Bands draw on the folk music and legends of their own countries, and some sing only in their native language. The mood ranges from drinking songs to epic tales. The earliest bands were Skyclad from England, whose first album came out in 1991, and Cruachan from Ireland. The style spread across Europe in the 1990s and 2000s, with Finland as a stronghold.
Artists it is known for: Skyclad, Finntroll, Korpiklaani, Eluveitie.
About 1,500 of 83,000 Trackify listeners with public profiles have folk metal among their top artists of the last four weeks. Rounded; updated 13 November 2026.
Folk Metal artists
Sabaton
Nightwish
Bathory
Powerwolf
Mägo de Oz
Amon Amarth
Agalloch
Alestorm
Curta'n Wall
EpicaThe folk metal artists most Trackify listeners have in their top fifty. Each opens on Spotify.
Sources
The definition is written for this site from open sources, and was checked against them on 13 November 2026.