List of Mayhem band members

Mayhem performing live in 2012

Mayhem is a Norwegian black metal band from Oslo. Formed in 1984, the group originally featured guitarist Øystein "Euronymous" Aarseth (originally known as "Destructor"), bassist and vocalist[1] Jørn "Necrobutcher" Stubberud and drummer Kjetil Manheim. The band's current lineup includes Necrobutcher (who rejoined in 1995 after originally leaving in 1991), drummer Jan Axel "Hellhammer" Blomberg (since 1988), vocalist Attila Csihar (first from 1992 to 1993, and since 2004), and guitarists Morten Bergeton "Teloch" Iversen (since 2011) and Charles "Ghul" Hedger (since 2012).

History

1984–1993

Mayhem was formed in 1984 by Necrobutcher with Euronymous and Manheim. After two years of rehearsals, the trio released its first demo Pure Fucking Armageddon in early 1986.[2] Shortly after its release, the group became a four-piece when Eirik "Messiah" Norheim took over vocals from Euronymous.[3] Within a year, the vocalist had been replaced by Sven Erik "Maniac" Kristiansen, who performed on the group's first EP Deathcrush.[2] Both Maniac and Manheim left shortly after the EP's release, and were briefly replaced by Vomit members Kittil Kittilsen and Torben Grue, respectively.[3]

During early 1988, Euronymous and Necrobutcher rebuilt Mayhem with the addition of new vocalist Per "Dead" Ohlin and drummer Jan Axel "Hellhammer" Blomberg.[3] The new incarnation remained stable for several years, recording several live releases, but did not issue a full-length studio album.[4] On 8 April 1991, Dead committed suicide at a house shared with Euronymous and Hellhammer.[5] Due to his death, and the guitarist's subsequent actions (including taking photos of his body, one of which was later used as the cover for a bootleg release), Necrobutcher left Mayhem.[6]

After a brief stint with Stian "Occultus" Johannsen, the band returned in late 1991 with Attila Csihar on vocals and Varg "Count Grishnackh" Vikernes on bass.[7][8] This lineup recorded Mayhem's long-awaited full-length debut De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, which featured material written by Dead and Necrobutcher.[9] However, before it could be released, Vikernes murdered Euronymous on August 10, 1993, stabbing the guitarist 23 times after growing tensions and business disputes.[10] The group consequently disbanded, with De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas receiving a release in 1994.[11]

Since 1995

In late 1995, Mayhem was reformed with a lineup including Hellhammer, former members Maniac (vocals) and Necrobutcher (bass), and new guitarist Rune "Blasphemer" Eriksen.[9] This incarnation remained intact for almost nine years, issuing the group's second and third full-length studio albums, Grand Declaration of War and Chimera.[12] In November 2004, Maniac left the band and was replaced by another former vocalist, Attila Csihar.[13] One more album followed, Ordo Ad Chao, before Blasphemer left in August 2008 claiming that he "simply [didn't] see any future for me in the band anymore".[14]

Blasphemer was replaced on tour by Krister "Morfeus" Dreyer starting in October 2008,[15] who was joined by French guitarist Silmaeth starting in March 2009.[16] Just under two years later, Silmaeth was replaced by Morten Bergeton "Teloch" Iversen,[17] and in 2012 Morfeus was replaced by Charles "Ghul" Hedger.[18]

Members

Current

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Necrobutcher (Jørn Stubberud)	1984–1991 1995–present	bass vocals (1984–86)	all Mayhem releases, except De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994),[19] and Life Eternal (2008)
	Hellhammer (Jan Axel Blomberg)	1988–1993 1995–present	drums	all Mayhem releases from Studio Tracks (1990) onwards
	Attila Csihar	1992–1993 2004–present	vocals	De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) Mediolanum Capta Est (1999) – guest appearance on one track only all Mayhem releases from Ordo Ad Chao (2007) onwards, except retrospective live releases
	Teloch (Morten Bergeton Iversen)	2011–present	guitar	all Mayhem releases from Esoteric Warfare (2014) onwards, except retrospective live releases
	Ghul (Charles Hedger)	2012–present

Former

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Euronymous (Øystein Aarseth)	1984–1993 (until his death)	guitar vocals (1984–86)	all Mayhem releases from Pure Fucking Armageddon (1986) to Out from the Dark (1996) Life Eternal (2008) Live in Zeitz (2016) Live in Sarpsborg (2017) Live in Jessheim (2017)
	Nils Brekke Svensson	1984 (temporary)	vocals	none
	Ståle Redalen
	Per Nilsen		guitar
	Kjetil Manheim	1984–1987	drums piano	Pure Fucking Armageddon (1986) Deathcrush (1987) The Dawn of the Black Hearts (1995) – bonus tracks only
	Messiah (Eirik Norheim)	1986	vocals	Deathcrush (1987) – three tracks only, The Dawn of the Black Hearts (1995) – Bonus tracks only, Atavistic Black Disorder / Kommando (2021) – guest appearance on 1 track
	Maniac (Sven Erik Kristiansen)	1986–1987 1995–2004		Deathcrush (1987) all Mayhem releases from Wolf's Lair Abyss (1997) to Chimera (2004) and Atavistic Black Disorder / Kommando (2021) – guest appearance on 1 track
	Kittil Kittilsen	1987–1988 (temporary)		none
	Torben Grue		drums
	Dead (Per Ohlin)	1988–1991 (until his death)	vocals	Studio Tracks (1990) Live in Leipzig (1993) The Dawn of the Black Hearts (1995) Out from the Dark (1996) Live in Zeitz (2016) Live in Sarpsborg (2017) Live in Jessheim (2017)
	Occultus (Stian Johannsen)	1991	vocals bass	Helvete (The Occultus Sessions 1991)
	Count Grishnackh (Varg Vikernes)	1991–1993	bass	De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) Life Eternal (2008)
	Blackthorn (Snorre Ruch)	1992–1993	rhythm guitar	De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) [20] (songwriting only)
	Blasphemer (Rune Eriksen)	1995–2008	guitar bass (2006)	all Mayhem releases from Wolf's Lair Abyss (1997) to Ordo Ad Chao (2007)
	Alexander Nordgaren	1997–1998 (touring only)	guitar	none
	Sanrabb (Morten Furuly)	2004 (touring only)
	Ihizahg (Tom Johansen)	2004–2005 (touring only)
	Morfeus (Krister Dreyer)	2008–2012 (touring only)
	Silmaeth (aka Vagus Nox, real name unknown)	2009–2011 (touring only)

