Chimera by Mayhem

Chimera is the third full length album by the Norwegian black metal band Mayhem. It is the fourth and last main Mayhem release with the vocalist Sven Erik Kristiansen (Maniac). TurboNatas of the Norwegian band Red Harvest provided the album artwork. The album art is a screenshot from the 1922 silent film Häxan. At the time of the album's release in 2004, Mayhem was still being sharply and routinely criticized in the metal underground for straying from the black metal style on its previous album, Grand Declaration of War. Nevertheless, once released Chimera received rave reviews, with many music critics praising the album for its fast and harsh sound. Moreover, numerous reviewers appreciated the fact that Chimera, unlike the more experimental predecessor Grand Declaration of War, features a rawer kind of black metal, far closer to the band's early albums.