MAYHEM Deathcrush Gatefold Vinyl EP (1987)

Before the church burnings, before the murders, before black metal became a Wikipedia entry, there was Deathcrush. Released in 1987 on Posercorpse Music with a print run that could fit in a station wagon, this eight-minute EP didn't so much announce Norwegian black metal as detonate it.

Euronymous, Dead, Necrobutcher, Manheim, and a teenage Messiah Marcolin on guest vocals made something that sounded like it was recorded inside a collapsing mine, and that was entirely the point. The trebly, blown-out production isn't a flaw, it's the document. Tracks like the title cut and Chainsaw Gutsfuck hit with a ferocity that most metal bands still haven't recovered from. This gatefold black vinyl reissue lets you hear it the way it was meant to be heard: loud, alone, with the lights off.

Gatefold black vinyl EP. Originally released 1987. Artist origin: Norway. Genre: black metal.

Fans of: Burzum, Darkthrone, Bathory, Emperor, Immortal.