Valkyre is a symphonic gothic metal band from Belgium and France. They are still unsigned, with only 2 demos out: "Consolamentum" and "On Both Sides We Pray." Unfortunately, it is hard to find most their music, as there are only three recordings available on their Myspace. I was really struck by their song, "A Good Day to Die," which combines celtic folk elements with symphonic keyboard patches and violin-guitar harmonies. The violin parts are very melodic, provide great harmonies and a folky magical feel to their music. Their music is very energetic and enchanting, with a powerful female singer and intriguing synth sounds. The violinist is Cid Jimenez, who joined the band in 2007 and worked on "Consolamentum" with them. Before him, the violinist was Joris Derder. They have both used an acoustic live at one point, but Cid also has an electric S-shaped violin (Shar?). They have consistent violins, they are on all three of the songs on their myspace. Give them a listen! Great sound, and great potential!
Putting their violinist and female singer on their album cover for "Out Loud" was a good marketing move for Naio Ssaion. These two elements definitely grabbed my attention right from the start, and a good indication of what sets their band apart from others. Classified as nu-metal or gothic metal, this band from Slovenia has great consistent use of the violin. I almost want to say they're a rock band, however, since their metal influence is very light, and they have very strong pop influences. They don't update their websites very often, so I have no idea what they are up to now, but hopefully we will hear more from them in the future! Their violinist is Rok Kolar. Between banging his head and shaking his dreads, Rok plays a mean violin, writes very interesting parts, and makes the most extensive use of pizzicato and double-stops I've heard so far in metal. A lot of the violin parts are very fast paced, rhythmic, and provide good texture for the music. The soloing is very rock guitar-like, artistic, and fits very well into the music. Also impressive is the fact that the violin is in every song on their album, "Out Loud." Rok plays a Zeta Strados electric violin live, probably plays it in the studio as well. These violin parts are definitely unique, and worth checking out!
Recommended Songs: "Blah Blah," "The Mirror" (solo near end), "Can't You Hear" (semi-solo @ end), "Shut Up" (solo, pizz), "Bow Link in E Minor" (instr.), "Blind Date," "Yours Faithfully" (pizz.)
These blood drenched warriors of metal are barbarians only in terms of their clothing. On the contrary, the Finnish folk metal band Turisas is very sophisticated in terms of their musicality. Epic sagas and symphonic compositions are coupled with tales of battles and voyages to foreign lands. Incredibly entertaining and great musicians, Turisas can be summed up in one word - epic.
Turisas' music is symphonic in nature, bordering on filmscore. They use rough vocals, have the traditional instrumental line-up as well as a violinist and accordion player. They sing about history, specifically about vikings and battle. One of my favorite things about them is their versatility and spontaneity. I've had the opportunity to see them live twice, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that the violinist would play some of the keyboard parts from off the albums. He does an amazing job, too! They are great entertainers, when I saw them in the Sacramento, CA area in '08, they sang happy birthday to a girl in the crowd and played a "gay ballad" version of "Battle Metal" and started dancing with each other on stage in honor of their show in San Francisco the next day (oh, stereotypes... XD; it was still very awesome though!) Very fun, and one of the best bands I've seen live!
Their violinist is one of my favorite metal violinists, and is also a big proponent of the violin metal underground. Olli Vänskä has been an official member of the band since 2007, and has played on the albums Battle Metal and The Varangian Way. He plays electric violins both live and on their albums, and has three different violins: a Yamaha SV120, Yamaha SV-200, and Yamaha EV-204. He uses distortion on his solos, and uses a BOSS GT-6 multifx pedal. I really love his violin tone! The violins aren't in every song, and they aren't always given a prominent role either, so I have included a list below for your convenience :) The violins usually play folky leads or dramatic texture parts, or sometimes plays fast paced parts doubling with the accordion. He has really incredible solos, I highly recommend giving them a listen!
Recommended songs: "One More" (Battle Metal), "Dnieper Rapids" (distorted solo, Varangian Way),"Land of Hope and Glory" (Battle Metal), "Miklagard Overture" (distorted solo, Varangian Way), "Rex Regi Rebellis" (solo, Battle Metal), "Midnight Sunrise" (Battle Metal), "Sahti Waari" (Battle Metal), "In the Court of Jarislef" (Varangian Way), "Rasputin" (cover, Varangian Way)
Elvenking is a power metal band hailing from Sacile, Italy. They are heavily influenced by the folk metal pioneers Skyclad, and as expected, their music also exhibits some folk metal influences.
