Crimfall

Crimfall is folk metal band from Helsinki, Finland. Their music is very epic - can I emphasize that again? Very. Epic. Finland doesn't disappoint when it comes to folk metal, and Crimfall is no exception. 

Their music generally features melodies reminiscent of Finnish folk music and lyrics about vikings, but sometimes their music can even have an ethnic middle-eastern feel to it. Their dense keyboard orchestration and heavy guitars provide for a powerful sound, and the male and female vocalists provide for a nice contrast. Although the male/female singer lineup occurs quite frequently in metal, I feel like their male grunter/female operatic singer offset is exceptionally well done and stands out from the rest.

The official band consists of the two singers, a guitarist/keyboardist, drums and bass, while their session musicians on the album include violin, cello, and accordion. The guitarist also plays "other weird instruments," and I'm not entirely sure what that entails, but I do know it includes the jaw harp!
Crimfall is still a fairly new band - they only have one album out right now, As the Path Unfolds..., which was released in 2009. 


Official Site: www.crimfall.com