Ex-Mayhem Murderer Free From Prison

03/11/09 1:52pm

by Kate Harper (CHARTattack)

The name Varg Vikernes most likely doesn't mean much to you unless you're a black metal fan.

If you're big on corpse paint and angry music from Norway, you know Vikernes (also known as Count Grishnackh) is one of black metal's most notorious characters. He murdered his Mayhem bandmate Oystein Aarseth (who performed as Euronymous), burned down churches and has alleged Nazi ties.

Vikernes has been in prison since being given a 21-year sentence in 1994 for Euronymous' murder and the arson of three churches. But he'll soon be released after gaining parole on his fifth attempt.

Vikernes must report to his parole officer every two weeks for a year, and then once a month thereafer, according to Norway's Dagbladet newspaper.

"I'm ready for society — and I have been for many years," Vikernes told the newspaper last year. "I have learned from my mistakes and become older.

"Now I just want to be together with my family. My mind has never been in prison; I think all the time about what I should do on the day that I am released.

"I have barely seen my son since he came into the world. Even though I hear his voice on the phone almost every day, it is very tough to not be present while he is growing up. I miss my family. And I look forward the day that I could work on my farm, create music, write books and be with the wife and kids around the clock — and live a normal life. I have received tremendous support from my family. It means a lot."

Vikernes has been allowed to leave the prison where he's being held in Tromso, Norway to go for walks and visit his mother, wife, 16-year-old daughter and 18-month-old son over the last few years. He was denied parole on his second attempt because the Norwegian Justice Ministry said he was tied to neo-Nazi groups and had tried to escape in 2003. Vikernes told Dagbladet that he hasn't had contact with any neo-Nazi groups for "a long time."

"The reason I have been drawn to and occasionally have expressed support for 'nazism' is mainly because many of the Norwegian (and German) 'nazis' embraced our Pagan religion as our blood-religion and they rejected Judeo-Christianity as Jewish heresy — and they were the first to do so in a long, long time!" Vikernes writes on his website.

"I have also experienced that most of the people supporting me or what I stand for are so-called 'nazis' — while almost everybody else has just condemned me and then boycotted me and everything I have done.

"What makes me different from the 'nazis' are basically three things; unlike them I am not socialistic (not even on a national level), I am not materialistic and I believe in (the ancient Scandinavian!) democracy."

Vikernes began a solo project called Burzum when he was 18. Several churches were burned to the ground in 1992 and 1993, and Vikernes was later found guilty for torching three of them. Vikernes and Euronymous later conspired to blow up the Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, Norway, but Euronymous' murder stymied this plot.

Vikernes killed Euronymous in 1993 after a confrontation at his bandmate's apartment left the Mayhem guitarist with 23 stab and cut wounds. It was rumoured Vikernes murdered Euronymous because the guitarist had a more evil reputation, and Vikernes wanted to "out-do" Faust, who drummed for rival band Emperor and stabbed a gay man to death the previous year.

Others have speculated Vikernes murdered Euronymous because the guitarist was politically opposed to Vikernes' fascist beliefs, and Vikernes intended to blow up an anti-fascist collective's squat, which some say Euronymous would have tried to prevent.

A large amount of explosives were found in Vikernes' possession at the time of his arrest, and he admitted he intended to use them for blowing up the squat.

Vikernes said Euronymous had intended to torture him to death and videotape it and lured Vikernes to his house using a record contract dispute as a ruse. Vikernes said he only struck first out of self-defence.

Vikernes smiled when he was convicted: