Why I love Mayhem’s De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, by Joey Jordison

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By ( Metal Hammer ) last updated

Sinsaenum/Vimic drummer Joey Jordison salutes a black metal classic

(Image credit: Future)

We asked some of today’s greatest metal stars to pick their favourite metal albums of the last 50 years. Former Slipknot/current Sinsaenum and Vimic drummer Joey Jordison chose Mayhem’s iconic 1994 album De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas. Here, Joey reveals how just how much it has influenced his life…

Joey Jordison: “I remember buying De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas a few months after it came out, and it was the equivalent of when I got Reign In Blood. It was such a hugely influential record on me and on music as a whole – it’s a blueprint for so much black metal.

”Of course, with the history of Mayhem and the tragedies that surrounded them, it’s more than just a record. It’s a book. It’s so tied in with the individuals who made it and the time when they made it. You’re not just listening to music, you’re listening to a lifestyle. It’s not just the riffs or the drumming or the vocals – it’s something more than that. It’s got an atmosphere that’s totally alien, absolutely engulfing. When you put it on, you’re instantly transported somewhere else.

Just like is the ultimate thrash metal record, De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas is the ultimate black metal record. People have tried to copy it and rip it off a tonne of times, but no one has come close. No one will ever beat it.”