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183-406: Louis Cachet (born Kristian Vikernes ; 11 February 1973), better known as Varg Vikernes ( Norwegian: [ˈvɑrɡ ˈvìːkəɳeːs] ), is a Norwegian musician and author best known for his early black metal albums and later crimes. His first five records, released under the name Burzum from 1992 to 1996, made him one of the most influential figures in the early Norwegian black metal scene . He

366-589: A 1992 paper, contends that the swastika-like comet on the Han-dynasty manuscript was labelled a "long tailed pheasant star" ( dixing ) because of its resemblance to a bird's foot or footprint. Similar comparisons had been made by J.   F. Hewitt in 1907, as well as a 1908 article in Good Housekeeping . Kobres goes on to suggest an association of mythological birds and comets also outside of China. In Native American culture , particularly among

549-429: A 2009 interview, saying he was collecting explosives and ammunition "in order to defend Norway if we were attacked any time." Vikernes' trial began on 2 May 1994; he was represented by the lawyer Stein-Erik Mattsson . Many other members of the scene, including Blackthorn and Faust, were put on trial around the same time. Some of them confessed to their crimes and implicated others. According to Lords of Chaos , "Vikernes

732-627: A 37-year-old man . It was said he was killed "out of anger" because he had "harassed" the two men. Nödtveidt received a 10-year sentence. As the victim was a homosexual immigrant, Dissection was accused of being a Nazi band, but Nödtveidt denied this and dismissed racism and nationalism. The Swedish band Shining , founded in 1996, began writing music almost exclusively about depression and suicide, musically inspired by Strid and by Burzum's albums Hvis lyset tar oss and Filosofem . Vocalist Niklas Kvarforth wanted to "force-feed" his listeners "with self-destructive and suicidal imagery and lyrics." In

915-512: A Burzum album or two, but that's it". In the early 2000s Vikernes regularly wrote articles in the magazine of the neopagan neo-Nazi group Vigrid . In August 2003, Vikernes was transferred from a maximum-security prison in Bergen to the low-security prison in Tønsberg. On 15 October, the local paper, Tønsbergs Blad , published an article that criticised Vikernes. On 26 October, Vikernes went on

1098-470: A Burzum flyer. According to Vikernes, the anonymous interview was planned by himself and Euronymous. The goal, he says, was to scare people, promote black metal, and get more customers for Helvete . At the time, Burzum was about to release the Aske mini-album. Some of the other scene members were also arrested and questioned, but all were released for lack of evidence. Jørn Inge Tunsberg of Hades said that

1281-509: A French national, were arrested at their home in Corrèze , France, on suspicion of planning acts of terrorism after his wife bought four rifles. Officials later stated that Vikernes' wife had a legal firearms permit to buy the rifles. The two were later released without charge after police failed to identify any terrorist plans or targets. Vikernes was instead charged by French authorities with inciting racial hatred against Jews and Muslims. This

1464-496: A band who Johnathan Selzer of Terrorizer magazine says "represent the DIY aspect of black metal." In addition, lo-fi production was used to keep black metal inaccessible or unappealing to mainstream music fans and those who are not committed . Many have claimed that black metal was originally intended only for those who were part of the scene and not for a wider audience. Vocalist Gaahl said that during its early years, "Black metal

1647-516: A bed, toilet and shower. It's completely ridiculous. I asked the police to throw me in a real dungeon, and also encouraged them to use violence". He was released in March for lack of evidence. In early 1993, animosity arose between Euronymous and Vikernes. After the Bergens Tidende episode, Euronymous decided to shut Helvete down as it began to draw the attention of the police and media. On

1830-532: A black metal band, vocalist Dani Filth said he considers them black metal in terms of philosophy and atmosphere, but not in other ways. Another English band called Necropolis never released any music, but "began a desecratory assault against churches and cemeteries in their area" and "almost caused Black Metal to be banned in Britain as a result". Dayal Patterson says successful acts like Cradle of Filth "provoked an even greater extremity [of negative opinion] from

2013-532: A cabin in Rollag Municipality , where Vikernes had hidden during his escape. They concluded that his escape "was well planned and involved assistance from several people on the outside". Before the escape, Vikernes gave his mother a letter. In it, he wrote that he had received death threats and another inmate had tried to strangle him shortly after the newspaper article was published. For his actions, thirteen months were added to Vikernes' sentence and he

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2196-450: A chiral irregular icosagon (20-sided polygon ) with fourfold (90°) rotational symmetry . Such a swastika proportioned on a 5   ×   5 square grid and with the broken portions of its legs shortened by one unit can tile the plane by translation alone. The main Nazi flag swastika used a 5   ×   5 diagonal grid, but with the legs unshortened. The swastika was adopted as

2379-664: A confrontation began and Vikernes stabbed Euronymous to death. His body was found outside the apartment with 23 cut wounds—two to the head, five to the neck, and sixteen to the back. It has been speculated that the murder was the result of either a power struggle, a financial dispute over Burzum records or an attempt at outdoing a stabbing in Lillehammer the year before by Faust. Vikernes denies all of these, claiming that he attacked Euronymous in self-defense. He says that Euronymous had plotted to stun him with an electroshock weapon , tie him up and torture him to death while videotaping

2562-586: A disharmonic sound that is representative of that scene. The early American black metal bands remained underground. Some of them—like Grand Belial's Key and Judas Iscariot —joined an international NSBM organization called the Pagan Front, although Judas Iscariot's sole member Akhenaten left the organization. Other bands like Averse Sefira never had any link with Nazism. The US bands have no common style. Many were musically inspired by Burzum but did not necessarily adopt Vikernes's ideas. Profanatica's music

2745-408: A distinctive "lo-fi" quality. However, even when success allowed access to professional studios, many artists instead chose to continue making lo-fi recordings. Artists believed that by doing so, they would both stay true to the genre's underground roots as well as make the music sound more "raw" or "cold". A well-known example of this approach is on the album Transilvanian Hunger by Darkthrone ,

2928-688: A film called ForeBears , based on bear worship during the time of the Neanderthals , and inspired by the Egyptian Book of the Dead . Vikernes was one of the recipients of far-right terrorist Anders Behring Breivik 's manifesto, which Breivik sent out before launching the 2011 Norway attacks , killing 77 people. Although Vikernes condemned Breivik's actions, this drew the attention of the French authorities. On 16 July 2013, Vikernes and his wife,

3111-709: A grave in Toulon in June 1996, and a 19-year-old black metal fan stabbed a priest to death in Mulhouse on Christmas Eve 1996. According to MkM of Antaeus and Aosoth, the early French scene "was quite easy to divide: either you were NSBM, and you had the support from zine and the audience, or you were part of the black legions, and you had that 'cult' aura", whereas his band Antaeus, not belonging to either of these sub-scenes, "did not fit anywhere." Many French bands, like Deathspell Omega and Aosoth, have an avantgarde approach and

3294-415: A house shared by the band. Fellow musicians described Dead as odd, introverted and depressed. Mayhem's drummer, Hellhammer , said that Dead was the first to wear the distinctive corpse paint that became widespread in the scene. He was found with slit wrists and a shotgun wound to the head. Dead's suicide note began with "Excuse all the blood", and apologized for firing the weapon indoors. Before calling

3477-475: A late paleolithic figurine of a bird, carved from mammoth ivory, found in Mezine , Ukraine. However, the age of 10,000 BCE is a conservative estimate, and the true age may be as old as 17,000 BCE. It has been suggested that this swastika may be a stylised picture of a stork in flight. As the carving was found near phallic objects, this may also support the idea that the pattern was a fertility symbol. In

3660-401: A letter from Max Müller that quotes Burnouf. The term sauwastika is used in the sense of 'backward swastika' by Eugène Goblet d'Alviella (1894): "In India it [the gammadion ] bears the name of swastika , when its arms are bent towards the right, and sauwastika when they are turned in the other direction." Other names for the symbol include: In various European languages, it

3843-658: A mapping in the original Big5 character set, but the former does not (although it is in Big5+ ). In Unicode 5.2, two swastika symbols and two swastikas were added to the Tibetan block : swastika U+0FD5 ࿕ RIGHT-FACING SVASTI SIGN , U+0FD7 ࿗ RIGHT-FACING SVASTI SIGN WITH DOTS , and swastikas U+0FD6 ࿖ LEFT-FACING SVASTI SIGN , U+0FD8 ࿘ LEFT-FACING SVASTI SIGN WITH DOTS . European uses of swastikas are often treated in conjunction with cross symbols in general, such as

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4026-499: A newspaper depicted there refer to her with the given name Lene, whereas Vikernes' own website uses the name Helene). In a 2004 interview, Vikernes said his mother was "working in a large oil company". His father is an electronics engineer, and his older brother is a civil engineer. In the Lords of Chaos interview, Vikernes recalls that when he was 6 years old, the family moved for about a year to Baghdad , Iraq, because Vikernes' "father

4209-435: A part of this wave included Germany's Kreator , Sodom and Destruction (from Germany), Italy's Bulldozer and Death SS , Japan's Sabbat and Colombia's Parabellum . In 1987, in the fifth issue of his Slayer fanzine, Jon 'Metalion' Kristiansen wrote that "the latest fad of black/Satanic bands seems to be over", citing United States bands Incubus and Morbid Angel , as well as Sabbat from Great Britain as some of

