black metal is again taking a turn, splitting off into subgenres, such as Depressive/suicidal (Nocturnal Depression, Sterbend, Thy Light), Raw (Gorgoroth, God Seed, Satanic Warmaster), Symphonic (Dimmu Borgir, Emperor, Ihsahn) and Melodic (Naglfar).