Extreme Metal: Just How Extreme Can it Get?

For those who don't know, extreme metal is an obscure subgenre of heavy metal music. As the name implies, it is extreme - not only in general sound, but in image, ideology and lyrical content. Despite the controversy that is almost constantly buzzing around the genre, heavy metal music has carved itself a niche in today's society, spewing forth one of the most tight-knit music subcultures on the planet.

The early Norwegian black metal scene had more than it's fair share of extremity; much like the punk rock movement of the early 1970s, black metal in Norway (and, to a lesser extent, the rest of Scandinavia) was born out of anger and frustration, but not to the government or authority figures, but towards Christianity and God himself. The turbulent youth, fueled by anger and desire to act out against the "oppressive" Christian forces in the region, took to writing hateful songs calling for the genocide of all Christians and the violent uprooting of all Christian influence of Scandinavia, leading to a number of church arsons, murders, and other hate crimes... but was this war against God, or war against the extreme metal scene itself? Was this genuine misanthropy and hatred or simply immature musicians trying to "out-evil" one another?

Perhaps the most documented case of this "unholier-than-thou" attitude occurred within the seminal band Mayhem, a band well-known not only in the black metal scene but in mainstream media and popular culture because of the grisly events that transpired. When "Dead" (Per Yngve Ohlin) committed suicide, fellow band mate Euronymous actually took photos of his dead body, to be later used for an album cover. Euronymous was later stabbed to death by bassist Varg Vikernes, who is still incarcerated to this day.