4392-631: A particularly ambitious and articulate understanding of mysticism and its validity to black metal. Many Swedish black metal bands, most notably Watain and Dissection, are [or were] affiliated with the Temple of the Black Light, or Misanthropic Luciferian Order […] a Theistic , Gnostic , Satanic organization based in Sweden". Upon his release in 2004, Jon Nödtveidt restarted Dissection with new members whom he felt were able to "stand behind and live up to

4575-764: A reaction against death metal bands, who at that time had begun to use brightly colored album artwork. Many purist black metal artists have continued this style. Black metal album covers are typically dark and tend to be atmospheric or provocative; some feature natural or fantasy landscapes (for example Burzum 's Filosofem and Emperor's In the Nightside Eclipse ) while others are violent, sexually transgressive, sacrilegious, or iconoclastic (for example Marduk 's Fuck Me Jesus and Dimmu Borgir 's In Sorte Diaboli ). The earliest black metal artists had very limited resources, which meant that recordings were often made in homes or basements, giving their recordings

4758-676: A right angle. The word swastika comes from Sanskrit : स्वस्तिक , romanized :  svastika , meaning 'conducive to well-being'. In Hinduism , the right-facing symbol (clockwise) ( 卐 ) is called swastika , symbolizing surya ('sun'), prosperity and good luck, while the left-facing symbol (counter-clockwise) ( 卍 ) is called sauvastika , symbolising night or tantric aspects of Kali . In Jain symbolism , it represents Suparshvanatha  – the seventh of 24 Tirthankaras ( spiritual teachers and saviours ), while in Buddhist symbolism it represents

4941-673: A scene that mixed the first wave black metal style with elements of death metal and grindcore ; this included Beherit , Archgoat and Impaled Nazarene , whose debut album Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz Rock Hard journalist Wolf-Rüdiger Mühlmann considers a part of war metal's roots. Bands such as Demoncy and Profanatica emerged during this time in the United States, when death metal was more popular among extreme metal fans. The Norwegian band Mayhem's concert in Leipzig with Eminenz and Manos in 1990, later released as Live in Leipzig ,

5124-433: A sense of dread. The tritone , or flat-fifth, is often used. Guitar solos and low guitar tunings are rare in black metal. The bass guitar is seldom used to play stand-alone melodies. It is common for the bass to be muted against the guitar, or for it to homophonically follow the low-pitched riffs of the guitar. While electronic keyboards are not a standard instrument, some bands, like Dimmu Borgir , use keyboards "in

5307-481: A song on his official YouTube channel, titled "Back to the Shadows", which Vikernes has stated to be the last metal track to be released by Burzum. In May 2013, he released another ambient album, Sôl austan, Mâni vestan . In the years following his release from prison, Vikernes became an active video blogger on his YouTube channel, ThuleanPerspective (or Thulêan Perspective). In 2013, Vikernes and his wife released

5490-608: A standard character in Chinese , " 卍 " ( pinyin : wàn ) and as such entered various other East Asian languages , including Chinese script . In Japanese the symbol is called " 卍 " ( Hepburn : manji ) or " 卍字 " ( manji ) . The swastika is included in the Unicode character sets of two languages. In the Chinese block it is U+534D 卍 (left-facing) and U+5350 for the swastika 卐 (right-facing); The latter has

5673-417: A synthesizer. In 2000, Vikernes decided to put Burzum on hold. He believed that his philosophy was constantly misinterpreted by an ignorant fan base that was too closely related to black metal and Satanism. Later, through his website, he indicated that he hoped to continue Burzum after his release from prison, stating: "I will publish a few books, possibly using a pseudonym in order to stay anonymous, and perhaps

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5856-635: A vocal style influenced by Quorthon of Bathory . Death growls , common in the death metal genre, are sometimes used, but less frequently than the characteristic black metal shriek. Black metal lyrics typically attack Christianity and the other institutional religions, often using apocalyptic language and evoking anti-authoritarianism and anti-establishment messages against religious governments and societies. Satanic lyrics are common, and many see them as essential to black metal. For Satanist black metal artists, "Black metal songs are meant to be like Calvinist sermons; deadly serious attempts to unite

6039-576: Is prohibited by law . However, the swastika remains a symbol of good luck and prosperity in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain countries such as Nepal, India, Thailand, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, China and Japan, and carries various other meanings for peoples around the world, such as the Akan , Hopi , Navajo , and Tlingit peoples. It is also commonly used in Hindu marriage ceremonies and Dipavali celebrations. With well-being ( swasti ) we would follow along our path, like

6222-619: Is a swastika symbol used to decorate objects, traditional clothing and in archaeological excavations . According to painter Stanisław Jakubowski, the "little sun" (Polish: słoneczko ) is an Early Slavic pagan symbol of the Sun; he claimed it was engraved on wooden monuments built near the final resting places of fallen Slavs to represent eternal life. The symbol was first seen in his collection of Early Slavic symbols and architectural features, which he named Prasłowiańskie motywy architektoniczne (Polish: Early Slavic Architectural Motifs ). His work

6405-536: Is called yung drung . All swastikas are bent crosses based on a chiral symmetry, but they appear with different geometric details: as compact crosses with short legs, as crosses with large arms and as motifs in a pattern of unbroken lines. Chirality describes an absence of reflective symmetry , with the existence of two versions that are mirror images of each other. The mirror-image forms are typically described as left-facing or left-hand (卍) and right-facing or right-hand (卐). The compact swastika can be seen as

6588-533: Is clearly marked on a hilt and sword belt found at Bifrons in Kent, in a grave of about the 6th century. Hilda Ellis Davidson theorised that the swastika symbol was associated with Thor , possibly representing his Mjolnir  – symbolic of thunder – and possibly being connected to the Bronze Age sun cross. Davidson cites "many examples" of swastika symbols from Anglo-Saxon graves of

6771-739: Is close to death metal, while Demoncy were accused of ripping off Gorgoroth riffs. There also emerged bands like Xasthur and Leviathan (whose music is inspired by Burzum and whose lyrics focus on topics such as depression and suicide), Nachtmystium , Krallice , Wolves in the Throne Room (a band linked to the crust punk scene and the environmental movement ), and Liturgy (the style of whom frontwoman Hunter Hunt-Hendrix describes as 'transcendental black metal'). These bands eschew black metal's traditional lyrical content for "something more Whitman -esque" and have been rejected by some traditional black-metallers for their ideologies and

6954-732: Is considered one of the most influential records for the war metal style. Fenriz of the Norwegian band Darkthrone called Master's Hammer's debut album Ritual "the first Norwegian black metal album, even though they are from Czechoslovakia". It was only during this post–1987 era of bands that the various extreme metal styles began to develop definitions distinct from one another, and the borders of what now consistues black metal were drawn. The second wave of black metal began in 1991, with Rock Hard magazine crediting Samael 's Worship Him (1 April 1991) as its beginnings, while, Metal Hammer writer Enrico Ahlig cited it as beginning with

7137-582: Is depicted among the magical symbols on the drums of Sami noaidi , used in their religious ceremonies before Christianity was established. The name of the Sami thunder god was Horagalles , thought to derive from "Old Man Thor" ( Þórr karl ). Sometimes on the drums, a male figure with a hammer-like object in either hand is shown, and sometimes it is more like a cross with crooked ends, or a swastika. The icon has been of spiritual significance to Indian religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. The swastika

7320-413: Is disgusted by the fact that, while he held fast to a code of silence, others confessed." During the trial, the media made Vikernes "the nation's first real bogeyman in fifty years". At the trial it was claimed that he, Blackthorn, and another friend had planned the murder. The court alleged that this third person stayed at the apartment in Bergen as an alibi; to make it look like they never left Bergen, he

7503-791: Is known as the fylfot , gammadion , tetraskelion , or cross cramponnée (a term in Anglo-Norman heraldry ); German: Hakenkreuz ; French: croix gammée ; Italian: croce uncinata ; Latvian : ugunskrusts . In Mongolian it is called [хас] Error: {{Lang}}: Non-latn text/Latn script subtag mismatch ( help ) ( khas ) and mainly used in seals. In Chinese it is called 卍字 ( wànzì ), pronounced manji in Japanese, manja (만자) in Korean and vạn tự or chữ vạn in Vietnamese . In Balti / Tibetan language it

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7686-500: Is said to have "left about 10 years ago", which would have been 1985, when Vikernes was 11 or 12. The Encyclopedia of White Power and historian Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke have both alleged that Vikernes was part of the neo-Nazi skinhead culture as an adolescent. When asked in the Lords of Chaos interview whether he hung out with skinheads in Bergen, Vikernes said that "there were no skinheads in Bergen". According to an interview posted on his official website, Vikernes' facial scar

7869-806: Is still prioritized over technique. "This professionalism has to go," insists well-respected drummer and metal historian Fenriz (Gylve Fenris Nagell) of Darkthrone . "I want to de-learn playing drums, I want to play primitive and simple, I don't want to play like a drum solo all the time and make these complicated riffs". Black metal songs often stray from conventional song structure and often lack clear verse-chorus sections. Instead, many black metal songs contain lengthy and repetitive instrumental sections. The Greek style—established by Rotting Christ , Necromantia and Varathron —has more death metal traits than Norwegian black metal. Traditional black metal bands tend to favor raspy, high-pitched vocals which include techniques such as shrieking, screaming, and snarling,

