Written in the Stars
Just as the Nordic countries dominate the medal table each Winter Olympics, the region is a leader in the world of heavy metal music, too.
According to the Encyclopaedia Metallum website, Finland had 630 metal bands per 1 million people in 2016, followed by Sweden with 428, Iceland (341), Norway (299) and Denmark (154).
In contrast, Britain—the birthplace of heavy metal—had just 68 bands. Even former US President Barack Obama once mentioned Finland’s pole position in the metal rankings.
So what’s behind this Nordic love of screeching guitars and thundering drums? As a Nordic-born metalhead myself, I believe the region’s geography (remote, rural towns) and government style (controlling and not much fun) play a part.
As a young boy growing up in Sweden, summer was my favorite week of the year. The other 51 weeks were mainly cold, dark and sometimes depressing. In the winter months, I would walk to school in the pitch black and return home in afternoon darkness. That kind of environment can have a lasting impact.
With not much to do, young people often have just two choices: sports or music. But since winter sports are played outside—in the dark and freezing cold—many youngsters automatically reach for a guitar or drumkit.
The cultural divide between sportspeople and rockers is quite deep. You choose your path early in life and stick to it. Few people manage to inhabit both camps. In fact, sports stars, by and large, have a questionable taste in music. Like soccer players and tattoos, winter sports athletes and lame music preferences seem to go hand in hand.
Nordic people often appear quiet, especially the Finns and those from the northern part of Sweden. They let their music do the talking—and the louder, the better. While heavy metal was originally imported to northern Europe, the Nordic nations have been churning out quality bands since the early 1980s.
The region now dominates metal subgenres like melodic hard rock and the more extreme death metal and black metal. Nordic bands have created their own subgenres as well, including Viking metal (yes, that’s a thing), pagan metal and folk metal, all of which ooze forests, folklore and bloody battles.
The Nordic metal scene was formed in an era when there was no Internet, no social media and no music streaming apps. New music was consumed via the radio and vinyl record stores. Music fans would read about bands in imported magazines long before they had the chance to actually hear the music. This meant that a lot of the early Nordic metal acts were more influenced by image than a sound.
Since then, Nordic metal has grown beyond its underground status and boasts followers across the world. In 2006, Finland’s Lordi showed us how Nordic metal can have mainstream success when their track “Hard Rock Hallelujah” won the Eurovision Song Contest, a competition more commonly associated with acts like Abba and Céline Dion.
In these uncertain times, one thing is undeniable: the Nordics will continue to win Olympic medals and play heavy metal music. They have no other choice.
Stefan Nilsson is a Club Member.
Words: Stefan Nilsson
Illustration: Tania Vicedo
