''Deathcrush'' is the debut EP and overall first commercial release by Norwegian

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...

band

Mayhem Mayhem most commonly refers to: * Mayhem (crime), a type of crime Mayhem may also refer to: People * Monica Mayhem (born 1978), Australian pornographic actress * Jason "Mayhem" Miller, American mixed martial arts fighter * Mayhem Miller (dr ...

. It was released in August 1987 by Posercorpse Music.

Background

Though influential to black metal, its lyrics and sound were largely influenced by

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

bands. After vocalist

Dead Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sho ...

joined the group, the band adopted darker lyrical topics and guitarist

Euronymous Øystein Aarseth (22 March 1968 – 10 August 1993), better known by his stage name Euronymous, was a Norwegian musician and a founder of and central figure in the early Norwegian black metal scene. He was a co-founder and guitarist of the No ...

(Øystein Aarseth) started rejecting most other metal bands as their lyrics turned towards "social awareness"''The True Mayhem''. In: Metalion: ''Metalion: The Slayer Mag Diaries''. Brooklyn, NY: Bazillion Points Books 2011, p. 209. and "normal" topicsKristiansen, Jon: ''Metalion: The Slayer Mag Diaries''. Brooklyn, NY: Bazillion Points Books 2011, p. 221. instead of death worship; he "wanted things to be more serious and extreme". Dead stated that the lyrics "aren't bad at all, but they are later what would become gore and trendy". The opening track "Silvester Anfang" was provided to the band by German

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

composer

Conrad Schnitzler Conrad "Conny" Schnitzler (17 March 1937 – 4 August 2011) was a prolific German experimental musician associated with West Germany's 1970s krautrock movement. A co-founder of West Berlin's Zodiak Free Arts Lab, he was an early member of Tang ...

, after Euronymous found Schnitzler's home address and sat outside his house until he was eventually invited in.Black Metal: Evolution of the Cult, Dayal Patterson, p. 135. Euronymous then asked Schnitzler to compose an intro for the album; rather than record a new composition Schnitzler gave Euronymous a random piece from his archives, which would later become known as "Silvester Anfang". Drummer

Kjetil Manheim Mayhem is a Norwegian black metal band formed in Oslo in 1984. They were one of the pioneers of the Norwegian black metal scene, and their music has profoundly influenced the black metal genre. Mayhem's early career was marked by several contro ...

later stated that the band's sound was "something that he studio techniciandid not know how to record (...) so he just set the settings and we recorded". He also noted that there was "no mix, before or after" and "no overdubs: bass, drums, guitar are live and then we recorded the vocals after". In 2008, Daniel Ekeroth wrote, "The two visionaries arseth and Per 'Dead' Ohlinpushed each other further into darkness, and sometime in 1990 they finally adopted the Satanic image that would become so crucial for the genre ..It's well documented that Øystein initially was very into death metal and

grindcore Grindcore is an extreme metal, extreme fusion genre of heavy metal music, heavy metal and hardcore punk that originated in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from abrasive-sounding musical styles, such as thrashcore, crust punk, hardcore punk, e ...

". According to Dead, most, but not all of the lyrics were written by bassist Necrobutcher.

Maniac __NOTOC__ The MANIAC I (Mathematical Analyzer Numerical Integrator and Automatic Computer Model I) was an early computer built under the direction of Nicholas Metropolis at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. It was based on the von Neumann arc ...

performed vocals on all of the tracks except "Pure Fucking Armageddon", which was sung by Messiah. The

Venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

cover "Witching Hour" was sung by Messiah and Maniac. Manheim played piano on "(Weird) Manheim".

Reception and legacy

Despite its limited print run, the mini-album appeared in the top 20 on ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...

'' magazine's album charts. In 2001, '' Q'' named it one of the "50 Heaviest Albums of All Time". "Chainsaw Gutsfuck" was voted "Most Gruesome Lyrics Ever" by ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer (from Latin ''mixus, the PPP of miscere eng. to Mix)'' or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary ...

'' in 2006.

Track listing

LP Bonus track Note: Some versions have "(Weird) Manheim" and "Pure Fucking Armageddon" on the same track.

Personnel

Mayhem

– lead vocals *

– guitar, vocals on track 8 * Necrobutcher – bass, vocals on track 8 * Manheim – drums, piano on track 6, vocals track 8

Session members

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

(Eirik Skyseth Norheim) – "Iron Lungs (session)" (lead vocals on track 7; co-lead vocals on track 4 and 8)Listed as session member on back cover *

– drums, percussion and electronic instruments on track 1

References

{{Authority control Mayhem (band) albums 1987 debut EPs Black metal EPs