8052-742: Is taken from that of an orc in The Two Towers , while the band name Burzum, meaning "darkness", was taken from the Black Speech inscribed on the One Ring in The Lord of the Rings . The inscription read "Ash nazg durbatulûk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatulûk agh burzum -ishi krimpatul", or in English, "One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in

8235-502: The Avar khans depicted a wolf with a standard with a double-spiral swastika. Petroglyphs with swastikas were depicted on medieval Vainakh tower architecture (see sketches by scholar Bruno Plaetschke from the 1920s). Thus, a rectangular swastika was made in engraved form on the entrance of a residential tower in the settlement Khimoy , Chechnya . Iron Age attestations of swastikas can be associated with Indo-European cultures such as

8418-582: The Hisarlik mound near the Aegean Sea coast for the history of Troy. Schliemann linked his findings to the Sanskrit swastika . By the 19th century, the term swastika was adopted into the English lexicon, replacing the previous gammadion from Greek γαμμάδιον . In 1878, Irish scholar Charles Graves used swastika as the common English name for the symbol, after defining it as equivalent to

8601-540: The Illyrians , Indo-Iranians , Celts , Greeks , Germanic peoples and Slavs . In Sintashta culture 's " Country of Towns ", ancient Indo-European settlements in southern Russia, it has been found a great concentration of some of the oldest swastika patterns. Swastika shapes have been found on numerous artefacts from Iron Age Europe. The swastika shape (also called a fylfot ) appears on various Germanic Migration Period and Viking Age artifacts, such as

8784-652: The Pima people of Arizona , the swastika is a symbol of the four winds. Anthropologist Frank Hamilton Cushing noted that among the Pima the symbol of the four winds is made from a cross with the four curved arms (similar to a broken sun cross ) and concludes "the right-angle swastika is primarily a representation of the circle of the four wind gods standing at the head of their trails, or directions." The earliest known swastikas are from 10,000 BCE – part of "an intricate meander pattern of joined-up swastikas" found on

8967-1024: The Swastika Stone . Swastikas have also been found on pottery in archaeological digs in Africa, in the area of Kush and on pottery at the Jebel Barkal temples, in Iron Age designs of the northern Caucasus ( Koban culture ), and in Neolithic China in the Majiayao culture. Swastikas are also seen in Egypt during the Coptic period. Textile number T.231-1923 held at the V&;A Museum in London includes small swastikas in its design. This piece

9150-492: The darkness bind them." Additionally, before joining the Bergen death metal band Old Funeral , he was in a band called Uruk-Hai, which was named for a type of orc from Tolkien's writing. Vikernes started playing guitar at the age of 14. When he was 17, Vikernes came into contact with members of Old Funeral. He played guitar with them during 1990–1991 and performed on their Devoured Carcass EP before he began his solo musical project, Burzum , and quickly became involved with

9333-484: The early Norwegian black metal scene . During 1992–1993, he recorded four albums as Burzum. Vikernes has stated that for the recording of these early albums he used an old Westone guitar, which he had bought in 1987 from an acquaintance. He used the cheapest bass guitar there was in his local shop and borrowed a drum kit from Old Funeral, the successor band Immortal , and "another musician living nearby". On Hvis lyset tar oss , he also borrowed Hellhammer 's drum kit,

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9516-665: The neo-Nazi organisation Norwegian Heathen Front , had two books published, and released two ambient albums as Burzum. In 2009, he was released on parole, after which he moved to France with his wife and children, where he has continued to write and make music. He was also an active video blogger on his YouTube channel ThuleanPerspective, before the channel was banned by the platform. Described by Sam Dunn as "the most notorious metal musician of all time", Vikernes remains controversial for his crimes as well as his political and religious views. He promoted views which combined Odinism and Esoteric Nazism , and openly embraced Nazism during

9699-529: The post-rock and shoegazing influences some of them have adopted. Also, some bands like Agalloch started to incorporate "doom and folk elements into the traditional blast-beat and tremolo-picking of the Scandinavian incarnation", a style that later became known as Cascadian black metal , in reference to the region where it emerged. In Australia, a scene led by bands like Deströyer 666 , Vomitor, Hobbs' Angel of Death , Nocturnal Graves and Gospel of

9882-552: The sun cross of Bronze Age religion . Beyond its certain presence in the " proto-writing " symbol systems, such as the Vinča script , which appeared during the Neolithic . According to René Guénon , the swastika represents the north pole, and the rotational movement around a centre or immutable axis ( axis mundi ), and only secondly it represents the Sun as a reflected function of

10065-426: The "Arabic Anti-Islamic Legion." Another Lebanese band, Ayat , drew much attention with their debut album Six Years of Dormant Hatred , released through North American label Moribund Records in 2008. Some European bands have also begun expressing anti-Islamic views, most notably the Norwegian band Taake . Regarding the sound of black metal, there are two conflicting groups within the genre: "those that stay true to

10248-500: The "suicidal black metal" term a "foolish idea." According to Erik Danielsson, when his band Watain formed in 1998, there were very few bands who took black metal as seriously as the early Norwegian scene had. A newer generation of Swedish Satanic bands like Watain and Ondskapt , inspired by Ofermod , the new band of Nefandus member Belfagor, put this scene "into a new light." Kvarforth said, "It seems like people actually [got] afraid again." "The current Swedish black metal scene has

10431-502: The 12th century and considered architecturally significant, was burned to the ground by arson. The cover of Burzum's EP Aske ("ashes") is a photograph of the destroyed church. By January 1993, arson attacks had occurred on at least seven other major stave churches , including one on Christmas Eve of 1992. Vikernes was found guilty of several of these cases: the arson and attempted arson of Åsane Church and Storetveit Church in Bergen ,

10614-518: The 19th and early 20th century, such as suastika . It was derived from the Sanskrit term ( Devanagari स्वस्तिक ), which transliterates to svastika under the commonly used IAST transliteration system , but is pronounced closer to swastika when letters are used with their English values. The earliest known use of the word swastika is in Pāṇini 's Aṣṭādhyāyī , which uses it to explain one of

10797-640: The 3rd-century Værløse Fibula from Zealand, Denmark, the Gothic spearhead from Brest-Litovsk , today in Belarus, the 9th-century Snoldelev Stone from Ramsø , Denmark, and numerous Migration Period bracteates drawn left-facing or right-facing. The pagan Anglo-Saxon ship burial at Sutton Hoo , England, contained numerous items bearing swastikas, now housed in the collection of the Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology . A swastika

10980-612: The 8 April 1991 suicide of Mayhem vocalist Dead . During 1990–1993 , a number of Norwegian artists began performing and releasing a new kind of black metal music; this included Mayhem , Darkthrone , Burzum , Immortal , Emperor , Satyricon , Enslaved , Thorns , and Gorgoroth . They developed the style of their 1980s forebears into a distinct genre. This was partly thanks to a new kind of guitar playing developed by Snorre 'Blackthorn' Ruch and Øystein 'Euronymous' Aarseth . Fenriz of Darkthrone described it as being "derived from Bathory" and noted that "those kinds of riffs became

11163-694: The Blood , Vikernes launched the Norwegian Heathen Front ( Norsk Hedensk Front ) during his early years in prison. Gardell says this was a pagan neo-Nazi group that grew into the international Pan-Germanic Heathen Front ( Allgermanische Heidnische Front or AHF). According to Xavier Cattarinich, Vikernes was the "self-proclaimed leader" of the Norwegian Heathen Front and Goodrick-Clarke mentions that Vikernes underlined "his role as chieftain of his Norwegian Heathen Front" with

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11346-563: The French term croix gammée  – a cross with arms shaped like the Greek letter gamma (Γ). Shortly thereafter, British antiquarians Edward Thomas and Robert Sewell separately published their studies about the symbol, using swastika as the common English term. The concept of a "reversed" swastika was probably first made among European scholars by Eugène Burnouf in 1852 and taken up by Schliemann in Ilios (1880), based on

11529-408: The Greek and Finnish bands that emerged around the same time as the Norwegian scene. Norwegian-inspired black metal guitarists usually favor high-pitched or trebly guitar tones and heavy distortion . The guitar is usually played with fast, un- muted tremolo picking and power chords . Guitarists often use dissonance —along with specific scales , intervals and chord progressions—to create

11712-684: The Horns arose. This scene's typical style is a mixture of old school black metal and raw thrash metal influenced by old Celtic Frost, Bathory, Venom, and Sodom but also with its own elements. Melechesh was formed in Jerusalem in 1993, "the first overtly anti-Christian band to exist in one of the holiest cities in the world". Melechesh began as a straightforward black metal act with their first foray into folk metal occurring on their 1996 EP The Siege of Lachish . Their subsequent albums straddled black, death, and thrash metal. Another band, Arallu ,

11895-464: The NSBM scene, among others, see the Norwegian bands as poseurs whose "ideology is cheap", although they still respect Vikernes and Burzum, whom Grand Belial's Key vocalist Richard Mills called "the only Norwegian band that remains unapologetic and literally convicted of his beliefs." In France, besides Les Légions Noires (The Black Legions), an NSBM scene arose. Members of French band Funeral desecrated

12078-604: The Pacific and even North America (especially Moundville ). In Armenia the swastika is called the " arevakhach " and "kerkhach" ( Armenian : կեռխաչ ) and is the ancient symbol of eternity and eternal light (i.e. God). Swastikas in Armenia were found on petroglyphs from the copper age, predating the Bronze Age. During the Bronze Age it was depicted on cauldrons , belts, medallions and other items. Swastikas can also be seen on early Medieval churches and fortresses, including

