Hi there!
If you never knew, you’ll be surprised to know that Tolkien had quite an impact on the metal music genre, whether he liked the genre or not. I doubt he ever expected this to happen though. While this is not my go-to genre, it is a favourite for my girlfriend and thanks to her, I’ve discovered so many phenomenal groups and know where my limits are (e.g. overfocus on growling and you’ve lost me) with this genre. 😉
Today, I wanted to do something different and share a top five Tolkien metal bands and showcase one of their songs for you to listen to, if curious enough. 😉 To make things even simpler, I had the help of ChatGPT to identify these groups and the following descriptions are straight from its mouth. What would we do without an AI to assist us, huh? 😀
Blind Guardian.
Blind Guardian is a German power metal band that has been heavily influenced by Tolkien’s works. They are known for their symphonic and melodic approach to metal, and their lyrics often draw from Tolkien’s mythology, as well as other fantasy and mythological themes.
Battlelore.
Battlelore is a Finnish symphonic folk metal band whose lyrics are almost exclusively inspired by Tolkien’s Middle-earth. They use elements of symphonic and folk music in their sound, and their lyrics often narrate stories from Tolkien’s books.
Summoning.
Summoning is an Austrian black metal band known for their atmospheric and epic soundscapes inspired by Tolkien’s Middle-earth. Their music incorporates elements of ambient, folk, and black metal, and their lyrics often feature themes and references from Tolkien’s books.
Ered Wethrin.
Ered Wethrin is an American black metal band that draws heavily from Tolkien’s lore. Their music is characterized by its raw and aggressive sound, with lyrics that delve into the darker and more atmospheric aspects of Tolkien’s mythology.
Moonsorrow.
Moonsorrow, a Finnish pagan metal band, has also been lauded for their Tolkien-inspired music. They combine elements of black metal, folk metal, and progressive metal, and their lyrics often draw from Tolkien’s works, along with other mythological and historical themes.
Honorable mentions
- Ruinthrone
- Isengard
- Rivendell
- Morgoth
- Gandalf
- Black Sabbath (for their song titled The Wizard)
- Rush (for their songs Rivendell or The Necromancer)
- Led Zeppelin (for their songs titled Misty Mountain Hop, The Battle of Evermore, Ramble On)
- Megadeath (for their song titled This Day We Fight)
- Sabaton (for their song titled Shadows)
- Cirith Ungol (just for their band name)
- Cirith Gorgor (just for their band name)
- Burzum (just for their band name)
- Amon Amarth (just for their band name)
- Gorgoroth (just for their band name)
Have you heard of these songs?
Do you listen to metal?
What did you think of these songs?
TILL NEXT TIME!
Roars and Echoes 
I definitely didn’t expect to read something like this today…or ever. Very cool that there are Tolkien-inspired metal bands.
LikeLiked by 2 people
If you had asked me a couple of months ago, I too wouldn’t have believed this and would be in awe hahaha Thanks for stopping by, Celeste! 🙂
LikeLike
I’ve listened to quite a bit of Blind Guardian, but I am looking forward to checking out the others.
Why use ChatGPT though? 😦 I’d be more interested in your and your girlfriend’s (ie real) opinions of these bands than an AI’s!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad to steer you towards new bands to check out, Marie! As for ChatGPT, don’t worry, as a language model, it doesn’t have personal opinions or preferences, so my list is purely my preferences. ChatGPT only gave me a limited description of some bands. I had to do my own research to find more groups. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t like metal music, maybe some selected songs but this is definitely interesting. Great post, Lashaan!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for stopping by, Yesha! Some metal songs can be quite impressive but you definitely have to dig a bit to find those that work best for you. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I came here to see Summoning and am pleased to see them there. They’ve done some great stuff.
