Mayhem

Norway, 1984–now

Oslo band formed in 1984, the notorious epicentre of Norwegian black metal. De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) defined the genre's sound, its history scarred by the death of vocalist Dead and the murder of guitarist Euronymous.

MusicRoots documents 3 artists who influenced Mayhem and 2 artists Mayhem influenced in turn. Every connection cites a published source.

Who influenced Mayhem?

• Venom — Mayhem took their name from a Venom song and built Norwegian black metal on Venom's satanic extremity.
• Bathory — Bathory's raw, lo-fi black metal is a direct template for Mayhem's sound.
• Celtic Frost — Celtic Frost's dark, heavy extremity is among the foundations Mayhem built the Norwegian scene on.

Which artists did Mayhem influence?

• Emperor — Emperor rose from the same early-'90s Norwegian scene Mayhem founded, building symphonic black metal on that template.
• Burzum — Burzum was bound up with Mayhem's inner circle, building its raw black metal from the same Norwegian scene.