Helvete — Oslo Black Metal Inner Circle

Helvete — Norwegian for 'Hell' — was a record shop at Schweigaardsgate 56 in the Grønland neighbourhood of Oslo, opened in 1991 by Øystein 'Euronymous' Aarseth, guitarist of the black metal band Mayhem. The shop became the headquarters of what Euronymous called the Black Circle — the inner circle of musicians and associates who defined the early Norwegian black metal scene and whose activities included the arson of churches across Norway between 1992 and 1996, the murders of two people, and the creation of music that would become one of the most extreme and internationally influential genres in rock history.

The Norwegian black metal scene that centred on Helvete produced bands including Mayhem, Burzum, Darkthrone, Emperor, Immortal, and Gorgoroth, whose recordings from the early 1990s established the aesthetic template for the genre: tremolo-picked guitar, shrieked vocals, lo-fi production, themes of Satanism, Norse mythology, and anti-Christianity. The music was made with a seriousness and nihilistic conviction that differentiated it from earlier heavy metal traditions. Varg Vikernes (Burzum) murdered Euronymous in his apartment in August 1993; Euronymous had reportedly been plotting to kill Vikernes first. Vikernes was convicted and sentenced to 21 years in prison.

Helvete closed following Euronymous's murder. The building at Schweigaardsgate 56 has since been converted to other uses. There is no formal heritage marker at the site, though it is visited by devotees of the black metal genre from around the world. The church arsons, the murders, and the music of the early Norwegian black metal scene are documented extensively in Michael Moynihan and Didrik Søderlind's book Lords of Chaos and in Apo Arlenstam and Jonas Åkerlund's film of the same name.