I’ll also throw out Nightwish as a band with some Tolkien influences (see the song Elvenpath)
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had only recently discovered Summoning and love their stuff too. My girlfriend adores Nightwish and we had listened to them before too but hadn’t made the connection with Tolkien’s influence until you mentioned Elvenpath! Good call! 😀 Thanks for stopping by, Peat.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If you’re into that style of metal and love the fantasy links, maybe check out Caladan Brood
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ahhh yes! I love their stuff too! Even more because of how it’s related to Steven Erikson’s Malazan series! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is new territory for me as well, Lashaan. Very cool that these musicians have all drawn inspiration from Tolkien.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Right? It’s amazing how much one can influence people in different ways. For some he might have inspired them to write fantasy stories, for others, it gave them the inspiration needed to create epic fantasy metal music!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Tolkien music? You’re diving in deep! I am familiar with three of the bands here and I predicted two of them in the list: blind guardian and battle lore. Moonsorrow is actually one of my favorite folk metal bands of all time. But i never saw any connection with Tolkien to be honest. Norse mythology, yes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m going wherever Tolkien is going this year! 😛 I’m quite glad to know that you’ve got knowledge and experience with some of these bands, Jeroen. I was also surprised that ChatGPT considered Moonsorrow as a Tolkien-influenced band but I guess influence is used in the largest sense here so I thought I’d might as well mention them because, like you’ve mentioned, their tribute to norse mythos through their music is quite epic and I wouldn’t be surprised if they’d give Tolkien some credit in some way hahah
LikeLiked by 1 person
99% of us here are not into heavy metal and from your Battlelore share, i have a new understanding of the association between heavy metal and mythological, sci-fi films. 🤔🎞
LikeLiked by 2 people
Absolutely, AOC! Well said. It might not be for everyone but it’s nice to see how it connects with mythology and fantasy! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
While metal is not my cup of tea, I’m very curious about these bands: I heard about Blind Guardian, but the other ones you mentioned come as total news to me. I foresee some intense musical exploration for me in the next few days…. 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad to have introduced these to you, Maddalena! I don’t listen to metal every day either but I do enjoy some select songs and groups. Hopefully, you’ll find some good ones among these! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I tried here but metal, inspired by Tolkien or not, is just not my genre. Sorry 🥲
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahah no worries! It’s definitely not for everyone. 😉
LikeLike
This post is amazing! And now I have some good music to keep me company! Thank you!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahaha! I’m glad to share these with you, Susy. Thanks for stopping by! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I got nothing man, absolutely nothing…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bahahahah even if you must be extra knowledgeable after the gazillion of metal music Dawie shares with us?! 😛 No worries, I totally understand hahahah I also know how much you love ChatGPT so it’s ok to be in awe at his mention here. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I pretty much ignore Dave’s metal posts. He knows this so we’re all good.
I wouldn’t have guessed the parts written by chatgpt…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nice! I haven’t listened to Blind Guardian in ages. And all the others are new to me so plenty to explore there. If you have time check out the Italian power metal group, Wind Rose. They’re heavily inspired by Tolkien, and specifically, the dwarves. In fact, they always dress as a band of dwarves in their videos and when performing. Diggy Diggy Hole is a fun song and video, though it’s a cover of the Minecraft song.
LikeLiked by 1 person
For a second, I thought you were going to mention Ruinthrone who I mentioned in the honorable mentions section who is a fairly new Italian band too who just released a whole Lord of the Rings-inspired album. I just started listening to Wind Rose this morning thanks to you and am now binging through all their music! Sooo, soooo good! Thanks for sharing, Todd! 😀
LikeLike
I didn’t know these existed. How cool!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is interesting, isn’t it? 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes it is! And now I’ve got some new music to check out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is so cool. It not unheard of for heavy metal bands or any other type of music band to base songs off of old ballads or stories.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is, right? And if you take the time to explore some of these groups, you can discover some really cool songs that will keep you stimulated for a long time! 😀
LikeLike
It’s kind of like how there are a lot of superhero comic references in certain types of Rap music.
On a somewhat related note, you know Christopher Lee, the legendary actor who played Saruman in the movies? He released a couple of metal albums himself … in his 90s.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, that’s pretty cool! I’ll have to look into those Lee albums hahah Thanks for sharing!
LikeLike
The first of his two metal albums is a concept album about Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor … who Lee actually descends from. The more you look into Christopher Lee’s life, the more impressive it gets. Its sequel, Charlemagne: The Omens of Death, is apparently much heavier, but I haven’t heard it yet.
He released others before that, one being a cover album. He also appeared on a number of Rhapsody of Fire’s singled., and did a couple Heavy Metal Christmas EPs. His music career probably started in 1998 with his “Christopher Lee Sings Devils, Rogues & Other Villains”.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, you’re going into a really deep rabbit hole, Lashaan! Never heard of any of these, but then I’m not a fan of metal 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll go wherever Tolkien goes, voluntarily or not hahah 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh Moonsorrow is amazing! If you love fast epic viking metal with bird sounds in the quiet moments and blood curdling screams.
LikeLiked by 2 people
What a hoot! But, why not? I confess to preferring more toned down music, but I gave these a go out of sheer curiosity and I would totally listen to a few again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahaha I’m glad that you took a moment to listen to these and discovered that some of them actually work well for you too, Sophia! Always a pleasure to hear from you. 😀
LikeLike