Bård Guldvik "Faust" Eithun (born 21 April 1974) is a Norwegian musician, best known as the drummer of black metal band Emperor and the main lyricist of blackened death metal band Zyklon. A prominent member of the early Norwegian black metal scene, Eithun was sentenced to 14 years in prison for murder and church arson in 1994.[1] He was released in 2003 and has since continued performing as a drummer for Emperor, Djevel, Blood Tsunami, Aborym and Scum. Eithun won the Norwegian Spellemann Award in the Metal category with Djevel in 2022.[2]
Biography
Early years
Eithun was born on 21 April 1974 in Hedmark. At age sixteen, he moved to Lillehammer and became the drummer of Thorns, then-known as Stigma Diabolicum.[3][4] Eithun published the underground fanzineOrcustus in the early 1990s.[5] In 1992, he moved to Oslo and started working in Øystein "Euronymous" Aarseth's shop Helvete, having been pen-pals with the Mayhem guitarist since 1987.[3][6] Eithun joined Emperor as a drummer that same year and became a part of the inner circle of the early Norwegian black metal scene.[7][3]
Conviction and release
On 21 August 1992, while visiting his family in Lillehammer, Eithun stabbed Magne Andreassen, a gay man, to death after being sexually propositioned by him.[8][9][10] According to Eithun, while walking home from a pub through the Olympic park, Andreassen drunkenly approached him and solicited him for sex.[8] Eithun agreed to go with him to the nearby woods and stabbed Andreassen 37 times[8][11] while also repeatedly stomping on the victim's head.[citation needed] Upon returning to Oslo the following day, he told Aarseth, Varg Vikernes, and a few other members of the black metal scene what he had done.[8][12] Eithun, Aarseth and Vikernes later burned down Holmenkollen Chapel together.[8] After Vikernes' murder of Aarseth in August 1993, Eithun was arrested and confessed to killing Andreassen on impulse.[7] In early 1994, Emperor released their debut album, In the Nightside Eclipse. Later that year, Eithun was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment and subsequently left Emperor,[1][3] with the imprisonment to happen at Ullersmo. He testified against Vikernes in the latter's murder and arson trial that same year.[3] Although media had linked Eithun's murder to black metal and speculated that he was motivated by Satanism, fascism, or homophobia, he has later denied being a satanist and having racist, fascist or homophobic views in several interviews.[13][14][15] Singer Gaahl, an openly gay member of the Norwegian black metal scene, stated that Eithun was the first person to send him a message of support when he came out.[16]
In 2001, Eithun became the main lyricist of blackened death metal band Zyklon and also contributed lyrics to albums released by Sigh and Wurdulak. He joined the hardcore punk/black metal supergroup Scum with members of Emperor, Turbonegro and Mindgrinder the following year.[17]
In 2003, Eithun was released from prison due to good behavior after serving nine years and four months.[14] Of his incarceration, Eithun said: "It has taught me a lot about myself, my limits, my psyche and my will. I think it as a positive thing that I was removed from the black metal scene because I was heading towards a very destructive path."[18] In later interviews, Eithun has expressed remorse for his actions in the 1990s and called them senseless.[7]
Later career
Following his release, Eithun was interviewed for the black metal documentary Until the Light Takes Us, later released in 2008.[3] Eithun was announced as Swedish extreme metal band Dissection's new drummer in 2003, but departed the band that same year due to ideological differences.[19][20] Scum released their first album, Gospels for the Sick, in 2005. Eithun joined thrash metal Blood Tsunami and industrial black metal band Aborym that same year.[21][22] He released his first album with Aborym as a member the following year, having previously contributed lyrics to the band.[23] Blood Tsunami released their debut album, Thrash Metal, in 2007. Eithun joined punk/metal band Mongo Ninja in 2009 and released three albums with the band before their disbandment in 2012.[24]
In 2013, Eithun returned to Emperor as drummer for the 20th anniversary tour of In the Nightside Eclipse in the summer of 2014, which included a performance at Wacken Open Air.[25][26] He departed Aborym in 2014 after releasing three studio albums with the band.[27] In 2017, Eithun was announced as the new drummer for black metal band Djevel.[28] On 23 May 2021, Eithun appeared as a guest at Emperor's show at Notodden Theatre marking the 30th anniversary of their formation.[29] In 2022, Djevel won the Norwegian Spellemann Award in the Metal category for the album Tanker som rir natten, released the previous year.[2]
Education
While incarcerated, Eithun completed two bachelor degrees at the University of Oslo in the history of religions and the history of ideas, in addition to studying a year of E-business at a private school in Oslo.[18]
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