'Folk metal' is a diverse collection of music, encompassing a wide variety of different styles and approaches. As the name suggests, the one common ground between folk metal bands is a shared interest in fusing heavy metal music with elements of folk music.
Origins
Skyclad's The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth, the band's debut, and also considered the first ever Folk Metal album
In 1990, the pioneering
British band
Skyclad was formed. Skyclad began as a
thrash metal band with folk influences, most notably on the track "The Widdershins Jig" from their debut album, ''
The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth''. The band added a
violinist to their ranks in 1991 and has since recorded their subsequent albums with a heavy emphasis on folk melodies delivered from the
fiddle,
keyboards and to a lesser extent, the
guitars. The diverse influence on Skyclad's music include such bands as
New Model Army,
Tenpole Tudor,
Jethro Tull,
Thin Lizzy and
Led Zeppelin.
The year 1990 also saw the release of the landmark album
Hammerheart by
Swedish outfit
Bathory, an influential band that had already played a significant role in developing
black metal in the early 1980s. An album from 1988,
Blood Fire Death, had already signaled a change of direction but it was with Hammerheart that the metal world was formally introduced tothe concept of
viking metal, an approach closely related and often overlapping with folk metal.
Bathory's 'Hammerheart' is often considered to be one of the seminal albums in the development of folk metal
The early 1990s saw the formation of a number of significant bands, most notably the Viking metal bands
Enslaved in 1991 and
Einherjer in 1993, as well as folk metallers
Cruachan in 1992 and
Waylander in 1993. The enigmatic Norwegian band
In The Woods... had also formed in 1992, originally performing Viking metal before adopting a unique
avant-garde approach from 1996. The Irish band
Primordial moved toward folk metal after originating as early as 1987 with a
melodic black metal style.
Mägo de Oz was another band formed in the late 1980s, but released in 1994 their first album. A hybrid between folk metal and
power metal, Mägo de Oz has found fame elusive outside their home country of
Spain.
With the second wave of folk metal and Viking metal bands emerging in the second half of the 1990s, the two distinct genres began to merge. Bands such as
Finntroll fused a path that blended the folk melodies and instrumentation of Skyclad and Cruachan with the darker, synths-oriented approach of Bathory and Enslaved. Folk metal from other parts of the world began to emerge in this period as well, with the
Brazilians
Tuatha de Danann being perhaps the most well-known.
Ulver brought wider attention to the use of acoustic folk instrumentation with their second album
Kveldssanger in 1996 while
Empyrium,
Mael Mórdha and
Agalloch brought folk elements to the realm of
doom metal.
Shaman, a band that formed in 1993, introduced a specific form of folk singing named
yoiking to a metal audience with their debut album
Idja, released in 1999.
In the years since, folk metal has increased in popularity with an ever larger number of bands and fans. Many websites catering to heavy metal now devote a section to folk and Viking metal. Significantly, a number of bands have turned towards real live instrumentation instead of replicating folk sounds and melodies on synths. While Skyclad and Cruchan have long included a band member devoted to one or more folk instruments, the
Swiss ensemble
Eluveitie and the
Finnish band Shaman turned
Korpiklaani have gone further in including more than one member devoted to folk instruments. Korpiklaani includes an
accordionist and a
violinist in addition to the guitarists and drummer while four out of the eight members of Eluveitie perform on such instruments as
Bagpipes,
Flutes,
Pipes,
bodhrán,
Hurdygurdy and
Violin.
Musical characteristics
Folk metal bands can come across as vastly different from one another. They arrive at the genre from different backgrounds and sources. Consequently, they adopt different styles and idioms, resulting in an extremely varied collection. The differences apply to both the metal base of the music as well as the folk elements.
The range of metal styles in folk metal include
black metal,
thrash metal,
power metal and
doom metal. Some bands adopt a particular metal genre almost exclusively.
Elvenking, for instance, utilized a
power metal idiom while
Windir had a
black metal approach. Other bands blend more than one metal genre together with folk music, such as the
symphonic doom metal path of
Empyrium that eventually gave way into a
neofolk direction. Other bands, such as
Cruachan, blend different styles seamlessly and are generally referred to as just folk metal.
As most folk metal bands are from Europe, the most common folk music used are European. A
Celtic style can be found in such Irish bands as
Cruachan,
Primordial,
Geasa,
Waylander and
Mael Mórdha as well as bands outside
Ireland, including
Eluveitie and
Tuatha de Danann.
Scandinavian folk styles are represented by such bands as
Finntroll,
Týr,
Korpiklaani and
Trollfest. Beyond that, one can find many other styles of folk music as pursued by bands from the respective country or ethnic group. This includes
Moravian (
Silent Stream Of Godless Elegy),
Latvian (
Skyforger),
Lithuanian (
Obtest),
Estonian (
Metsatöll),
Hungarian (
Dalriada) and
Russian (
Butterfly Temple,
Troll Gnet El), Middle-Eastern (
Melechesh,
Orphaned Land) and even
Native American (
Guahaihoque,
Tezkatlipoka). Names such as Celtic metal and oriental metal (referring to the Middle-Eastern bands) have been used in reference to these particular styles of folk metal while other
neologism such as ''Native American metal'' or ''tribal metal'' can be commonly found as well.
