On the song “Freezing Moon,” lead singer of Mayhem howls,“Diabolic shapes float by/Out from the dark/I remember it was here I died”. It’s an oddly prophetic line, considering two members of the band would be dead by 1994, the year the album was finally released. Mayhem was central to the Norwegian black metal scene and most of the members were a part of the Black Circle. The Black Circle was a loosely organized group of black metal musicians who set about burning down churches and committing petty crimes across Norway. Stoked by two demagogues, the group told the public that their motive was to antagonize the Christian church and to do as much evil as possible. Last week, we set the stage. Join us now for its bloody end.Sources:Lords of Chaos by Michael Moynihan and Didrik SøderlindBlack Metal: Evolution of the Cult by Dayal Pattersonhttps://www.musicgenreslist.com/metal-music-genre/)https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mayhem-mn0000335302/biography)https://metalinjection.net/black-metal-chronicles/black-metal-history-month/an-illustrated-history-of-corpse-paint)https://www.last.fm/music/Mayhem/+wiki)https://www.villagevoice.com/until-the-light-takes-us-a-norwegian-black-metal-documentary/)https://www.macrotrends.net/states/minnesota/murder-homicide-rate-statistics)https://knoema.com/atlas/Norway/Homicide-rate#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20homicide%20rate%20for,per%20100%2C000%20population%20in%202021.)Follow us, campers!Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire)Facebook: True Crime CampfireInstagram: https://gramha.net/profile/truecrimecampfire/19093397079)Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfireEmail: [email protected]! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com/)