Viking metal is a subgenre of metal music with roots in Blood Fire Death and Hammerheart albums by Bathory. Those releases created a clean transition from earlier Black Metal music to embody what is now known as Viking metal. Some of the most common features of Viking metal are powerful, clean vocals and "epic" choirs, galloping riffs and drumming, rich anthemic keyboards, the use of Nordic Folk Music instruments such as fiddles, flutes, and blowing horns; as well as a cold, sad atmosphere. Additionally, bands often incorporate black metal shrieks and blast-beats. Also, as the name suggests, the lyrical content of the music is often focused on Norse mythology and the Viking Age.
Aside from the previously mentioned forefather of the genre, Bathory, other notable acts include Moonsorrow, Falkenbach, Thyrfing, and Borknagar (early albums).
