“Hulders Ritual was never just an album; it was a controlled experiment in perception, fear, and storytelling. What the world believed was a true-crime mystery was, in fact, the ritual itself… We built an illusion worthy of the old Norwegian tales: a modern ‘bergtatt,’ where the audience is abducted not by hulders, but by a story.”
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My years of research as a black metal journalist have brought me to the following conclusion: Thorns’ Snorre Ruch and Slagmaur’s General Gribbsphiiser are two of the finest creative geniuses alive. Evidence suggests that they are also most excellent people, even if these enigmatic eccentrics often seem instead to resemble UFOs or mythical beings. Thus, after a disappearing act in the mountains that scared the whole metal world, we were more than relieved to learn that the pair had, with flying colors, pulled off what is now being called the greatest artistic and social experiment in the history of music.

For the unenlightened, Slagmaur, the pride of Fosen, is not only unsurpassed in terms of their audial atrocities but also their visuals. The fabled brigade has correctly been referred to as “the darkest and scariest black metal band to ever set foot on planet earth.” As such, these veterans are always finding the most unconventional ways of terrifying us. Their flawlessly orchestrated concert shenanigans have included “mass executions,” during which some victims are hanged alive and others are burned on inverted crosses. Slagmaur definitely remains one of the most shocking cases of radical and perplexing individualism that you could hope, or fear, to stumble upon, as their fans like Mayhem’s Hellhammer, ex-Mayhem’s Maniac, semi-Carpathian Forest’s Vrangsinn, and other titans will surely attest.

Meanwhile, Trondheim’s Snorre Ruch of Thorns is a true pioneering legend, who helped define the darkest genre of all and served as the co-architect of the black metal style of riffing along with the late Euronymous of Mayhem. As Dødheimsgard’s Vicotnik, another “Mr. Fantastic Deceptionist,” stated in conversation with Thomas Eriksen, “… everybody in this genre today is inspired by Snorre in some way or another… Mayhem wanted to sound like Thorns. Immortal wanted to sound like Thorns.” Ruch’s creative superiority certainly left its mark on Mayhem’s canonical De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) in various ways, and, fortunately, he assisted a bit with Mayhem’s upcoming record, Liturgy of Death (2026). We eagerly await Thorns’ sophomore album, their already started third full-length offering, and Finn Håkon Rødland’s box set on the outfit’s massively influential Grymyrk (1991) demo. (For updates on such matters, follow Ruch on Patreon here.) Unsurprisingly, Loudwire listed Ruch as one of the 11 best guitarists in the history of black metal, but he’s really in the top two. 

Prior to the launch of “Operation Master of Deceptions,” which required six years of careful preparations, we knew that Ruch and General Gribbsphiiser had been dubbed hooligans… Yet, they seem to be hooligans of the intellectual, sophisticated, and jovial variety, even if Mr. Ole A. Aune of Terratur Possessions, for instance, has compared Slagmaur to characters from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. That said, we did not think they were about to cause chaos throughout the global music community. Their dangerously effective emotional rollercoaster of an experiment now forces us to question our own sanity as well as all we read in our apocalyptic time of AI and fake news. 

As Lars von Trier, the mischief-maker behind The Idiots (1998), would more or less agree: We are all idiots (minus Slagmaur and crew), and “idiots are the people of the future” (though Fosen actually serves as a rare bastion of hope for humanity…). In other words, even if an outlet is in Norwegian and appears to be an obscure local paper, maybe check that Harry Houdini isn’t listed as a member of their staff, and that the source doesn’t claim to have been founded in 1978 when it is clearly quite new. Fosen Folket, which was magnificently designed by the masters of illusion specially for their evil plan, does include real stories, such as an award win that occurred in June for Praying for Armageddon by UpNorth Film, for whom Manes’ Torstein Parelius works as a producer.

Upon close or even unscrupulous inspection, Fosen Folket simply looks too perfect. The photos, which bear the unmistakable artistic trademark of the General, immediately provoke suspicion because they are too amazing — what news site has a photographer half as good as the General?! (Yes, the General doubles as an outstanding professional photographer and filmmaker.) Moreover, some of the headlines, like “Jens Is the Last Blacksmith,” could be viewed as a bit too cutesy to be real. Despite the clues, the site earned “millions of views and tens of thousands engaged users on our site within hours” of breaking the news of Ruch and the General’s disappearance.

So, in greater detail, how exactly did Slagmaur and Thorns dupe the music world? Here’s a recap of events: Timing is everything, and I, for example, woke up late on November 13 to see that former pilot and leading black metal photographer NecrosHorns, a person infinitely wiser than my occasionally silly self, had posted that Ruch and General Gribbsphiiser had gone missing after a hiking trip. Because this unimaginably atrocious news was coming from NecrosHorns (just as I would later see other reputable individuals, both conspirators and those who were not informed of the bigger plot, also sending their wishes for the musicians’ safety), I knew it couldn’t be a joke, even if it seemed like meme-gold. 

