Sven Erik Kristiansen

Norwegian vocalist (born 1969)

Sven Erik Kristiansen (born 4 February 1969) is a Norwegian musician, best known as the former vocalist in the black metal band Mayhem under the stage name Maniac.

Kristiansen joined Mayhem in 1986 after the departure of the band's original vocalist Messiah, and left in 1987. He was then replaced by Kittil, who was later replaced by Dead, who committed suicide in April 1991. When Hellhammer decided to revive Mayhem in 1994 after the deaths of both Euronymous and Dead, and the imprisonment of Count Grishnakh, he invited Kristiansen to return as the band's vocalist. Kristiansen was known for giving extremely intense live performances, often cutting himself onstage and frequently landing in intensive care units. However, in a later interview Kristiansen stated when the band realized that the cutting had become a phenomenon people came to watch, he quit doing it. In 2016, Kristiansen briefly rejoined Mayhem onstage during a performance at the Inferno Festival in Oslo.

Kristiansen has three children: a daughter with his wife, Eri Isaka (Vivian Slaughter of Gallhammer), a son with his ex girlfriend, Hilma Nikolaisen, and a daughter from a previous relationship. He has stated that since he became a father, he has become more conscious of what he exposes himself to and is less destructive. For several years, Kristiansen was a self admitted alcoholic. According to him, the turning point for becoming sober was finding himself hanging by one arm out of a fourth floor window with no recollection of how he got there.