 Weinstein considers Viking metal the progenitor of the pagan metal genre , citing Bathory 's Hammerheart as the first pagan metal recording . She writes how " it is fitting that pagan metal began with Viking metal , given that the Vikings were Europe 's last Pagans , converted slowly and with reluctance to Christianity . " von Helden also notes similarities between Viking metal and pagan metal , but also highlights some key differences . " [ Pagan metal ] deals mainly with Pagan religions and lies in a broader context where not only Old Norse mythology is dealt with , but also Celtic myths and history , fairy tales and other elements of folklore . Traditional instruments like the violin or flute are used more often in pagan than in Viking metal music . " Irina @-@ Maria Manea explains that " the idea of incorporating and then revering exclusively national or regional myths , stories , and tales first gained ground in the work of artists such as <unk> Brood , Falkenbach , Black Messiah , Enslaved or Einherjer , but the musical phenomenon is far from being merely European , but a global trend artistically expressing its affinity for an ethnically colored spectrum . " Ashby and Schofield likewise consider Viking , pagan , and folk metal part of an " interesting trend within cultural heritage towards not only a wider acceptance as heritage of the ordinary and the everyday alongside the nationally significant and the iconic , but a willingness and impetus to explore heritage 's outer reaches , the marginal areas in which definitions of cultural heritage and heritage communities start to fragment and become increasingly contested . " 