Timeline

Lineups

Period	Members	Releases
1984 – early 1986	Euronymous – guitar, vocals Necrobutcher – bass, vocals Manheim – drums	Pure Fucking Armageddon (1986)
Early – late 1986	Messiah – vocals Euronymous – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Manheim – drums, piano	Deathcrush (1987)
Late 1986 – late 1987	Maniac – vocals Euronymous – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Manheim – drums, piano
Late 1987 – early 1988	Kittil Kittilsen – vocals Euronymous – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Torben Grue – drums	none
Early 1988 – April 1991	Dead – vocals Euronymous – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums	Studio Tracks (1990) Live in Leipzig (1993) Dawn of the Black Hearts (1995) Out from the Dark (1996) Live in Zeitz (2016) Live in Jessheim (2017) Live in Sarpsborg (2019)
Mid–late 1991	Occultus – vocals, bass Euronymous – guitar Hellhammer – drums	none
Late 1991 – August 1993	Attila Csihar – vocals Euronymous – lead guitar Count Grishnackh – bass Hellhammer – drums Blackthorn – rhythm guitar	De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) Life Eternal (2008)
Band inactive August 1993 – late 1995
Late 1995 – November 2004	Maniac – vocals Blasphemer – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums	Wolf's Lair Abyss (1997) Live in Bischofswerda (1998) Mediolanum Capta Est (1999) Grand Declaration of War (2000) Live in Marseille 2000 (2001) European Legions (2001) Chimera (2004)
November 2004 – August 2008	Attila Csihar – vocals Blasphemer – guitar, bass Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums	Ordo Ad Chao (2007)
October 2008 – March 2009	Attila Csihar – vocals Morfeus – guitar (touring only) Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums	none
March 2009 – February 2011	Attila Csihar – vocals Morfeus – guitar (touring only) Silmaeth – guitar (touring only) Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums
February 2011 – late 2012	Attila Csihar – vocals Morfeus – guitar (touring only) Teloch – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums
Late 2012 – present	Attila Csihar – vocals Teloch – guitar Ghul – guitar Necrobutcher – bass Hellhammer – drums	Esoteric Warfare (2014) De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas Alive (2016) Live in Guatemala City (2017) Live in Montreal (2018) Daemon (2019) Atavistic Black Disorder/Kommando (2021)

References

1. "Mayhem - Pure Fucking Armageddon - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives".
2. Doran, John (April 10, 2014). ""It's Not Easy Listening": Thirty Years Of Pure Fucking Mayhem". The Quietus. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
3. Alves, Luis (April 2014). "30 Years of Darkness". Against Magazine. No. 8. Against Magazine. pp. 8–31. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
4. Krovatin, Chris (April 8, 2020). "Per "Dead" Ohlin Was Black Metal's Most Tragic Loss". Kerrang!. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
5. Hartmann, Graham (June 4, 2012). "Marduk Guitarist Confirms He Owns Skull and Brain Matter from Mayhem's Per 'Dead' Ohlin". Loudwire. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
6. Campion, Chris (February 20, 2005). "In the face of death". The Guardian. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
7. Wiederhorn, Jon (October 2, 2017). "Mayhem's Attila Csihar on "Very Mystical Album" 'De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas'". Revolver. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
8. Linke, Werner "Nyar" (1991). "Interview with Varg Vikernes". C.O.T.I.M. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
9. Grow, Kory (February 9, 2017). "Mayhem's Long, Dark Road to Reviving a Black-Metal Classic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
10. Godfrey, Alex (March 22, 2019). "'Before you know it, it's not a big deal to kill a man': Norwegian black metal's murderous past". The Guardian. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
11. Huey, Steve. "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas - Mayhem: Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
12. Monger, James Christopher. "Mayhem: Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
13. "Mayhem Vocalist Maniac Out, Attila Back In". Blabbermouth.net. November 16, 2004. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
14. "Departing Mayhem Guitarist: 'I Don't Regret Anything'". Blabbermouth.net. August 9, 2008. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
15. "Dimension F3 H Frontman To Join Mayhem For South American Dates". Blabbermouth.net. October 16, 2008. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
16. "Mayhem Announces New Touring Guitarist". Blabbermouth.net. March 17, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
17. "Mayhem Parts Ways With Guitarist, Announces Replacement". Blabbermouth.net. February 12, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
18. Hadusek, Jon (September 27, 2019). "Mayhem unleash "Of Worms and Ruins" ahead of new album Daemon: Stream". Yahoo!. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
19. Co–wrote some of the music and lyrics.
20. "Interview with Necro Butcher and Hellhammer taken from Terrorizer magazine #45". panzer.users5.50megs.com. Retrieved 2021-01-26.

External links

• Mayhem official website