12261-436: The Sanskrit grammar rules, in the context of a type of identifying mark on a cow's ear. Most scholarship suggests that Pāṇini lived in or before the 4th century BCE, possibly in 6th or 5th century BCE. An important early use of the word swastika in a European text was in 1871 with the publications of Heinrich Schliemann , who discovered more than 1,800 ancient samples of swastika symbols and variants thereof while digging

12444-538: The Sun and the Moon. May we meet up with one who gives in return, who does not smite (harm), with one who knows. — The Rigveda V.52.15 The word swastika is derived from the Sanskrit root swasti , which is composed of su 'good, well' and asti 'is; it is; there is'. The word swasti occurs frequently in the Vedas as well as in classical literature, meaning 'health, luck, success, prosperity', and it

12627-512: The Swedish black metal scene started to burn churches as well in 1993. Those convicted for church burnings showed no remorse and described their actions as a symbolic "retaliation" against Christianity in Norway. Mayhem drummer Hellhammer said he had called for attacks on mosques and Hindu temples , on the basis that they were more foreign. Today, opinions on the church burnings differ within

12810-519: The United States. Black Funeral, from Houston , formed in 1993, was associated with black magic and Satanism . A notable black metal group in England was Cradle of Filth , who released three demos in a black/death metal style with symphonic flourishes, followed by the album The Principle of Evil Made Flesh , which featured a then-unusual hybrid style of black and gothic metal . The band then abandoned black metal for gothic metal, becoming one of

12993-530: The album was released in March 2020. Vikernes stated at the time that this would be his last album under the Burzum name. In 2024, however, he began releasing singles in his former black metal style under the name "Burzum (NEW)", intended to form an album called The Land of Thule when put together. In late 1994, while in prison, Vikernes wrote a Norwegian-language book called Vargsmål ("Varg's Speech"). Vikernes has said he wrote Vargsmål to defend himself against

13176-710: The archaeological record around 3000 BCE in the Indus Valley Civilisation. It also appears in the Bronze and Iron Age cultures around the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea . In all these cultures, swastika symbols do not appear to occupy any marked position or significance, appearing as just one form of a series of similar symbols of varying complexity. In the Zoroastrian religion of Persia ,

13359-536: The arson of Skjold Church in Vindafjord , and the arson of Holmenkollen Chapel in Oslo. He was also charged with the arson of Fantoft Stave Church, although the jurors found him not guilty. The judges called this an error but did not overthrow the whole case. At the time, media outlets reported that Vikernes was associated with theistic Satanism . In later interviews Vikernes, while not accepting responsibility for

13542-539: The arsons, said that they were not Satanic, but instead "revenge" for the Christian desecration of Viking graves and temples. According to Vikernes, the arsons were on the anniversary of the Lindisfarne Viking raid . Vikernes claimed that all the burnings, except for the one at Stavanger, were done by one person. In January 1993, an article in one of Norway's biggest newspapers, Bergens Tidende , brought

13725-582: The auspicious footprints of the Buddha . In the different Indo-European traditions, the swastika symbolises fire , lightning bolts, and the sun . The symbol is found in the archaeological remains of the Indus Valley civilisation and Samarra , as well as in early Byzantine and Christian artwork . Although used for the first time as a symbol of international antisemitism by far-right Romanian politician A. C. Cuza prior to World War I , it

13908-561: The background" or as "proper instruments" for creating atmosphere. Some newer black metal bands began raising their production quality and introducing additional instruments such as synthesizers and even orchestras . The drumming is usually fast and relies on double-bass and blast beats to maintain tempos that can sometimes approach 300 beats per minute. These fast tempos require great skill and physical stamina, typified by black metal drummers Frost ( Kjetil-Vidar Haraldstad ) and Hellhammer ( Jan Axel Blomberg ). Even still, authenticity

14091-585: The band, which were featured on the Devoured Carcass EP , as well as various compilation albums released years later. In 1992, Vikernes, along with other members of the scene, was suspected of burning down four Christian churches in Norway. Vikernes denied committing the arsons, though he supported them. In 1992–1993, he also recorded bass for Mayhem 's debut studio album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994). In August 1993, Vikernes fatally stabbed Mayhem guitarist Euronymous during an altercation at

14274-473: The bass tracks recorded by Vikernes, but Hellhammer said: "I thought it was appropriate that the murderer and victim were on the same record. I put word out that I was re-recording the bass parts. But I never did". In 2003, Vikernes failed to return to Tønsberg prison after being given a short leave. He was re-arrested shortly after while driving a stolen car with various weapons. Vikernes was released on parole in 2009. Japanese band Sigh formed in 1990 and

14457-401: The beginning, he used the term "suicidal black metal" for his music. However, he stopped using the term in 2001 because it had begun to be used by a slew of other bands, whom he felt had misinterpreted his vision and were using the music as a kind of therapy rather than a weapon against the listener as Kvarforth intended. He said that he "wouldn't call Shining a black metal band" and called

14640-512: The black metal community. Many musicians, singers, and songwriters in the early Norwegian black metal scene, such as Infernus and Gaahl of Gorgoroth , continue to praise the church burnings, with the latter saying "there should have been more of them, and there will be more of them". Others, such as Necrobutcher and Kjetil Manheim of Mayhem and Abbath of Immortal, see the church burnings as having been futile. Manheim claimed that many arsons were "just people trying to gain acceptance" within

14823-542: The black metal scene after Dead had shot himself ... I think it was Dead's suicide that really changed the scene". Two other members of the early Norwegian scene later committed suicide: Erik 'Grim' Brødreskift (of Immortal , Borknagar , Gorgoroth ) in 1999 and Espen 'Storm' Andersen (of Strid ) in 2001. During May–June 1991, Euronymous of Mayhem opened an independent record shop named " Helvete " ( Norwegian for "Hell") at Schweigaards gate 56 in Oslo . It quickly became

15006-481: The black metal scene into the media spotlight. Two friends of Vikernes interviewed him and brought the interview to the newspaper, hoping they would print it. In the anonymous interview, "Count Grishnackh" (Vikernes) claimed to have burnt the churches and killed a man in Lillehammer. BT journalist Finn Bjørn Tønder set up a meeting with Count Grishnackh with help from the friends. The journalists were summoned to an apartment and reportedly warned that they would be shot if

15189-484: The black metal scene. Watain vocalist Erik Danielsson respected the attacks, but said of those responsible: "the only Christianity they defeated was the last piece of Christianity within themselves. Which is a very good beginning, of course". In early 1993, animosity arose between Euronymous and Vikernes. On the night of 10 August 1993, Varg Vikernes (of Burzum) and Snorre 'Blackthorn' Ruch (of Thorns) drove from Bergen to Euronymous's apartment in Oslo. When they arrived

15372-501: The buildings were hundreds of years old and seen as important historical landmarks. The first to be burnt down was Norway's Fantoft Stave Church . Police believe Varg Vikernes of Burzum was responsible. The cover of Burzum's EP Aske ("ashes") is a photograph of the destroyed church. In May 1994, Vikernes was found guilty for burning down the Holmenkollen Chapel , Skjold Church , and Åsane Church . In addition, he

15555-514: The case against the "Einsatzgruppe" was dropped. During his time in prison, Vikernes recorded two albums made up wholly of ambient and neofolk music. The first, Dauði Baldrs , was recorded in 1994–1995 and released in October 1997. The second, Hliðskjálf , was recorded in 1998 and released in April 1999. Vikernes was denied access to an electric guitar, bass guitar or drums, and instead used

15738-463: The death threats he received from him. Vikernes was arrested on 19 August 1993, in Bergen. Many other members of the scene were taken in for questioning around the same time. Some of them confessed to their crimes and implicated others. In May 1994, Vikernes was sentenced to 21 years in prison (Norway's maximum penalty) for the murder of Euronymous, the arson of four churches, and for possession of 150 kg of explosives. However, he only confessed to

15921-564: The demands of Dissection's Satanic concept." He started calling Dissection "the sonic propaganda unit of the MLO" and released a third full-length album, Reinkaos . The lyrics contain magical formulae from the Liber Azerate and are based on the organization's teachings. After the album's release and a few concerts, Nödtveidt said that he had "reached the limitations of music as a tool for expressing what I want to express, for myself and

16104-666: The demo Burning Quran Ceremony in 2010. Its frontwoman, Anahita, claimed her parents and brother were killed by a suicide bomb during the Iraq War . Another Iraqi band, Seeds of Iblis, also fronted by Anahita, released their debut EP Jihad Against Islam in 2011 through French label Legion of Death. Metal news website Metalluminati suggests that their claims of being based in Iraq are a hoax. These bands, along with Tadnees (from Saudi Arabia), Halla (from Iran), False Allah (from Bahrain), and Mosque of Satan (from Lebanon), style themselves as

16287-546: The early 1990s, spearheaded by bands in the early Norwegian black metal scene scene, such as Mayhem , Darkthrone , Burzum , Immortal , Emperor , Satyricon and Gorgoroth . This wave developed other scenes at the same time in Finland ( Beherit , Archgoat , Impaled Nazarene ); Sweden ( Dissection , Abruptum , Marduk , Nifelheim ); the United States ( Profanatica , Demoncy , Grand Belial's Key , Judas Iscariot ); France ( Mütiilation , Vlad Tepes ); as well as leading to

