Medieval metal

Medieval rock (a literal translation of German Mittelalter-Rock) is a variation of folk rock and gothic rock into a style reminiscent of medieval music.

Medieval rock commonly makes use of medieval instruments, such as the bagpipe, the shawm, the hurdy-gurdy, and the harp, and/or medieval lyrics accompanied by elements of modern rock music, such as electric guitars, bass guitars, drums, and electronica. Often, bands of this genre originally played Irish folk music or medieval market music, sometimes developing more towards heavy metal as they gained popularity.

In the 1970s, Ougenweide became one of the first bands in Germany to experiment with this style. After Subway to Sally gained fame for its unconventional medieval rock and folk rock in 1990, several bands followed suit, the most famous of which was In Extremo, who blended bagpipes, harps, sitars, and other medieval instruments with electric guitars to make their own style of medieval rock. Another German band, Tanzwut, began blending electronics with medieval instruments to make electronic medieval rock. Similar to this band is Qntal; however, they do not use guitars, just electronics. Letzte Instanz's first album, Brachialromantik, is often categorized by many as medieval rock. However, possibly the most well-known example of medieval rock is the Norwegian band Satyricon's "Dark Medieval Times," an offshoot of the black metal genre that includes numerous references to castles, knights, and bloody battlefields.

Medieval rock bands

The following bands are well-known examples of the medieval rock genre:

• Adaro
• Asgard
• Blackmore's Night
• Cornix Maledictum
• Cumulo Nimbus
• Filia Irata
• Haggard
• Helium Vola (electro-medieval)
• In Extremo
• Imatra Lapus
• Morgenstern
• Ohrenpeyn
• Potentia Animi
• Qntal (electro-medieval)
• Saltatio Mortis
• Schandmaul
• Schelmish
• Subway to Sally (in their earlier years)
• Tanzwut
• Tuatha de Danann
• Vivus Temporis

Since the similarity to rock music, medieval music, folk and folk metal strongly varies across bands and songs, the classification of such music is often difficult. For example, Faun, Cultus Ferox and Corvus Corax are not Medieval Rock bands, as their style is classified simply as Medieval Music. However, most German bands internationally recognised as folk metal bands are actually part of this genre.