Welcome To Hell

Wind of Change (Edited)

Title Credit: Scorpions

Benedikte was passed two cassettes in early April of 1987.  It was after a show the girls put on at the club.  A fan of theirs walked up to her and told her about a new band called Mayhem.  This girl told her that after she saw them she was given these cassettes by a friend of hers. 

"I wanted to give you this because I find some similarities between your band and this one.  I made a copy so I could give it to you."

"Why, I mean I've never heard of them but it's kind of funny you're giving me this."

"Well I just wanted you to know that there's a whole scene out there and I'm not sure you're aware of just how big it is.  You're not the only band that sounds like this."  The girl smiled and walked out of the club.

Benedikte went to tell the girls her latest discovery.

"Kirsten, Alva, Gry, we need to go home and listen to these cassette's right away."  She said and led the girls away from the club.

The first cassette was called Pure Fucking Armageddon and despite the band sound quality this band had something amazing.  The guitars were furious, the beat fast, and the voice wailing.  It had a cover of Venom's Black Metal and side one was called "Fuck" and side two was titled "Off".  The second one was called Deathcrush with a better quality and even more amazing songs.

"Guys I think we need to start going back to shows but we're going to have to step up our game immensely."  Benedikte noted.

At one of their shows, they noticed a guy watching them intently.  He had an apathetic look in his eyes.  It stood out in the sea of excited faces.  He was of average height and thin of frame.  The contours of his face were soft and his eyes calm.  He was wearing a 'Death' band t-shirt completed by black jeans and a bullet belt.  The girls were wondering why he was there and why he seemed out of place.  It was almost like the crowd parted and he was standing in the middle of it, almost like a movie.

They played their show as perfectly as they usually did.  Kylee joined them after they were done and linked hands with Alva.  The girls walked slowly, cautiously approaching the intriguing guy.  He was in front of them as fast as a vampire in the night.

"Hello you don't know me but I am Øystein Aarseth.  I was wondering if I could see you outside for a minute."  He said in a slightly commanding voice.

"Of course," Gry said loudly and confidently.

The other girls were very cautious of this man, but the girls trusted the instinct of Gry.  They were led out into the coldness of the night.  As they parted from the crowd, he stopped and turned to face him.

"I was dragged here by a friend of mine who saw you a few weeks back.  He said that we had a very similar style of music.  I had to see this for myself.  I first heard your demo before I came so that I knew what to expect.  I wanted to sign your band to my Posercorpse record label."

"How do we know you're for real?"  Benedikte said skeptically.

"Well I don't know if you've heard of a band named Mayhem but I'm the guitarist Euronymous."  He deadpanned.

"As a matter of fact yes, an audience member handed me one of your albums."  Benedikte challenged.

"Here is the address of where we can meet tomorrow at noon."  He said.

The girls looked at the address and when they looked up to say something, he was gone.

"What the hell is going on here?"  Alva said.

"I don't know but we're going to go find out."  Kirsten said intrigued.

Nobody knew what to make of this Euronymous guy.  His voice was commanding but his eyes were soft.  Everything about him seemed to contradict themselves.  Not knowing if he was legit, the girls still decided to take a chance on him.

The girls trekked out to the middle of Oslo.  It was a small apartment in a less than reputable neighborhood.  They walked up a flight of stairs in a cramped stairwell.  Kirsten knocked on the door lightly.

"Alva are you sure it's okay I'm here?"  Kylee asked.

"Of course, beautiful," Alva said lightly kissing her cheek.

The door opened wide revealing Øystein.  He smiled warmly at the girls, "Hello welcome to my home."

Gry took the lead and led in all the girls.  They all sat down and were finally starting to feel a little more comfortable in his presence.  Kirsten was feeling more drawn and interested than the rest of the girls.

"So, I asked you all here because I am serious.  I heard your demo and although the sound quality was lacking the music shown through.  These recordings will be a small step up.  I know you've heard the quality of my album and it is nothing to be proud of.  I just have to ask how invested you are in this band?"  He questioned.

"Well, I just turned seventeen; Kirsten is eighteen, while everyone else will turn seventeen this year.  We are ready to put all our attention from school to this band.  We talked before we came here, and we are all ready to invest all our time in this."  Benedikte explained.

"Great, work on your songs and on May fifth we will work on recording them.  Just bring rough demos of your songs that day and we'll work on them here."  Øystein said.

The girls sat at his home getting to know each other.  Alva trusted him and was starting to talk more.  Benedikte was friendlier but still untrusting.  Gry warmed up, while Kirsten trusted him and felt a connection to him.  When the girls left, Kirsten stayed and they talked through the night.

When Kirsten left in the morning, she was sure she wanted him to be her boyfriend.  She found herself crushing on him.  She didn't know why she felt this way as she just met him.  I mean he was so strange and a little off, but she was a little shy, giggly, and blushing like mad every time he looked at her.