Post from NecrosHorns

I clicked the link NecrosHorns thoughtfully included to Fosen Folket and, to my great horror, read that the pair of friends and collaborators had indeed vanished after a mountain hike near Tjønnstua. Ruch and the General reportedly intended to walk inland towards Tussbotna, cross the water, camp for the night, then head to Torsenget to do some photography. Worsening my worries, Fosen Folket stated that they were unsure of the route the two had chosen, suggesting they might have taken a different path than planned.

Fosen Folket clarified that Ruch and the General had embarked upon their trip on November 11, but when they didn’t return home on the morning of the 13th, as expected, family sounded the alarm. Curiously, I didn’t see Norwegian news sites other than Fosen Folket writing about the disappearance, but I remembered that countless serious events do not receive due coverage in our world of never-ending tragedies and sometimes incompetent or simply overworked reporters.

At first, I wasn’t sure if reporting on such a grave matter was the right thing to do: Would that type of attention contribute to the chaos, create a circus-like atmosphere, and prove a negative distraction to friends, family, and actual rescue workers during a crucial time when all efforts needed to be channeled towards ensuring the well-being and Mr. Ruch and Mr. General? Well, after receiving straight answers from no one, I determined that enough people who know the dynamic Ruch-Gribbsphiiser duo were imploring others to spread the word. Whereas eventually individuals were asked not to try to look for the pair themselves, those living nearby were initially encouraged to join the search efforts, increasing the need for awareness. Metal Injection, MetalSucks, and others all began dutifully sharing the story, and it indeed became a top trending item.

From the start, Fosen Folket made clear that the Red Cross, fire department, and civil defense were all searching for Ruch and the General, but fog, snow, sleet, wind, and the like complicated the task, as did night when it fell. The eyebrow-raising fact came to light that their car was found unlocked. One cellphone was still in the vehicle, while the other gentleman allegedly didn’t have a registered mobile phone. Fosen Folket confirmed that both hikers are in good shape and are outdoor enthusiasts, a reminder that they should fortunately have most excellent survival skills. Why Fosen Folket deemed it relevant to state that the two have backgrounds in the film industry, I do not know. However, it could be interpreted as a little wink to those who already understood that Slagmaur was up to their version of The Blair Witch Project (1999).  

As for my own part, I feared that the General and Ruch might have done something reckless in order to secure the perfect photos and could be injured. (It wasn’t that long ago that journalist Alec Luhn suffered a fall while hiking in Norway…) The General had indeed told me, after I nagged him about the astounding masterpiece that is Hulders Ritual, that he and Ruch would be doing a photo shoot in November for cover art. (It did strike me as a bit odd that they would opt to wait, and I did assume the already iconic photo of Snorre in a cape would serve as the cover for Hulders Ritual, but why would I question what isn’t my business?!) 

Moving on: When an elderly woman was reported missing in the same area but in the Norwegian evening, our hopes that the duo might just be lost and were waiting to be found took a turn for the worse. What could an older female third party be doing on what the General had described as a “boys’ trip” on social media, as he and Ruch were setting out? We shuddered at the possibility that the menaces behind songs like “Bestemor sang djevelord,” or “Grandma Sang the Devil’s Word,” might have decided, at the last minute, to whisk a relative away for the wild ride. Fortunately and accordingly, the search team resolved to step up their game with reinforcements. Sadly, the injury of a rescue worker in the missing woman’s house was soon thereafter announced. 

Although, at this point, I had finally realized what Ruch and the General were truly up to, when Fosen Folket decided to post their talk with the General’s mother, Rita Isabel Røstad, it was a relief to know she was alright (or rather, was apparently collaborating and had not been given a heart attack by her son’s magic tricks and also would not have to beat him). Ms. Røstad explained that the missing 94-year-old woman, regarded as a mythical figure, had chased the General into the woods when he was but a child. Therefore, her beloved son would grow up to use the strange experience in his multi-faceted art — just as his lyrics, for one, are inspired local folktales, so too does the woman have her role in them. Ms. Røstad shared that the purpose of the General and Ruch’s journey had, in fact, been to photograph the woman’s residence, a farm, for an album cover or an art project. That clearly might not have been the wisest decision, as the croon in question once reported the innocent General to the police because she believed he had caricatured her on album art. 

