Finntroll

Regarded as trailblazers within the folk-metal genre, Finntroll took shape toward the end of the 1990s by fusing death metal's most aggressive traits with age-old Finnish folk themes. Throughout the following decade and afterward, international recognition arrived via releases such as Ur Jordens Djup (2007), Blodsvept (2013), and Vredesvävd (2020), each of which carried the group further into archaic musical traditions by weaving joik—a shamanistic chant considered among Northern Europe's earliest documented vocal styles—into their death metal intensity.

Established in Helsinki, the band's signature approach originated during an inebriated evening in 1997 when co-founders Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta (formerly of Thy Serpent and Impaled Nazarene) and Jan "Katla" Jämsen resolved to merge black metal's downtuned guitars and harsh vocals with local folk lines rendered in humppa rhythm, a polka-derived keyboard style. They enlisted guitarist Samuli "Skrymer" Ponsimaa, drummer Samu "Beast Dominator" Ruotsalainen, keyboardist Henri "Trollhorn" Sorvali, and bassist Sami "Tundra" Uusitalo, then captured the demo Rivfader the next year. With the roster unchanged, Finntroll issued their first full-length effort, 1999's Midnattens Widunder, through Spikefarm Records. On the subsequent album Jaktens Tid they ventured further into Finnish folk territory; the record debuted at number 20 on the domestic charts and achieved unexpected commercial traction in 2001, prompting Century Media to secure worldwide rights.

While tracking the acoustic EP Visor Om Slutet in 2003, guitarist Teemu Raimoranta died after plunging from a bridge in Hakaniemi, and vocalist Jämsen—afflicted by a virus-induced growth on his vocal cords—was compelled to step away from the ensemble he had started alongside Raimoranta. Though devastated, the remaining members enlisted vocalist Tapio Wilska (Sethian, Lyijykomppania) to finish the recording, which appeared later that year. Guitarist Mikael Karlbom entered the lineup in 2004 and contributed to the Trollhammaren EP. Two years afterward Jämsen departed, yielding his role to Mathias "Vreth" Lillmåns, whose first recorded appearance came on the expansive 2007 album Ur Jordens Djup; Jämsen nevertheless continued supplying the majority of lyrics. That release adopted a denser, more overtly black metal stance that persisted on the well-received 2010 effort Nifelvind. Blodsvept, the sixth studio album, surfaced in 2013 and marked the final outing for longtime drummer Samu Ruotsalainen, who departed on cordial terms the following year. Heikki "Mörkö" Saari (Norther) was subsequently brought in to handle percussion on the blackened folk-metal work Vredesvävd, issued in 2020.