Folk metal bands differ in their choice of metal style or folk style and in the manner they combine the two. A folk melody can be played on a folk instrument, the electric guitar or both, and can be found over a metal rhythm. Metal riffs can be found over folk rhythms. The folk melody can be new or old. Folk metal bands often performed arrangements or cover versions of an entire traditional folk song. The famous Irish song
Spancill Hill was covered by both
Geasa and
Cruachan. Bands cover songs or compositions from other genres, and arrange them in a folk metal style. The famous
Sabre Dance by
Aram Khachaturian was covered by two folk metal bands,
Skyclad and
Butterfly Temple.
The many styles in folk metal means complex, progressive compositions exists alongside simple song formats. Rousing chorus for fans to sing along with are common. Dance rhythms the
Jig and the
Polka are common, too.
How much are folk elements in the music differs from one band to another. Some perform metal with folk brought in sometimes. Others stress folk as an always basic part of them. Many bands in heavy metal added ethnic flavor into a song, or featured an acoustic folk interlude or epilogue. A bigger use of folk music was needed for a band to be thought folk metal, a misleading label. Not all folk metal bands use real, historic
folk music. Many bands give a vague ethnic feeling to their music, like the style of
Dead Can Dance and other
world fusion music.
Lyrical themes
Common lyrical themes in folk metal include
nature,
medieval culture,
neo-pagan beliefs and hostility towards
organized religion, mostly
Christianity. The commonness of pagan lyrics had some substitute the words "pagan metal", though not all pagan metal bands have a folk style or source nor do all folk metal bands have pagan themes.
Lyrics are often sung in the native language of the band members rather than English. A common lyrical choice is a hedonistic celebration of drinking
alcohol, most evident in such bands as
Korpiklaani and
Finntroll. A humorous lyrical obsessing with trolls led to such bands as
Finntroll and
Trollfest being tagged with the term ''troll metal''. More seriously, bands like
Cruachan and
Skyforger set historical events of their culture to
narrative. Lyrics from
mythology and contemporary
fantasy are frequent, with
Tolkien's
Lord of the Rings the popular subject matter in folk and non-folk metal.
Skyclad remains unique in folk metal for upholding a strong
left-libertarian political stance in their lyrics.
Folk metal bands are mistaken for harboring
National Socialism sympathies, and use
Romantic Nationalist lyrics and pagan symbols that look like
nazi symbols to the uneducated.
[1]. This pushed many bands to publicly and explicitly disavow fascism and Nazism, including
Wolfsangel[2] and
Skyforger[3].
Subgenres
Celtic metal
This popular variation of folk metal uses the melodies and/or instrumentation of Celtic folk music. The large number of bands pursuing a Celtic metal direction include
Amorphis (
The Karelian Isthmus),
Bran Barr,
Cruachan,
Geasa,
Waylander,
Primordial,
Mael Mórdha,
Eluveitie,
Aes Dana,
Tuatha de Danann,
The Lord Weird Slough Feg.
Oriental metal
Main articles: Oriental metal
This subgenre of folk metal uses the ethnic flavors of the
Middle-East, including traditional folk elements from the
Arabic,
Jewish and
Turkish cultures. Notable bands include
Orphaned Land,
Melechesh, and
Mezarkabul.
Related styles
Viking metal
Main articles: Viking metal
Grand, bombastic rhythms with hymns and chants glorify and celebrate (or teach)
medieval Scandinavian culture and folklore. Viking metal is darker and more epic than folk metal. The two came about beside each other, but kept apart before 1995 when many blended the two, and combined folk melodies and instrumentation with Viking rhythm and lyrics. The overlap between Viking metal and folk metal is strongest in
Scandinavia, for example
Moonsorrow,
Finntroll and
Ensiferum. Many viking metal and folk metal bands share neither of the other's traits. The overlap means fans of one genre are fans of the other. Many websites and communities over the internet uphold both styles; see the links at the bottom.
Mittelalter-Rock
Main articles: Mittelalter-Rock
Stylistically, a blend of
folk rock and
hard rock, Mittelalter-Rock or medieval rock is a neo-medieval style of music most commonly found in Germany. Typical instrumentation includes
bagpipes, the
shawm, the
hurdy-gurdy and
harp alongside
guitars,
drums, and
electronica. As it is possible for Mittelalter-Rock musicians to perform metal riffs and rhythms on the guitars and drums, a relationship has developed between folk metal and Mittelalter-Rock to the extent that many fans of one genre tend to be fans of the other, as evident again by the external links below. Bands that have crossed over from Mittelalter-Rock into folk metal includes
In Extremo,
Subway to Sally,
Saltatio Mortis,
Morgenstern and
Tanzwut, a side project of
Corvus Corax.
Neo-folk
Main articles: Neo-folk
A modern re-interpretation of folk music with elements of
industrial and
experimental music, neo-folk shares with folk metal a common interest in heathen and neo-pagan lyrics. While neo-folk bands have not crossed over to folk metal, a number of folk metal bands have crossed over to neo-folk either partially or wholly, most notably
Empyrium and
Agalloch. Neo-folk bands with notable metal influence include
Tenhi and
Valkyrend Varieté.
See also
Main articles: List of folk metal bands
External links
★
Gathering Of Clans Folk Metal Encyclopedia
★
Trolleve - Viking, Folk, & Pagan Metal Community
★
Folk, Viking, Pagan, Medieval (In German)
★
Viking Blood
★
Nords
★
Spirit Folk Forum
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