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Paper short abstract

This paper explores Folk and Black Metal, briefly tracing their evolution from an underground phenomenon to recognised music genres. It examines how both draw on a romanticised idea of nature as a core aesthetic and symbolic element in music, lyrics, and iconography – and their historical sources.

Paper long abstract

Black Metal is an (in)famous extreme music genre that developed underground, primarily in Scandinavia, between the late 1980s and early 1990s. It later evolved into a widespread and commercially successful phenomenon. Today, it remains a significant player in the music industry. Folk Metal, in its early forms, is closely related – musically, thematically, and aesthetically – to Black Metal and its kindred sub-genres, such as Pagan Metal and Viking Metal. Some of the earliest Folk Metal bands, including Storm and Finntroll, originated from the Black Metal scene; specularly, several Black Metal musicians, such as Ulver and Wardruna, have produced albums of non-metal folk music. The pioneering bands of the early to mid-1990s are widely regarded as highly influential and have attained cult status, with nature a central source of inspiration.

Over time, Folk and Black Metal have developed into an international subculture. Once primarily a masculine, North-European youth phenomenon, they now embrace a broader, more inclusive ethos, attracting all ages, genders, and nationalities, as they increasingly intersect with diverse musical, ethnic, and folk traditions worldwide, effectively evolving into a form of world music.

Both Folk and Black Metal frequently draw on nature, often in a romanticized, decadent, and gothic-infused manner. This paper seeks to historicise and analyse this imaginary, tracing its diachronic aesthetic and symbolic development through musical, textual, and visual sources. Nature appears in fact not only in compositional and stylistic choices but also in artists’ and bands’ names, album titles, lyrics, and visuals, including costumes and album artwork.