That song that I listened to as a child in my grandmother’s village, at the reindeer festival, would it sound good if I played it with an electric guitar?
How it sounds
With company and with many beers or anything of alcohol.
Like traditional Scandinavian, Russian… and Spanish songs, but with a lot of electricity and strange instruments.
Blind drunk musicians, music university graduates.
Why listen to it
Because the combination of metal and traditional melodies sounds very interesting and original.
But also because you can easily sing drunk with your also drunk friends.
Why not
Because no matter how drunk you are, you can’t sing in a Scandinavian dialect and sometimes the music becomes almost funny.
Where we meet it
Scandinavia, and mainly in Finland, Spain, Russia, but also Ireland, although it started in England.
When did it start
We actually meet it in the early ’90s
Who are the pioneers
Skyclad with their debut album “The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth” in the fall of 1991.
In fact, when Martin Walkyier wanted to add some new instruments to thrash metal, such as the piccolo and fiddle, he created a new genre.
But the Northern Irish Cruachan and the Germans Subway to Sally are also considered pioneers.
Like the Dutch Heidevolk, the Danes Sylvatica, and the Spaniards Stone of Erech.
You have to listen
Of course, you should also listen to Finntroll, Ensiferum, Korpiklaani, Turisas, Moonsorrow, Mägo de Oz
Days of glory
From the mid-00s onwards. The movement continues to grow.
Red card
Sometimes simple copying of traditional melodies in metal tempo, nationalist tendencies more rarely
What is it confused with
Pagan metal, Viking metal, Celtic metal, medieval metal, oriental metal, and folk songs with a passion for metal guitarist, who went to the village to help at the festival.
How do you describe it to an irrelevant person
Have you seen an Irish festival with dances and traditional songs?
And this with electric guitars, but also with this strange instrument, which only the one who plays it knows is called.
Of course, instead of families with children and grandparents, imagine drunk metal-heads below!