16470-454: The early 20th century. The appropriation continues with its use by neo-Nazis around the world. The swastika was and continues to be used as a symbol of divinity and spirituality in Indian religions , including Hinduism , Buddhism , and Jainism . It generally takes the form of a cross , the arms of which are of equal length and perpendicular to the adjacent arms, each bent midway at

16653-440: The event . Vikernes explains: "If he was talking about it to everybody and anybody I wouldn't have taken it seriously. But he just told a select group of friends, and one of them told me". He said Euronymous planned to use a meeting about an unsigned contract to ambush him. On the night of the murder, Vikernes and Snorre "Blackthorn" Ruch drove from Bergen to Euronymous' apartment at Tøyengata in Oslo. Blackthorn allegedly stood in

16836-497: The event. He said Euronymous planned to use a meeting about an unsigned contract to ambush him. Vikernes claims he intended to hand Euronymous the signed contract that night and "tell him to fuck off", but that Euronymous panicked and attacked him first. He also claims that most of the cuts were from broken glass Euronymous had fallen on during the struggle. The self-defense story is doubted by Faust, while Necrobutcher confirmed that Vikernes killed Euronymous in self-defense due to

17019-440: The explosives, two churches were set on fire the day he was sentenced, "presumably as a statement of symbolic support". Blackthorn, who hadn't taken part in the murder as he had gone down the condominium's stairs to smoke, was sentenced to 8 years in prison for being an accomplice. May 1994 also saw the release of Mayhem's album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas , which has Euronymous on electric guitar and Vikernes on bass guitar. Before

17202-460: The few continuing the genre. However, black metal continued in the underground, with scenes developing in Brazil with Sepultura , Vulcano , Holocausto and Sarcófago , Czechoslovakia with Root , Törr and Master's Hammer , and Sweden with Grotesque , Merciless , Mefisto , Tiamat and Morbid . Sarcófago's debut album I.N.R.I. (1987), was widely influential on subsequent acts in

17385-429: The focal point of Norway's emerging black metal scene and a meeting place for many of its musicians; especially the members of Mayhem, Burzum, Emperor and Thorns. Jon 'Metalion' Kristiansen, writer of the fanzine Slayer , said that the opening of Helvete was "the creation of the whole Norwegian black metal scene". In its basement, Euronymous founded an independent record label named Deathlike Silence Productions . With

17568-419: The formation of influential bands in other countries including Sigh and Cradle of Filth . Initially a synonym for "Satanic metal", black metal has often sparked controversy, due to the actions and ideologies associated with the genre. Some artists express misanthropic views, and others advocate various forms of extreme anti-Christian sentiment , Satanism , or ethnic paganism . In the 1990s, members of

17751-418: The game. The game has been criticized for its overcomplicated rule set as well as racist references; there are multiple nonplayable enemy races collectively referred to as Koparmenn ("copper men") who are described as filthy and animalistic, and presumably represent non-Europeans. From 2017, Vikernes also wrote a series, which includes three volumes, titled "Paganism Explained", with his spouse, Marie Cachet ,

17934-418: The genre had not been set, instead, black metal bands existed in a broader extreme metal umbrella alongside the earliest groups in death metal , grindcore and thrash metal . Hellhammer , from Switzerland, "made truly raw and brutal music" with Satanic lyrics, and became an important influence on later black metal; "Their simple yet effective riffs and fast guitar sound were groundbreaking, anticipating

18117-442: The genre to subvert most traditional rock tropes, in a way that led journalist Dayal Patterson that "undoubtedly... create[d] the black metal sound as we know it". The Danish band Mercyful Fate influenced the Norwegian scene with their imagery and lyrics. Frontman King Diamond , who wore ghoulish black-and-white facepaint on stage, may be one of the inspirators of what became known as ' corpse paint '. Other artists that were

18300-404: The genre's first wave, with their second album Black Metal (1982) giving it its name. In the subsequent years, the style was expanded by Bathory , Mercyful Fate , Hellhammer and Celtic Frost . By 1987, this wave had largely declined, however influential works continued to be released by Parabellum , Blasphemy , Sarcófago , Tormentor , Samael and Rotting Christ . A second wave arose in

18483-428: The genre's roots, and those that introduce progressive elements". The former believe that the music should always be minimalist —performed only with the standard guitar-bass-drums setup and recorded in a low fidelity style. One supporter of this train of thought is Blake Judd of Nachtmystium , who has rejected labeling his band black metal for its departure from the genre's typical sound. Snorre Ruch of Thorns , on

18666-629: The genre, especially the second wave Norwegian scene and groups in the war metal style. BrooklynVegan writer Kim Kelly calling it "a gigantic influence on black metal’s sound, aesthetics, and attitude." Furthermore, during this time other influential records in the genre were released by Von (from the United States), Rotting Christ (from Greece), Tormentor (from Hungary), Mortuary Drape (from Italy), Kat (from Poland), Samael (from Switzerland) and Blasphemy (from Canada). Blasphemy's debut album Fallen Angel of Doom (1990)

18849-661: The group's leading members, esotericist Jan Erik Kvamsdahl helped Vikernes publish Vargsmål and set up the Heathen Front according to the Monitor organization. On 8 April 1997, Norwegian police arrested five neo-Nazis in Hemnes Municipality . According to police, the young men were part of a self-styled " Einsatzgruppe " and were plotting attacks on political and religious figures in Norway. They also had plans to break Vikernes out of prison. The group "had all

19032-439: The handful of others that I care about" and disbanded Dissection before dying by suicide. A part of the underground scene adopted a Jungian interpretation of the church burnings and other acts of the early scene as the re-emergence of ancient archetypes, which Kadmon of Allerseelen and the authors of Lords of Chaos had implied in their writings. They mixed this interpretation with Paganism and Nationalism. Varg Vikernes

19215-509: The influence of an absolute degenerate loser, Øystein ", and blaming his past actions and "degeneracy" on the negative influence of others in the scene. In a 2020 blog post, Vikernes wrote that he had many differences with others in the black metal scene from the beginning; they did not care for his political opinions or rifle collection, and he changed his beliefs to fit in. On 6 June 1992, the Fantoft Stave Church , dating from

19398-490: The interview had "grave consequences" for the rest of the scene and that they did not know he was going to talk to the press, as "he had said nothing". He added that they became "bloody angry" and he, Tunsberg, was "pissed off". Norwegian magazine Rock Furore published an interview with Vikernes in February 1993. In it, he said of the prison system: "It's much too nice here. It's not hell at all. In this country prisoners get

19581-405: The late 1970s, punk rock came to influence the birth of black metal. Tom G. Warrior of Hellhammer and Celtic Frost credited English punk group Discharge as "a revolution, much like Venom", saying, "When I heard the first two Discharge records, I was blown away. I was just starting to play an instrument and I had no idea you could go so far." The use of corpse paint in the black metal imagery

19764-412: The late 1990s, the underground concluded that several of the Norwegian pioneers—like Emperor, Immortal, Dimmu Borgir , Ancient , Covenant/The Kovenant , and Satyricon —had commercialized or sold out to the mainstream and "big bastard labels." Dayal Patterson states that successful acts like Dimmu Borgir "provoked and even greater extremity [of negative opinion] from the underground" regarding

19947-465: The later trademark sound of early Swedish death metal". In 1984, members of Hellhammer formed Celtic Frost , whose music "explored more orchestral and experimental territories. The lyrics also became more personal, with topics about inner feelings and majestic stories. But for a couple of years, Celtic Frost was one of the world's most extreme and original metal bands, with a huge impact on the mid-1990s black metal scene". Another influential early band

20130-432: The latter's apartment, and was arrested shortly after. In May 1994, Vikernes was convicted of first-degree murder , church arson and possession of explosives. Vikernes has always maintained the killing was self-defense , and unsuccessfully argued for the charge to be reduced to voluntary manslaughter . He was sentenced to 21 years in prison, the maximum penalty under Norwegian law. During his incarceration, Vikernes launched

20313-509: The latter. Two churches were burnt the day he was sentenced, "presumably as a statement of symbolic support". Vikernes smiled when his verdict was read and the picture was widely reprinted in the news media. Blackthorn was sentenced to eight years in prison for being an accomplice to the murder. That month saw the release of Mayhem's album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas , which featured Euronymous on guitar and Vikernes on bass guitar. Euronymous's family had asked Mayhem's drummer, Hellhammer, to remove

20496-538: The media. According to Lords of Chaos , Vargsmål became available on the Internet for some time in 1996 but not in a printed form. In 1997, a Norwegian publisher released a paperback edition of the book; its publication was financed by Vikernes's mother, Helene Bore. As of 1999, Vargsmål was being sold by the Nazi organization Heathen Front via its website. In 1998 he wrote a book called Germansk Mytologi og Verdensanskuelse ("Teutonic Mythology and Worldview") that

20679-428: The mid-1990s, the style of the Norwegian scene was being adopted by bands worldwide, and in 1998, Kerrang! journalist Malcolm Dome said that "black metal as we know it in 1998 owes more to Norway and to Scandinavia than any other particular country". Newer black metal bands also began raising their production quality and introducing additional instruments such as synthesizers and even full-symphony orchestras . By

20862-621: The mid-to-late 1990s. He has since disavowed the ideology and its associated movements, although critics continue to label his views as far-right . Vikernes calls his beliefs " Odalism " and defends a " pre-industrial European pagan society" that opposes the Abrahamic religions and systems such as capitalism , communism , materialism , and socialism . In the interviews printed in the 1998 book Lords of Chaos , Vikernes discusses his background and childhood. Lords of Chaos also includes an interview with his mother, Helene Bore (the book and

