Silencer: Black Metal Mystery.

Greetings, I am the Majesty of Darkness. My biggest passion in life is the macabre, that being anything from true crime to Black Metal music (as well as Heavy Metal in general), to Horror whether it be films, books, video games etc. Therefore, in this blog I will be discussing albums, films, books or anything like the sorts that I enjoy. Not everything that I enjoy (otherwise this blog would become an encyclopedia). But any that I feel like discussing. If such things do not interest you, run, run for the hills. However, if they do, come, and join me as I regale thee with things that I enjoy.

📷

First up, we have one of my favorite albums, as well as a look at the crazy stories and rumors behind the bands vocalist. The infamous Suicidal Depressive Black Metal masterpiece by the name of Death Pierce Me. Performed by the ever-illusive Swedish ghouls Silencer. The album is a very dark and atmospheric exercise in depression and insanity. Pounding double kicks, bleak and horrific soundscapes erupting from the guitars and genuinely pained sounding shrieks spewing black, acidic bile into the microphone like a Banshee from your worst nightmares. Lyrics of self-destruction and utter hopelessness.

The creature behind the vocals on this album who calls himself Nattramn, is perhaps one of the most mysterious people in all of music. No-one has seen his face, no-one can fully confirm his real name. But most strangely, nobody can positively disprove any of the horrifying stories about him. Stories including severing his hands and replacing them with the hooves of a pig. Stories of him bringing a knife into the vocal booth with him to mutilate himself, resulting in the authentically horrifying vocals. Personally, I more or less believe this one, as a Black Metal vocalist myself, I imagine I would sound much like that under extreme pain.

Another story (this one much more tragic and disturbing). Apparently, after completion of Death Pierce Me (which turned out to be Silencer`s only album) Nattramn was being held in a mental asylum. From which he escaped and attacked a young girl with an axe, after striking her, he missed her skull by mere inches. After which, he tried to commit suicide by cop, attacking the officers, begging them to kill him.

Nattramn

📷

📷

📷

After being distracted by the dogs and detained by the police and returned to the mental ward, he was encouraged to take up music again resulting in his second music project Diagnosed Lebensgefahr. A bleak, electronic, industrial project. One I also recommend checking out.

📷

A few years later, Nattramn would go on to release a book of art and poetry named Grishjärta, roughly translating to Pig Heart. I do not own a copy of the book myself but there is a pdf file of this book that you can find online. I found it in a Youtube video on the subject of Nattramn, so check it out if you are interested. It’s a good book.📷

I personally do not believe that Nattramn replaced his hands with pig hooves. The pictures containing them are a gruesome sight, but that’s all it is. And that’s fine.

I hope nobody lost interest when I mentioned Nattramn`s apparent attempted murder, because as it turns out, it was not him who committed the vile deed. But was in fact, his mentally ill brother Patrick. It was Patrick who was stationed in the mental ward, Patrick who escaped and attacked the child and attempted suicide by cop. Sadly, after returning to the ward, Patrick was haunted by his horrible crime and committed suicide in the ward showers. Nattramn himself was of course hit hard by this tragedy and struggled to cope.

The only story that is generally agreed as probably true, is his self-harm in the studio as well as his struggles with depression which as I said earlier, is entirely possible.

As said earlier, I love this band and Nattramn`s other work (Diagnosed Lebensgefahr and Grishjärta). I find the stories surrounding the man very fascinating and Death Pierce Me is horrific, darksome masterpiece. If you take one thing from this long post, can you please check out the album?