Those endowed with elite musical taste were already aware that Slagmaur had teased a documentary devoted to the cursed forest of Varghiet, which too inspired Hulders Ritual. Hence, it seemed only natural to those chosen ones that Fosen Folket proceeded to explore local lore, writing that the history of tragedies and mysterious legends associated with Varghiet date back to the 19th century. Sitting down with farm owner and intellectual Tore Melhus, the paper enlightened us on the phenomenon of the Englemakerske (and related poltergeists that even spooked the US Special Forces and continue to make themselves known in the region) — the term for women who took money to care for children and then murdered them. Melhus even linked Varghiet to the serial killer Arnfinn Nesset.

With those pleasant details to brood upon, Fosen Folket offered more information about the 94-year-old woman’s house, which had been determined to be a possible crime scene — the injured Red Cross volunteer had likely fallen through the stairs due to a booby trap. We interpreted the sulfurous smell observed by Fosen Folket as a sign of demonic forces. In a separate post, Fosen Folket updated international audiences that footprints from the 94-year-old had been found just outside her dwelling. They incorporated the eerie words of a hunter, “When you hunt lynx, you can eventually discover that it is you who is being hunted.” As volunteers began to withdraw, it seemed that the paper desired to make a point about Fosen dwellers possessing superior bravery to the inhabitants of Nidaros. Next, the paper bemoaned the challenges posed by the night and the fleeing of even more volunteers from Trondheim (not a very nice thing to do when Mr. Wraath, a pillar of the Nidrosian Black Metal movement, participated on Hulders Ritual…) More bad weather didn’t help.

The fine people of Fosen Folket then, from a location right before Tussbotna, introduced readers to nobleman, former pro fisherman, and current farmer Ronny “Røver” Sørstø, who mentioned that he had learned Ruch and the General had borrowed a dog — a notable revelation, considering that the composition “Ritual Dogs” will blow your mind on Hulders Ritual and additionally because the band’s very own Ritual Dog, Troy Nagel Kirkebrenner (Rest in Power), tragically passed away this past August. Ronny verified that the forest has birthed legends about ghosts, werewolves, and witches. He furthermore taught us about the necessity of refraining from gossip and keeping on good terms with neighbors. If I may comment, reticence is certainly not a skill that most Americans (meaning, a good portion of us monitoring the case) possess in abundance, and the media, who has been known to do obnoxious things like hunting for Fenriz, as if he’s a unicorn, could perhaps aspire to become more like the boundary-respecting Fosen residents. 

Fosen Folket’s next victim, Sverre Tysbotn, likewise proved polite, refusing to be a blabbermouth but making clear that he would not evade any civic duties. The paper insisted on paying Sverre to open a road barrier, but he refused to take the toll. May this completely superfluous detail serve as instruction regarding how normal people are to behave. (No, Norwegian Black Metal has never been about the money, which is part of what distinguishes it from so much Western nonsense.) 

The tireless news outlet moved on to annoy the very special cousins Svein Arve Fjellheim and Sindre, who brandished pitchforks and chainsaws. The men explained that the wafting smell of bacon was due to the recent slaughter of a couple of pigs whose remains were burnt. The cousins furthermore revealed that Serbian concentration camp prisoners hid in the area when they escaped, though most were executed. Following this, Fosen Folket disclosed that while searching for the missing individuals, a parachute, a metal container, and an English uniform from World War II were found, thus prompting the involvement of the armed forces, as the police confirmed. The objects were speculated to be connected to the Norwegian agent Lyder Hassel, who vanished in 1943.

On the final day of the mayhem, “Promo Trivia” posters were strategically placed in Colombia, Trondheim, and Oslo, where one decorated the door to ex-Celestial Bloodshed’s Kenneth Tiller’s famous Katakomben Record Store. (Ex-Emperor’s legendary Faust later turned out to be lucky enough to have been photographically captured proudly holding a few of the 100 fliers in his hands.) After that, 14 articles, and more, Fosen Folket finally published the big reveal — major congratulations to them on their beyond-successful “Fantom Eks Speriment,” which not even a literal hurricane was able to derail.

Ultimately, Ruch and the General did, as noted, manage to cause us severe distress as well as complete mental overload (by bombarding us with so much bizarre information, or “Easter eggs,” as we can only now perceive them), agitation, and hysterical laughter. Yes, this was a top-notch piece of (initially disruptive and distracting) performance art. In the words of the General: “The forest was our stage.” (Ruch has also sought to combine his music with visual art in the project Thorns Ltd., which has made sonic wonders for galleries and travelled to France, Germany, New York, etc.)

The provocateurs expressed that their saga moreover represents a literary and psychological study. (If we are to take what Ruch told Cernunnus of Manes in the latter’s old zine seriously, then the former’s mother was a psycho-therapist, meaning that she probably passed some of her gifts down to her son.) And, of course, the whole (thankfully less than actually grisly) affair stands as a testament to the power of human creativity in a digital age in which we see Americanization, commercialization, and pure laziness ruining so much.