21045-528: The most important recordings for the German scene. He said they were "not necessarily the best German releases, but they all kicked off something". In the beginning of the second wave, the different scenes developed their own styles; as Alan 'Nemtheanga' Averill says, "you had the Greek sound and the Finnish sound, and the Norwegian sound, and there was German bands and Swiss bands and that kind of thing." By

21228-409: The most stand-out trait is their use of corpse paint —black and white face paint sometimes mixed with real or fake blood, which is used to create a corpse-like or demonic appearance. The imagery of black metal reflects its lyrics and ideology. In the early 1990s, most pioneering black metal artists had minimalist album covers featuring xeroxed black-and-white pictures and/or writing. This was partly

21411-519: The most successful extreme metal bands to date. John Serba of AllMusic commented that their first album "made waves in the early black metal scene, putting Cradle of Filth on the tips of metalheads' tongues, whether in praise of the band's brazen attempts to break the black metal mold or in derision for its 'commercialization' of an underground phenomenon that was proud of its grimy heritage". Some black metal fans did not consider Cradle of Filth to be black metal. When asked if he considers Cradle of Filth

21594-524: The mountains of Iran , there are swastikas or spinning wheels inscribed on stone walls, which are estimated to be more than 7,000 years old. One instance is in Khorashad, Birjand , on the holy wall Lakh Mazar. Mirror-image swastikas (clockwise and counter-clockwise) have been found on ceramic pottery in the Devetashka cave , Bulgaria, dated to 6,000 BCE. In Asia, swastika symbols first appear in

21777-442: The murder, Vikernes and Blackthorn drove back to Bergen. On the way, they stopped at a lake where Vikernes disposed of his bloodstained clothes. This claim of self-defense is doubted by Emperor drummer Faust , but Mayhem bassist Necrobutcher believed Vikernes did kill Euronymous due to the aforementioned death threats. Blackthorn claimed Vikernes planned to murder Euronymous and pressured him into coming along. He claimed that, in

21960-905: The murder]". Vikernes was arrested on 19 August 1993 in Bergen. The police found 150 kg of explosives and 3,000 rounds of ammunition in his home. According to the Encyclopedia of White Power , Vikernes "intended to blow up Blitz House , the radical leftist and anarchist enclave in Oslo", a plan that "was reportedly on the verge of execution." In an article originally published in 1999, Kevin Coogan also mentioned Vikernes' alleged intent to "destroy an Oslo-based punk anti-fascist squat called Blitz House", and stated "Vikernes may have felt that he had no choice but to kill Euronymous before bombing Blitz House because 'the Communist' would almost certainly have opposed such an act." Vikernes denied these claims in

22143-1240: The mythology and folklore of their homelands and promote a revival of pre-Christian, pagan traditions. A significant number of bands write lyrics only in their native language and a few (e.g. Arckanum and early Ulver ) have lyrics in archaic languages. Some doom metal -influenced artists' lyrics focus on depression, nihilism, introspection, self-harm and suicide. Many bands choose not to play live. Many of those who do play live maintain that their performances "are not for entertainment or spectacle. Sincerity, authenticity and extremity are valued above all else". Some bands consider their concerts to be rituals and often make use of stage props and theatrics. Bands such as Mayhem , Gorgoroth , and Watain are noted for their controversial shows, which have featured impaled animal heads, mock crucifixions, medieval weaponry and band members doused in animal blood. A few vocalists, such as Dead , Maniac and Kvarforth , are known for cutting themselves while singing onstage. Black metal artists often appear dressed in black with combat boots, bullet belts, spiked wristbands and inverted crosses and inverted pentagrams to reinforce their anti-Christian or anti-religious stance. However,

22326-584: The new order for a lot of bands in the '90s". The wearing of corpse paint became standard, and was a way for many black metal artists to distinguish themselves from other metal bands of the era. The scene also had an ideology and ethos. Artists were bitterly opposed to Christianity and presented themselves as misanthropic Devil worshippers who wanted to spread terror, hatred and evil. They professed to be serious in their views and vowed to act on them. Ihsahn of Emperor said that they sought to "create fear among people" and "be in opposition to society". The scene

22509-634: The night of 10 August 1993, Vikernes stabbed Euronymous to death at his apartment in Oslo. The murder was initially blamed on Swedish black metallers by the media. It has been speculated that the murder was the result of a power struggle, a financial dispute over Burzum records (Euronymous owed Vikernes a large sum of royalty payments ), or an attempt at "outdoing" a recent stabbing in Lillehammer committed by Emperor drummer Faust. Vikernes claims that he killed Euronymous in self-defense. He says that Euronymous had plotted to stun him with an electroshock weapon , tie him up, and torture him to death while videotaping

22692-584: The north pole. As such it is a symbol of life, of the vivifying role of the supreme principle of the universe, the absolute God, in relation to the cosmic order. It represents the activity (the Hellenic Logos , the Hindu Om , the Chinese Taiyi , 'Great One') of the principle of the universe in the formation of the world. According to Guénon, the swastika in its polar value has

22875-476: The official Burzum website. He also wrote for his personal blog, Thulean Perspective, which was set up in January 2013. The website Ancestral Cult was created by him and his wife. Vikernes has self-published a tabletop role-playing game named MYFAROG (Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game). In 2019, he announced that the upcoming ambient album of Burzum, Thulêan Mysteries , was also intended as background music for

23058-604: The oldest examples of the symbol in Sintashta culture , the swastika symbolises the universe, representing the spinning constellations of the celestial north pole centred in α Ursae Minoris , specifically the Little and Big Dipper (or Chariots), or Ursa Minor and Ursa Major. Likewise, according to René Guénon-the swastika is drawn by visualising the Big Dipper/Great Bear in the four phases of revolution around

23241-485: The organization, as all letters would have been screened by the prison personnel. Vikernes said "I have never formed or been a member of such organizations. The only organization I am a member of is Riksmålsforbundet " ( The Society for the Preservation of Traditional Standard Norwegian ). However, Vikernes did come into contact with the neo-Nazi group Zorn 88 , and wrote articles in its magazine Gjallarhorn . One of

23424-567: The other hand, has said that modern black metal is "too narrow" and believes that this was "not the idea at the beginning". Swastika The swastika ( 卐 or 卍 ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, and it is also seen in some African and American ones. In the Western world, it is more widely recognized as a symbol of the German Nazi Party who appropriated it for their party insignia starting in

23607-490: The pagan period, with particular prominence on cremation urns from the cemeteries of East Anglia. Some of the swastikas on the items, on display at the Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, are depicted with such care and art that, according to Davidson, it must have possessed special significance as a funerary symbol . The runic inscription on the 8th-century Sæbø sword has been taken as evidence of

23790-789: The parts are as follows, " Thrymskvida ", "Little Red Riding Hood & Jack and the Beanstalk ", "The Cult of Mithra & Hymiskvida", "Valholl & Odinn in Yggdrasill ", and "Ásgardr, Vanaheimr & the Nine Worlds of Hel" Black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music . Common traits include fast tempos , a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking , raw ( lo-fi ) recording, unconventional song structures , and an emphasis on atmosphere. Artists often appear in corpse paint and adopt pseudonyms . Venom initiated

23973-471: The pole star. In their 1985 book Comet , Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan argue that the appearance of a rotating comet with a four-pronged tail as early as 2,000 years BCE could explain why the swastika is found in the cultures of both the Old World and the pre-Columbian Americas . The Han dynasty Book of Silk (2nd century BCE) depicts such a comet with a swastika-like symbol. Bob Kobres, in

24156-413: The police were called. There, Vikernes and his companions told the journalists that they had burnt the churches, or knew who had done it, and said that the attacks would continue. They claimed to be devil worshippers and said: "Our intention is to spread fear and devilry [...] that is why we are telling this to Bergens Tidende ." They gave the journalists details about the arsons that hadn't been released to

24339-689: The police, Euronymous got a disposable camera and photographed the body, after re-arranging some items. One of these photographs was later used as the cover of a bootleg live album, Dawn of the Black Hearts . Euronymous made necklaces with bits of Dead's skull and gave some to musicians he deemed worthy. Rumors also spread that he had made a stew with bits of his brain. Euronymous used Dead's suicide to foster Mayhem's evil image and claimed Dead had killed himself because extreme metal had become trendy and commercialized. Mayhem bassist Jørn 'Necrobutcher' Stubberud noted that "people became more aware of

24522-520: The press, so BT spoke with the police before publishing it, who confirmed these details. The article was published on 20 January as the front page of the BT . It was headlined "We Lit the Fires" and included a photo of Vikernes, his face mostly hidden, holding two large knives. However, by the time the article was printed, Vikernes had already been arrested. The police found him by going to an address printed on

24705-403: The primary influence on black metal, Vikernes has always denied to be influenced by them, as well as defining the band as "a joke". He once wore a T-shirt of Venom's Black Metal to promote the genre but stated he later regretted doing that. From an early age, Vikernes was also deeply fascinated with the fictional realm of Middle-earth created by J. R. R. Tolkien . His stage name, Grishnakh,

