Medieval metal is a subgenre of folk metal that blends heavy metal music with medieval folk music. Medieval metal is mostly restricted to Germany where it is known as Mittelalter-Metal or Mittelalter-Rock. The genre emerged from the middle of the 1990s with contributions from Subway to Sally, In Extremo and Schandmaul. The style is characterised by the prominent use of a wide variety of traditional folk and medieval instruments.
Folk metal is a fusion genre of heavy metal music and traditional folk music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. It is characterised by the widespread use of folk instruments and, to a lesser extent, traditional singing styles. It also sometimes features soft instrumentation influenced by folk rock.
Nuclear Blast Records is a German record label with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. It was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Donzdorf. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label moved on to releasing albums by thrash metal, melodic death metal, grindcore, industrial metal, power metal and black metal bands, as well as tribute albums. It also distributes and promotes post-hardcore/metalcore labels SharpTone Records; another post-hardcore/metalcore label, Arising Empire, was in Nuclear Blast portfolio until its acquirement by Kontor New Media in 2020.
Moonsorrow is a Finnish pagan metal band formed in Helsinki in 1995. Musically, the band incorporates elements of black metal and folk metal in their sound. The band call their sound "epic heathen metal" and try to distance themselves from the term "Viking metal". They have distanced themselves from other folk metal bands, emphasising that their music is pagan and spiritual and is challenging for its listeners, rather than happy or danceable. The band members have varying levels of pagan belief but they draw on pagan spirituality for lyrics and inspiration.
Edguy is a German power metal band formed in 1992 in Fulda by students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dominik Storch, and Dirk Sauer. Initially named after their math teacher, the band faced early rejections from record labels but persevered, releasing their unofficial debut album, Savage Poetry, in 1995. They gained wider recognition with their subsequent albums, including Kingdom of Madness (1997) and Vain Glory Opera (1998), featuring guest appearances from notable musicians. Over the years, Edguy has evolved their sound, with Sammet also launching the successful metal opera project Avantasia. The band has released multiple studio albums, including Age of the Joker (2011) and Space Police: Defenders of the Crown (2014), and has engaged in extensive touring. As of March 2020, Edguy is on hiatus while Sammet focuses on new Avantasia material.
Virus is the tenth studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Hypocrisy. It was released on 19 September 2005 by Nuclear Blast. It is the first Hypocrisy album recorded with their new drummer Horgh from the black metal band Immortal and second guitarist Andreas Holma. The album features a music video for the song "Scrutinized".
Letzte Instanz is a German violin-rock band, founded in Dresden, Germany, in 1996, particularly noted for their use of the violin and cello. The founding members included Hörbi, Tin Whistle, Muttis Stolz, Kaspar Wichman, Holly D. and Markus G-Punkt. Benni Cellini and Robin Sohn entered the group a year later. To date, they have released eleven studio albums, two live albums, two live DVDs, three singles and have appeared on a number of mix CDs.
Kill the Sun is the debut studio album by German symphonic metal band Xandria, released on 5 May 2003 through Drakkar Entertainment label. The record includes one single, "Kill the Sun".
Primo Victoria is the debut studio album by Swedish power metal band Sabaton.
Eric Fish, is the singer of German medieval metal band Subway to Sally. He performs also as a solo musical artist.
H-Blockx is a German rock band founded in Münster in 1991. After the success of their debut album in 1994, Time to Move, the band received a nomination for Best Breakthrough Artist at the 1995 MTV Europe Music Awards. In 1999, the World Wrestling Federation contacted them to record a song, "Oh Hell Yeah", for wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin, and their song "Countdown to Insanity" appears in the European version of the 2007 music video game Rock Band. Between 1994 and 2012, H-Blockx released seven studio albums.
Resurrection is the fourth studio album by Chimaira, released on March 6, 2007. Debuting at number 42 on the Billboard 200 charts, Resurrection shipped about 16,000 copies sold in its first week. The album was released in two forms: a regular version, and a limited edition version with different cover artwork and a DVD documentary of the making of the album. Chimaira's first album with Ferret Music since leaving Roadrunner Records, Resurrection features original drummer Andols Herrick who rejoined the group shortly before the writing process. Resurrection is also the first Chimaira album to feature some additional backing vocals by keyboardist Chris Spicuzza.
Nine Destinies and a Downfall is the third studio album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Sirenia. It was released on 23 February 2007 through Nuclear Blast. The enhanced CD of the digipak edition contains a bonus track, the video for the song "My Mind's Eye" and multimedia software. The music video was produced and directed by Serbian film company iCODE Team, being the first of the band. In March 2007 a second video was released, "The Other Side".
Only Inhuman is the second studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Sonic Syndicate. Released May 18, 2007 in Europe and on May 22, 2007, in North America. It's also the first album the band released through their new label, Nuclear Blast, as well as the first to feature vocalist Roland Johansson and drummer John Bengtsson as full-time members.
Revolver Music was a British record label. It was created by Paul Birch in 1979 as a guitar music label. Its sister labels are FM Records and Heavy Metal Records.
Omega Lithium was a Croatian industrial metal/gothic metal band. It was formed in 2007 and is signed to Drakkar Entertainment, a part of Sony BMG. The band's debut album, Dreams in Formaline, was released in 2009.
Now & Forever – Best of Xandria is a compilation album by German symphonic metal band Xandria, released on 6 June 2008 via Drakkar Entertainment label. The record was published as a package including a DVD containing live performances, music videos, and interviews.
Kairos is the twelfth studio album by Brazilian heavy metal band Sepultura. It was released on June 24, 2011 by independent German record label Nuclear Blast Records. This is the band's first release on the label, marking their first album not released on SPV/Steamhammer since 2001's Nation.
Koloss is the seventh studio album by Swedish extreme metal band Meshuggah, released on 23 March 2012 in Germany, on 26 March in the rest of Europe, and on March 27 in North America, by Nuclear Blast.
Odd Crew is a Bulgarian metal band from Sofia, formed in 1998. It consists of vocalist Vasko Raykov, guitarist Vasil Parvanovski, bassist Martin Stoyanov and drummer Boyan "Bonzy" Georgiev. The band has released seven studio albums and two live DVDs. Their latest album, Dark Matters Part II, was released in November 2023. The band's original style of thrash/groove metal evolved into a more alternative direction on their later albums.
