Dead
Sweden- Per Yngve Ohlin: A Complex and Troubled Soul
- In the Shadows: A Life of Introversion
- On Stage: A Macabre Spectacle
- Downward Spiral and Suicide
- Aftermath: Controversy and Infamy
Per Yngve Ohlin: A Complex and Troubled Soul
Per Yngve Ohlin, known by his stage name Dead, was a Norwegian vocalist who left an indelible mark on the black metal scene. Born in Sweden in 1969, he became synonymous with the bands Morbid and Mayhem.
In the Shadows: A Life of Introversion
Ohlin's acquaintances described him as an enigmatic introvert. Mayhem's guitarist, Øystein Aarseth (Euronymous), remarked in a letter, "I really think Dead is mentally ill. How else can you describe a guy who doesn't eat to look thin? Or who wears a T-shirt advertising a funeral home?"
Bård "Faust" Eithun, the drummer of Emperor, noted that Ohlin "was a guy you couldn't get to know too well. I don't think even the guys in Mayhem knew him. It was hard to get close to him. I met him about six or seven times, the last was about two weeks before he died. He had a lot of sick ideas. I remember Aarseth saying he had no sense of humor. He did, but it was a very dark sense of humor. I don't think he liked living in this world."
On Stage: A Macabre Spectacle
Ohlin went to extreme lengths to achieve the macabre image and atmosphere at concerts. From the beginning of his career, he utilized corpse paint. According to Necrobutcher, "It wasn't like Kiss and Alice Cooper, who used makeup. Dead really wanted to look like a corpse. He didn't do it to look cool." Hellhammer, who played drums for Morbid, observed that Ohlin "was the first black metal guy who used the corpse paint."
To further enhance the illusion of decay, Ohlin would bury his clothes prior to concerts and exhume them on the night of the performance. Hellhammer recalled that "before a show, Dead would put his clothes in the ground, so they would start to rot and give him a 'graveyard' look. At one time he wanted us to bury him, so he could get pale skin."
During performances, Ohlin would often cut himself with a hunting knife or broken glass, delighting in the audience's reactions. In a concert in Sarpsborg in February 1990, Dead injured himself so severely that he had to be taken to the hospital for blood loss. While on tour with Mayhem, he acquired a dead crow and kept it in a bag. Dead would sniff the bird's carcass prior to performances, claiming to "sing with the stench of death in his nostrils."
Downward Spiral and Suicide
In 1990, Mayhem moved into an "old house in the woods" near Oslo (Krakstadt). The band had previously struggled with housing and rehearsal space, with Ohlin at one point residing in his car. After the move, Hellhammer observed that in his free time, Ohlin would draw, read, write letters, or "just sit alone in his room, getting more and more depressed." Additionally, Dead was constantly feuding with Euronymous.
By the time of Mayhem's European tour, Dead was so exhausted that he was experiencing frequent nosebleeds. Upon the band's return to Norway, Ohlin withdrew even further into himself. On April 8, 1991, Dead committed suicide in his room. He first slit his wrists and then shot himself in the head with a shotgun. The weapon allegedly belonged to Euronymous, and the shells had been a Christmas present from Varg Vikernes. Euronymous was away on label business in Oslo at the time, while Hellhammer was visiting his parents.
The day before the suicide, an acquaintance had visited Ohlin, and they spoke at length about death and suicide. Hellhammer recalled that after this conversation, "...Dead seemed very happy, as happy as his gloomy face could get anyway."
Aftermath: Controversy and Infamy
Returning from the city, Aarseth found the door locked and the key missing. Determined to enter the house, Euronymous climbed into Dead's room through a window. There, he discovered Ohlin, lying on his bed with slit wrists and a shotgun across his knees. Dead had left a note that read, "Sorry for all the blood." However, Hellhammer claims that Ohlin also wrote why he had used a shotgun - the knife had become too dull.
Instead of calling the police, Aarseth went to a nearby shop and purchased a disposable camera to photograph the scene. Upon his return, Euronymous rearranged the knife and shotgun to make the pictures appear more "artistic" and took several shots. Necrobutcher commented, "I think Øystein was shocked by Dead's suicide, and he took the picture to cope with it."
The images of Dead's suicide quickly spread among fans of the band and were used as propaganda to promote black metal music and obscure bands. One of these photographs was later used by a Colombian bootlegger for the cover of the album "Dawn of the Black Hearts."
Aarseth eventually called Hellhammer and informed him of the incident. The police took Ohlin's body, but left his room undisturbed. Unable to endure the lingering stench, Euronymous moved out to his parents' house, though Hellhammer remained for a while longer. One day, while cleaning Dead's room, Hellhammer discovered shards of his skull under the bed, which the band members reportedly fashioned into necklaces. Aarseth distributed these to those he deemed "worthy."
Rumors emerged that Aarseth had made a stew from Ohlin's brain. The band later dismissed these claims as false.
Necrobutcher believed that "people started to appreciate the black metal scene more after Dead shot himself... I think his suicide really changed it."
Aarseth himself met a violent end a short time later. In 1993, he was murdered by Varg Vikernes following an argument. Dead's legacy, however, continues to fascinate and polarize the world of heavy metal, serving as a testament to the darkness and complexity that can consume an individual's soul.