24888-514: The principal tower in Armenia's historical capital city of Ani . The same symbol can be found on Armenian carpets , cross-stones ( khachkar ) and in medieval manuscripts, as well as on modern monuments as a symbol of eternity . Old petroglyphs of four-beam and other swastikas were recorded in Dagestan , in particular, among the Avars . According to Vakhushti of Kartli , the tribal banner of

25071-452: The project. YouTube removed Vikernes's channel from the platform in June 2019, by which point it had 250,000 subscribers. This coincided with an announcement from YouTube that it would be more aggressive in removing "videos alleging that a group is superior in order to justify discrimination, segregation or exclusion". In late 2019, Vikernes announced on Twitter that he intended to release another album as Burzum. Titled Thulêan Mysteries ,

25254-475: The release, Euronymous' family had asked Mayhem's drummer, Hellhammer , to remove the bass tracks recorded by Vikernes. Hellhammer said "I thought it was appropriate that the murderer and victim were on the same record. I put word out that I was re-recording the bass parts, but I never did." Vikernes served his sentence at the prisons in Bergen, Tønsberg , Ringerike , Trondheim , and Tromsø . According to Swedish scholar Matthias Gardell in his book Gods of

25437-422: The rising popularity of his band and others like it, the underground success of Euronymous's label is often credited for encouraging other record labels, who had previously shunned black metal acts, to then reconsider and release their material. In 1992, members of the Norwegian black metal scene began a wave of arson attacks on Christian churches. By 1996, there had been at least 50 such attacks in Norway. Some of

25620-530: The run after being granted a short leave. He stopped a car in Numedal . Inside it was a family of three, who said that he hijacked the car at gunpoint. About 19 hours later, police stopped the car in Romerike and arrested him. The car contained knives, a gas mask, camouflage clothing, a portable GPS navigator , maps, a compass, a laptop and a mobile phone. Police also found a handgun and a G3 automatic rifle in

25803-570: The same meaning of the yin and yang symbol of the Chinese tradition, and of other traditional symbols of the working of the universe, including the letters Γ ( gamma ) and G, symbolising the Great Architect of the Universe of Masonic thought. According to the scholar Reza Assasi, the swastika represents the north ecliptic north pole centred in ζ Draconis , with the constellation Draco as one of its beams. He argues that this symbol

25986-400: The same one Hellhammer used to record De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas by Mayhem . He used a Peavey amplifier, but for the recording of Filosofem , he used the amplifier on his brother's stereo and some old fuzz pedals. For vocals, he would use whatever microphone the sound tech handed him, but during the recording of Filosofem , he intentionally used the worst mic they had, a headset mic. On

26169-521: The scene were responsible for a spate of church burnings and murders. There is also a neo-Nazi movement within black metal, although it has been shunned by many prominent artists. Generally, black metal strives to remain an underground phenomenon. Although contemporary black metal typically refers to the Norwegian style with shrieking vocals and raw production, the term has traditionally been applied to bands with widely differing sounds, such as Death SS , Mercyful Fate , Mayhem , Blasphemy , and

26352-415: The stairwell smoking while Vikernes went to Euronymous' apartment on the fourth floor. Vikernes said he met Euronymous at the door to hand him the signed contract, but when he stepped forward and confronted Euronymous, Euronymous "panicked" and kicked him in the chest. Vikernes claims Euronymous ran into the kitchen to fetch a knife. The two got into a struggle and Vikernes stabbed Euronymous to death. His body

26535-445: The summer of 1993, he was almost committed to a mental hospital but fled to Bergen and stayed with Vikernes. Blackthorn said of the murder, "I was neither for nor against it. I didn't give a shit about Øystein". Vikernes, however, claims that he had not planned the killing and that Blackthorn came along to show Euronymous some new guitar riffs. Vikernes called Blackthorn's claims a "defense [...] to make sure I couldn't blame him [for

26718-566: The swastika as a symbol of Thor in Norse paganism . The bronze frontispiece of a ritual pre-Christian ( c.  350–50 BCE ) shield found in the River Thames near Battersea Bridge (hence " Battersea Shield ") is embossed with 27 swastikas in bronze and red enamel. An Ogham stone found in Aglish, County Kerry , Ireland ( CIIC 141) was modified into an early Christian gravestone, and

26901-465: The swastika include veterok ("breeze"), ognevtsi ("little flames"), "geese", "hares" (a towel with a swastika was called a towel with "hares"), or "little horses". The similar word " koleso " ("wheel") was used for rosette-shaped amulets, such as a hexafoil -thunder wheel [REDACTED] ) in folklore, particularly in the Russian North . An object very much like a hammer or a double axe

27084-559: The swastika was a symbol of the revolving sun, infinity, or continuing creation. It is one of the most common symbols on Mesopotamian coins. Some researchers put forth the hypothesis that the swastika moved westward from the Indian subcontinent to Finland, Scandinavia , the Scottish Highlands and other parts of Europe. In England, neolithic or Bronze Age stone carvings of the symbol have been found on Ilkley Moor , such as

27267-442: The teachers "didn't dare to hit me because I was white". Vikernes' mother also recalls that "the other children in his class would get slapped by their teachers; he would not". She mentions that this created problems, but generally she "has no good explanation" of how Varg developed his views. When asked about his father, Vikernes states that he was hysterical that his son "had a swastika flag at home". Vikernes feels that his father

27450-471: The track "Dungeons of Darkness", he used the large gong at Grieghallen for background noise ( Euronymous assisted him by beating his fists on it). In 1992, Vikernes joined the black metal band Mayhem , a year after band member Dead committed suicide on 8 April 1991. Vikernes replaced bassist Necrobutcher , who quit the band because of Euronymous' treatment of Dead's suicide. Vikernes has distanced himself from his black metal past, claiming he "came under

27633-399: The trappings of a paramilitary unit", including guns, explosives, bulletproof vests, steel helmets and balaclavas. One of its members, Tom Eiternes, had befriended Vikernes in prison before escaping while on leave. Vikernes' mother, Lene Bore, was arrested for supplying the group with 100,000 kroner . She confessed, but claimed she did not know they were "right-wing extremists" and said her son

27816-405: The true believers". Misanthropy , global catastrophe , war, death, destruction and rebirth are also common themes. Another topic often found in black metal lyrics is that of the wild and extreme aspects and phenomena of the natural world, particularly the wilderness, forests, mountains, winter, storms, and blizzards. Black metal also has a fascination with the distant past. Many bands write about

27999-588: The underground" scene due to concerns about " selling out ". The controversy surrounding the Thuringian band Absurd drew attention to the German black metal scene. In 1993, the members murdered a boy from their school, Sandro Beyer. A photo of Beyer's gravestone is on the cover of one of their demos, Thuringian Pagan Madness , along with pro-Nazi statements. It was recorded in prison and released in Poland by Graveland drummer Capricornus. The band's early music

28182-597: The view that these bands had " sold out ." After Euronymous's death, "some bands went more towards the Viking metal and epic style, while some bands went deeper into the abyss." Since 1993, the Swedish scene had carried out church burnings, grave desecration, and other violent acts. In 1995, Jon Nödtveidt of Dissection joined the Misanthropic Luciferian Order (MLO). In 1997, he and another MLO member were arrested and charged with shooting dead

28365-441: The writing of Vargsmål . The Heathen Front officially denied that Vikernes was in charge. According to the authors of Lord of Chaos , this may have been to protect him, as Norwegian prisoners were prohibited from leading political groups. In addition, the organization's listed address was the same PO box Vikernes used in prison, which the authors state would have made it "very hard for him [Vikernes] to do an effective job" at leading

28548-519: Was Bathory from Sweden. The band, led by Thomas Forsberg (a.k.a. Quorthon ), created "the blueprint for Scandinavian black metal". Not only was Bathory's music dark, fast, heavily distorted, lo-fi and with anti-Christian themes, Quorthon was also the first to use the shrieked vocals that later became a common trait. Their third album Under the Sign of the Black Mark (1987) was the first record in

28731-649: Was a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck for most of the Western world until the 1930s, when the German Nazi Party adopted the swastika as an emblem of the Aryan race . As a result of World War II and the Holocaust , in the West it continues to be strongly associated with Nazism , antisemitism , white supremacism , or simply evil . As a consequence, its use in some countries, including Germany ,

28914-520: Was a hypocrite because he was worried about Vikernes "being a Nazi", whereas he too was "pissed about all the colored people he saw in town". About his mother, Vikernes states that she was "very race conscious", in the sense that she was afraid that Vikernes "was going to come home with a black girl!" At the time of the 1995 Lords of Chaos interview, Vikernes still had a positive relationship with his mother but "very little contact" with his father. He also stated that his parents are divorced; Vikernes' father

29097-477: Was announced. He had then served nearly 15 years of his 21-year sentence. On 22 May 2009, he confirmed that he had been released from prison on probation. Vikernes continued with Burzum after his release. He released a further three black metal albums: Belus (2010), Fallen (2011) and Umskiptar (2012) and a compilation of re-recorded songs ( From the Depths of Darkness ). On 27 April 2013, Vikernes posted

29280-425: Was being attacked by fellow inmates. In late 1996, his jaw had reportedly been broken in a fight with another inmate. However, the prison director said her claims were unfounded, and police suspected that the money came from Vikernes himself. Lords of Chaos says that Vikernes adopted a " skinhead " look and wore a belt buckle with SS insignia around this time. Despite her confession, Bore was not convicted, and in 1998

