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.
Blackmore's Night is a British-American neo-medieval folk rock band formed in 1997, consisting mainly of Ritchie Blackmore and Candice Night. Their lineup has seen many changes over the years; Blackmore and Night have been the only two constant members. They have released eleven studio albums. Their early releases were mostly acoustic and imitated early music, but eventually Blackmore's Night started using more electric guitars and other modern instruments, as well as performing folk-rearranged cover versions of pop and rock songs.
Tanzwut is a German Neue Deutsche Härte and Medieval metal band which originated as a side project of Corvus Corax members. The band uses a Medieval theme during their live performances which are expressed through their stagecraft, costumes and choreography.
In Extremo is a German Medieval metal band originating from Berlin. The band's musical style combines metal with Medieval traditional songs, blending the sound of the standard rock/metal instruments with historical instruments. Versions of well-known traditional/Medieval ballads make up the main part of their repertoire, but the band has written an increasing share of original material in recent years. Their own material is written in German, whilst the traditional songs and cover songs are in a variety of languages.
Prophecy is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Soulfly, released in 2004. It is noteworthy for three guest artists – the completely different line-up for the album apart from leader Max Cavalera, the world music influence from a stint that Cavalera spent in Serbia, and explicit spirituality themes on the album. The album has gone on to sell over 275,000 copies.
Rise Up Like the Sun is a British folk rock album released in 1978 by The Albion Band. The album is in part a collaboration between John Tams on vocals and melodeon and Ashley Hutchings on electric bass. This is not the first album on which the two worked together but it remains the most fulfilling for listeners. To build the sound Hutchings brought in two of his former compatriots from Fairport Convention, Dave Mattacks on drums and tambourine and Simon Nicol on vocals and electric and acoustic guitars. In addition another ex-member of Fairport, Richard Thompson, contributed songs and backing vocals. Having assembled the principal contributors and an ambiance that encouraged their friends to drop in, Hutchings gave Tams the freedom to act as the project's musical director. They were joined by Philip Pickett on shawms, bagpipes, curtals and trumpet, Pete Bullock on synthesiser, piano, clarinet, sax, and organ, Michael Gregory on percussion, Ric Sanders on violin and violectra and Graeme Taylor on electric and acoustic guitars. Kate McGarrigle, Julie Covington, Linda Thompson, Pat Donaldson, Martin Carthy, Andy Fairweather-Low and Dave Bristow make guest appearances.
Eye II Eye is the fourteenth studio album by the German hard rock band Scorpions, released in 1999. It is a radical departure in that Eye II Eye is much more pop-oriented than their previous work, which alienated some fans, despite the single "Mysterious" reaching number 26 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. It is the first studio Scorpions album to feature James Kottak on drums and also the final Scorpions studio album to feature Ralph Rieckermann on bass guitar.
Fires at Midnight is the third studio album by British-American neo-medieval folk rock band Blackmore's Night, released on July 10, 2001, through SPV/Steamhammer Records. In comparison to their previous two releases, there are more electric guitar parts on this album, whilst maintaining a folk rock direction. The album was a Top Ten record in Germany.
Stary Olsa is a Belarusian medieval folk band, that plays medieval Ruthenian music of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The band has also released classical rock cover works in their Medieval Classic Rock where classical rock songs performed by bagpipes.
Faun is a German band that was formed in 1998 and plays pagan folk, darkwave, and medieval music. The originality of their music style is that it falls back to "old" instruments, and the singing is always the center of attention. The vocals are performed in a variety of languages, including German, English, Latin, Greek, and Scandinavian languages. Their instruments include Celtic harp, Swedish nyckelharpa, hurdy-gurdy, bagpipes, cittern, flutes, and many others.
Sünder ohne Zügel is the third album by the German folk metal band In Extremo. It was released in 2001 by Island Records.
Verehrt und angespien is the second medieval folk metal album by the German band In Extremo. It was released in 1999 by Mercury Records.
Schattenreiter is the fourth full-length studio album by the German industrial rock/medieval metal band Tanzwut. It was released on 7 April 2006 through German record label PICA Music as a two-CD digipak. The album marks their newfound sound, which incorporates a more down-tuned use of guitars, darker atmospheres and harsher vocals at times than their previous albums, making them lean towards industrial metal.
Ihr wolltet Spass is the third full-length studio album by the German industrial rock/medieval metal band Tanzwut. It was released on 7 April 2003 through German label PICA Music in a digipak format. The album was also unofficially released in a cassette format. The album shows Tanzwut's sound gravitating towards a more industrial metal sound.
Labyrinth der Sinne is the second full-length studio album by German industrial rock/medieval metal band Tanzwut. It was released in 2000 through British record label EMI Music. The 2000 release included a CD and a Cassette. The album ranked #46 on the German Alternative Charts (DAC) Top Albums of 2000.
Weckt die Toten! is the third album by the German folk metal band In Extremo. It was released on 1 May 1998 through Vielklang Musikproduktion.
Necrodaemon Terrorsathan is the third studio album by the Austrian blackened death metal band Belphegor.
Saltatio Mortis is a German medieval metal group. The Latin name means "dance of death". It is an allusion to the Danse Macabre, and a motto of the band is: "He who dances does not die."
Schandmaul is a German medieval folk rock band from the Munich area.
Anderswelt is the sixth album released by the German Medieval folk rock band Schandmaul on 4 April 2008. It was recorded from October 2007 to January 2007 at Turnstyle Studio, Berlin, and the HOFA Studios in Karlsdorf and was produced by Thomas Heimann-Trosien. The album contains 14 tracks, including an instrumental, "Fiddlefolkpunk". Thematically, the album focusses on creatures of mythology like sirens ("Sirenen"), werewolves ("Wolfsmensch") and spirits. The track "Drei Lieder" tells of a young bard who participates in a singers' competition to take revenge on the prince who once destroyed his native village and killed his only brother. "Die Königin" is about a bewitched woman who was once good-natured but has been turned into a dragon. The track "Anderswelt"(Other-world) deals with mysterious sightings of figures from the Other-world who were spotted near a Celtic shrine.
