Folk Metal

Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music. This includes the widespread use of folk instruments and, to a lesser extent, traditional singing styles. The music of folk metal is characterized by its diversity with bands known to perform different styles of both heavy metal music and folk music. A large variety of folk instruments are used in the genre with many bands consequently featuring six or more members in their regular line-ups. A few bands are also known to rely on keyboards to simulate the sound of folk instruments. Lyrics in the genre commonly deal with fantasy, mythology, paganism, history and nature.

Associated Sub-Genres: Celtic Metal, Medieval Metal, Pagan Metal

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_metal