Daemon Drum Setup: Hellhammer's Most Recent Mayhem Statement | MetalForge
Hellhammer recorded Daemon (2019) on a Sonor SQ2 Heavy Beech kit with a Sonor SQ2 Heavy Beech Snare snare.
Hellhammer's drum gear on Mayhem's Daemon (2019) — the Sonor SQ2 Heavy Beech kit and Paiste cymbals behind Mayhem's most melodically ambitious recent album, ...
Frequently Asked Questions
What drums did Hellhammer use on Mayhem's Daemon?
Hellhammer played a Sonor SQ2 Heavy Beech kit on Daemon (2019) — explicitly confirmed as his current configuration in the modern era of his documented equipment record, with a double 22" x 18" bass drum setup and a five-piece tom spread. The album was recorded across four studios: NBS Studio (Stockholm), Lupercal Studio (Oslo), Chamber Studios (Netherlands), and SBM Studio (Oslo). See the [full Hellhammer gear profile](/articles/hellhammer-drum-setup) for his complete career-spanning equipment breakdown.
Where was Daemon recorded and released?
Daemon was recorded across four studios in two countries — NBS Studio in Stockholm, Sweden; Lupercal Studio and SBM Studio in Oslo, Norway; and Chamber Studios in Hillegom, Netherlands. It was produced by guitarist Teloch and engineer Tore Stjerna, and released October 25, 2019 digitally (physical release delayed to November 8, 2019) through Century Media Records — Mayhem's first album on the label after a long run with Season of Mist.
How does Daemon compare to De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas?
Critics widely compared Daemon (2019) to De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) for its return to colder, more melodic, and more atmospheric black metal songwriting after the leaner Esoteric Warfare (2014). Hellhammer's performance on Daemon explicitly echoes that dynamic range, balancing extreme blast beat velocity with the dynamic subtlety and quieter passages that also defined his most famous performance a quarter-century earlier.
What cymbals did Hellhammer use on Daemon?
Hellhammer used Paiste RUDE cymbals on Daemon — 14" RUDE Hi-Hats, 17" and 19" RUDE Crashes, a Paiste RUDE 20" Ride, and an 18" RUDE China — confirmed as his current cymbal configuration in the modern era of his career, chosen for their ability to articulate both extreme-tempo aggression and the album's more melodic, dynamically restrained passages.
Is Daemon Hellhammer's most recent Mayhem album?
As of this writing, Daemon (2019) is Hellhammer's most recent full-length Mayhem studio statement — described in his own documented career record as representing his most recent major Mayhem album, balancing raw black metal aggression with surprising melodic and textural range across the record.