“Promo Trivia” poster, as shared by Slagmaur

Never underestimate the supremacy of “Norwegian Giants,” not only as musicians but also as trolls; on his YouTube channel, Ruch invited us into “Snorre’s Music School for Trolls,” and it is safe to say that he and the General just gave us a masterclass on trolling for good causes. Ruch and the General raised awareness of their art, forcing less savvy sites than this one to stop spamming us with worthless paid-promo stories and criticizing every artist who has ever dared to speak without (over)thinking and instead turn their focus toward what truly matters: Thorns, Slagmaur, the struggle to understand Norway’s great geography, and the beauty of the Norwegian language (which Black Debbath rightly tells us is very-very important) with all of its dialects. Take the watered-down trash out of your ears, stop writing about what Corey Taylor thinks (Does he even…?!), and give the limelight to Ruch and the General, who are in fact the brightest shining stars, even if they sometimes prefer to hide behind the clouds, where we can’t pester them with intrusive questions. 

Speaking further of what matters most, Slagmaur provides new answers to the age-old question: What is Black Metal? — The strong and courageous people of Fosen Fire & Rescue, the Norwegian Civil Defense, and the Red Cross. All images (which, again, were photographed by the General) were flawlessly staged in cooperation with them.

The General eloquently commented:

“We believe that the voluntary work carried out by rescue personnel is truly unique in a country facing major challenges. These people use their free time and remarkable determination to help others in need, and they deserve high-quality press photos to promote their organizations, which depend on recruitment and volunteer engagement.

 

We made a simple exchange: the entire incident was treated as a training exercise, allowing all participating organizations to test their capacity and strengthen their cooperation. We come from a country that has survived because of a strong culture of collaboration — a culture shaped by the fact that we have always had to rely on one another. By sharing knowledge and working closely together, everyone improved their skills while gaining valuable experience through a wide range of realistic scenarios.

 

It is important to remember that all of this was done on a voluntary basis and out of goodwill. This project is a tribute to the everyday heroes who regularly operate in real-life emergencies and form the safety net that keeps you and me safe.

 

More will be revealed soon, as a documentary film team has followed the entire creative process and the exercises we carried out.”

Slagmaur has indeed already unleashed a beautiful clip. Given Slagmaur’s admirable message, it seems that the calls from the international community to help General Gribbsphiiser and Ruch will end up benefiting others. Thank you to Slagmaur and Thorns for supporting local heroes, and thank you, also and of course, to those local heroes.

It could be remarked that conspiring with those who put out fires and ensure the safety of others in additional ways might not be what everyone expects of black metal artists (even if disappearing might be). Granted, Ruch and the General have always been known to walk their own paths, not to mention, so many genre stereotypes are absolutely insufferable and must be thrown to the dogs to be torn apart. (Thus, the real question is whether Slagmaur’s ritual dogs can do us all the good deed of making the obstructor of truth and bringer of cinematic injustice that some might call Jonas Åkerlund disappear, but I digress…)

In closing, keep your eyes and ears open for the Hulders Ritual album, more from Thorns, and hopefully continued brilliance from Fosen Folket. Kudos again to the “Warlocks” responsible for perfectly wedding lore with technology, keeping their heritage alive, and honoring Fosen on a global stage. This has surely been a drama for the music history books! 

Mr. Faust, as shared by Slagmaur

Update: An important piece of trivia from General Gribbsphiiser just made its way to us. We simply couldn’t neglect to include it, as it not only demonstrates how incredibly carefully all was thought out, but it also relates to the immortal Mr. Trånn Ciekals of the Spellemann-winning Djevel, who tragically passed away in February.

“The Saturday before the disappearance took place, the city’s black hearts gathered in Trondheim for the memorial concert for Djevel. In their worn leather bags, Rune [the General] and Snorre carried hiking clothes – the very same clothes that would later be used in the missing persons photo. The photo had already been taken in September, ready to be displayed in the operations tent for the fire crews when the fictional search operation would unfold.

 

Before the concert began, they changed backstage from their civilian clothing into the hiking outfits from the missing photo, which was to be published three days later, and then started moving through the crowd.

The outfits were worn discreetly, yet visible enough for hundreds of metal fans to catch them in the corner of their eye.

 

A seed planted in the subconscious: they would see those same clothes again.

 

So when the missing persons alerts appeared the following Tuesday, and the images showing the exact same outfits began circulating in the media, they were already familiar. Seen before. Fresh in memory.”

Jillian Drachman

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