 One of the first non @-@ Nordic Viking metal bands was the German project Falkenbach . Formed in 1989 and primarily the work of front @-@ man Vratyas Vakyas , Falkenbach performs a mixture of black metal and folk music , with lyrics drawing from Western and Northern European mythologies , religions , and folk traditions . The Dutch bands Heidevolk , Slechtvalk , and Fenris have also been labeled as Viking metal , though Heidevolk 's former vocalist Joris Boghtdrincker claims that Heidevolk has never tried to " play the Viking card or the Pan @-@ Germanic card , " instead choosing to write about local Dutch history . 