They have 5 albums out: the first 3, Heathenreel, Wyrd, and The Winter Wake, are heavily folk influenced, while their later album, The Scythe, is darker and more pop sounding. Their latest release is a "mostly" acoustic album, Two Tragedy Poets which is even more folk influenced than their earlier albums, but also retains the pop influence of their previous album. It contains some acoustic versions of their earlier songs, and questionable songs such as their cover of the pop hit "Heaven is a Place on Earth." O_o
Elvenking has had various different violinists contribute to their band. On Heathenreel they had a guest violinist, Paolo Polesel.Then they had Elyghen, who seems to be their main violinist, who played on Wyrd and The Winter Wake. When Elyghen temporarily left the band, Lethien came in to fill his place. They also had a tour violinist named Eleonora. (The picture to the left is of Elyghen) The Winter Wake is a good representation of their overall style, and the violins play a very prominent role in the music. They play usually fast, moving fiddle-like parts, and often double with the guitars or vocals on the main melody of the song. The violins are in almost every song and they are usually mixed very high. The violin definitely gets treated like an important instrument and an important component of the band, which is a rare find in metal. It sounds like they use acoustic violins on their albums, but they use electric violins live. Elyghen uses a Yamaha EV-204.
Emilie Autumn is a violinist and singer/songwriter from Malibu, California. Formerly the violinist to Courtney Love, she is now pursuing her own solo project as singer/songwriter. She was classically trained in violin starting at the age of four, and soon found to be talented in the sense of child prodigy status. Bold, eccentric, and sometimes a little frightening, Emilie is not afraid to let her creativity run free, and her penchant for experimenting with her violin playing and sound is what makes her so unique. Most of her music is classified as Victoriandustrial (a term she made up), a genre combining classical and industrial goth music. This may not be metal, but her violin work definitely is! Her album Laced/Unlaced is the only album she has put out so far featuring solely her violin work. This album is incredible, and is a must-buy for anyone interested in electric violins or metal violin solos. The first disc Laced showcasing her classical repertoire while the second, Unlaced features her electric violin, a Zeta Strados named Elgar. If you're not interested in her classical work, you can buy theUnlaced songs by themselves on iTunes. Either way, I highly recommend buying it! It features a solo violin with heavy distortion, accompanied by synthesized harpsichord and an electronic drumbeat. Some of her songs feature soloing reminiscent of neo-classical metal guitar solos.
Warning: you will encounter mature/offensive material if you decide to research her on your own or check out her other musics.
Here is a song called "Leech Jar" which features some metal-style shredding on distorted violin:
At The Lake is a Polish Symphonic Metal band. They feature a female singer, guitars, bass, drum, keyboards, and violin. But what's interesting about them is their violinistMilena Gaworek is also the leader and composer of the band! Their music is a combination of symphonic and folk metal, and very melodic and beautiful.
A song from their new album Live Again just blew me away. Listen to the full song "Like A Northern Wind" HERE, it's amazing!!!
Milena plays an electric violin, a 5-string Zeta Jazz Fusion. The Jazz Fusion has amazing tone, which makes At The Lake have the best electric violin tone I've ever heard in metal! Milena is a very skilled player, as can be heard in her fast arpeggios and runs in "Arrow of Oblivion." The violin parts are very interesting and sophisticated, probably due to the fact that their violinist writes them herself.
At The Lake is still a fairly new band, so I look forward to what they will come out with next!
Eluveitie is a folk metal band from Switzerland, whose most outstanding feature is its sheer number of instruments. Aside from a violin, they've also used hurdy-gurdy, bagpipes, and flutes in their music, all played by members of their band. Their style also contains death metal influences, such as grunt vocals and fast and heavy guitar riffs. They will sometimes use traditional folk melodies as the basis for their music, and their lyrics are generally about celtic folklore and history. Very interesting band to see live! They have 4 albums out and one on the way: Ven, Spirit, Slania, and Evocation I: The Arcane Dominion (acoustic). Everything Remains (As It Never Was) is due to be released on February 19, 2010.
The violinist in this band is Meri Tadic. Meri uses an acoustic violin in the studio (a Harry Caraballo) and an electric in live settings (YamahaSV 130). There were also 2 former violinists in the band, Linda Suter, who played on Spirit, and Mattu Ackerman, who played on Ven. Meri has been on all of the albums. The violin parts are mostly of the folk music/celtic fiddle style, they are sometimes used to double on parts with other instruments, and are often mixed very low in the mix, due to the presence of many different instruments in the band. I have recommended some songs below with prominent violin parts in them, for your convenience. Spirit and Slania are probably their best albums, I tend to like Spirit better, but Slania has better sound quality since that is the first album they released after signing on to a major label (Nuclear Blast).
Valkyre is a symphonic gothic metal band from Belgium and France. They are still unsigned, with only 2 demos out: "Consolamentum" and "On Both Sides We Pray." Unfortunately, it is hard to find most their music, as there are only three recordings available on their Myspace.
The violinist is Cid Jimenez, who joined the band in 2007 and worked on "Consolamentum" with them. Before him, the violinist was Joris Derder. They have both used an acoustic live at one point, but Cid also has an electric S-shaped violin (Shar?). They have consistent violins, they are on all three of the songs on their myspace. Give them a listen!