29463-481: Was caused by a skiing accident when he was 11 years old. A fan of classical music as a child ( Tchaikovsky in particular), Vikernes started listening to heavy metal at 12, citing Iron Maiden as his biggest inspiration. Later, he discovered other metal bands whose sound would be influential on his own band, such as Kreator , Sodom , Celtic Frost , Bathory , Destruction , Megadeth , Slayer , Pestilence , Deicide and Von . Although Venom are widely considered

29646-408: Was commonly used as a greeting. The final ka is a common suffix that could have multiple meanings. According to Monier-Williams , a majority of scholars consider the swastika to originally be a solar symbol . The sign implies well-being, something fortunate, lucky, or auspicious. It is alternatively spelled in contemporary texts as svastika , and other spellings were occasionally used in

29829-497: Was convicted of murder and arson in 1994 and sentenced to 21 years in prison, being released after serving 15 years. A native of Fana in Bergen Municipality , Vikernes began playing guitar at the age of 14 and formed his first band, Kalashnikov (later known as Uruk-Hai), by 1989. He went on to join the band Old Funeral , in which he played guitar from 1989 until his departure in 1991. He recorded multiple tracks with

30012-863: Was decorated with a cross pattée and two swastikas. The Book of Kells ( c.  800 CE ) contains swastika-shaped ornamentation. At the Northern edge of Ilkley Moor in West Yorkshire, there is a swastika-shaped pattern engraved in a stone known as the Swastika Stone . A number of swastikas have been found embossed in Galician metal pieces and carved in stones, mostly from the Castro culture period, although there also are contemporary examples (imitating old patterns for decorative purposes). The ancient Baltic thunder cross symbol ( pērkona krusts (cross of Perkons ); also fire cross, ugunskrusts )

30195-554: Was denied parole by the Department of Criminal Justice for this reason. His lawyer, John Christian Elden , has complained that the policy change is a form of retroactive legislation . Article 97 of the Norwegian constitution forbids any law being given retroactive force. Vikernes was denied parole again in June 2008, although he was allowed to leave Tromsø Prison for short periods to visit his family. His full sentence would run for another seven years. In March 2009, however, his parole

30378-473: Was due to posts on his blog, "Thulean Perspective", which included antisemitic posts that were taken down following the charges. Vikernes claimed he had not written the posts, although the blog attributed all posts to him. On 8 July 2014, Vikernes was convicted of inciting racial hatred and sentenced to six months of probation and a fine of €8,000 . In June 2018, Vikernes made comments that he had "moved on" from Burzum on his YouTube channel, saying "bye bye" to

30561-399: Was exclusive and created boundaries around itself, incorporating only those who were "true" and attempting to expel all " poseurs ". Some members of the scene were responsible for a spate of church burnings and murder, which eventually drew attention to it and led to a number of artists being imprisoned. On 8 April 1991, Mayhem vocalist Per "Dead" Ohlin committed suicide while left alone in

30744-502: Was formed in the late 1990s and has relationships with Melechesh and Salem. Melechesh and Arallu perform a style they call "Mesopotamian Black Metal", a blend of black metal and Mesopotamian folk music. Since the 2000s, a number of anti-Islamic and anti-religious black metal bands—whose members come from Muslim backgrounds—have emerged in the Middle East. Janaza, believed to be Iraq's first female black metal artist, released

30927-680: Was found at Qau-el-Kebir, near Asyut , and is dated between 300 and 600 CE. The Tierwirbel (the German for "animal whorl" or "whirl of animals" ) is a characteristic motif in Bronze Age Central Asia, the Eurasian Steppe , and later also in Iron Age Scythian and European ( Baltic and Germanic ) culture, showing rotational symmetric arrangement of an animal motif , often four birds' heads. Even wider diffusion of this "Asiatic" theme has been proposed to

31110-530: Was found guilty for an attempted arson of a fourth church, and for the theft and storage of 150 kg of explosives. To coincide with the release of Mayhem's De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas , Vikernes and Euronymous had also allegedly plotted to bomb the Nidaros Cathedral , which appears on the album cover. The musicians Faust , Samoth , (both of Emperor), and Jørn Inge Tunsberg (of Hades Almighty ) were also convicted for church arsons. Members of

31293-475: Was found in the stairwell on the first floor with 23 stab wounds—two to the head, five to the neck, and 16 to the back. Vikernes claimed his final stab to the skull was so powerful the knife remained stuck in Euronymous' skull, but no physical evidence or bodily injuries supported his claim. Vikernes contended that most of Euronymous' wounds were caused by broken glass he had fallen on during the struggle. After

31476-399: Was in regular contact with key members of the Norwegian scene. Their debut album, Scorn Defeat , became "a cult classic in the black metal world". In 1990 and 1991, Northern European metal acts began to release music influenced by these bands or the older ones from the first wave. In Sweden, this included Dissection , Abruptum , Marduk , and Nifelheim . In Finland, there emerged

31659-612: Was later attested as the four-horse chariot of Mithra in ancient Iranian culture. They believed the cosmos was pulled by four heavenly horses who revolved around a fixed centre in a clockwise direction. He suggests that this notion later flourished in Roman Mithraism , as the symbol appears in Mithraic iconography and astronomical representations. According to the Russian archaeologist Gennady Zdanovich , who studied some of

31842-620: Was mainly influenced by the American 1970s rock band Kiss . The term "black metal" was coined by the English band Venom with their second album Black Metal (1982). Playing a style bordering speed metal or thrash metal , the album initiated the first wave of black metal, forming an early prototype for the genre. The band introduced many tropes that became ubiquitous in the genre, such as blasphemous lyrics and imagery, as well as stage names, costumes and face paint meant to strike fear. During this first wave of bands, distinct borders of

32025-615: Was more influenced by Oi! and Rock Against Communism (RAC) than by black metal, and described as being "more akin to '60s garage punk than some of the […] Black Metal of their contemporaries". Alexander von Meilenwald from German band Nagelfar considers Ungod's 1993 debut Circle of the Seven Infernal Pacts , Desaster 's 1994 demo Lost in the Ages , Tha-Norr 's 1995 album Wolfenzeitalter , Lunar Aurora's 1996 debut Weltengänger and Katharsis 's 2000 debut 666 to be

32208-682: Was moved to a prison in Ringerike. In July 2004, he was moved to a maximum-security prison in Trondheim. The last three years of his sentence were spent in Tromsø Prison. When Vikernes was convicted, it was possible to be released on parole after serving 12 years of a 21-year sentence, but in 2002, before he became eligible, the Norwegian Parliament had extended this to 14 years. In June 2006, after serving 12 years, Vikernes

32391-452: Was never meant to reach an audience, it was purely for our own satisfaction". Occult and Satanic lyrical themes were present in the music of heavy metal and rock bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s such as Black Sabbath and Coven . In the late 1970s, the form of rough and aggressive heavy metal played by the British band Motörhead gained popularity. Many first wave black metal bands cited Motörhead as an influence. Also popular in

32574-531: Was published by Cymophane in 2000. In 2011, Abstract Sounds Books published Vikernes's English book entitled Sorcery and Religion in Ancient Scandinavia , about the religious practices of Scandinavian peoples, particularly during the Stone Age and Bronze Age . According to a review from the music blog Heathen Harvest , the book rejects accepted academic theories, instead focusing on Vikernes's speculation and personalized story-telling. By late 2003, Vikernes had begun writing articles for Burzum.org, which became

32757-451: Was published in 1923. The Boreyko coat of arms with a red swastika was used by several noble families in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . According to Boris Kuftin , the Russians often used swastikas as a decorative element and as the basis of the ornament on traditional weaving products. Many can be seen on a women's folk costume from the Meshchera Lowlands . According to some authors, Russian names popularly associated with

32940-675: Was said to have had a strong influence on the East German scene and is even called the unofficial beginning of German black metal. Black metal scenes also emerged on the European mainland during the early 1990s, inspired by the Norwegian scene or the older bands, or both. In Poland, a scene was spearheaded by Graveland and Behemoth . In France, a close-knit group of musicians known as Les Légions Noires emerged; this included artists such as Mütiilation , Vlad Tepes , Belketre and Torgeist. In Belgium, there were acts such as Ancient Rites and Enthroned . Bands such as Black Funeral, Grand Belial's Key and Judas Iscariot emerged during this time in

33123-516: Was seen as "an ideological messiah" by some, although Vikernes had disassociated himself from black metal and his neo-Nazism had nothing to do with that subculture. This led to the rise of National Socialist black metal (NSBM), which Hendrik Möbus of Absurd calls "the logical conclusion" of the Norwegian black metal "movement". Other parts of the scene oppose NSBM as it is "indelibly linked with Asá Trŭ and opposed to Satanism", or look upon Nazism "with vague skepticism and indifference". Members of

33306-401: Was to rent films, play them in the apartment, and withdraw money from Vikernes' credit card. On 16 May 1994, Vikernes was sentenced to 21 years in prison (Norway's maximum penalty) for the murder of Euronymous, the arson of three churches, the attempted arson of a fourth church, and for the theft and storage of 150 kg of explosives. Though Vikernes only confessed to the theft and storage of

33489-453: Was working for Saddam Hussein " developing a computer program. Since there were no places available in the English school in Baghdad, the young Vikernes went to an Iraqi elementary school during this time. According to his interview, Vikernes here became "aware of racial matters". Corporal punishment was very common in the school, and on one occasion, Vikernes had a "quarrel" with a teacher and called him "a monkey". But as Vikernes perceived it

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