 Viking metal is a style of heavy metal music with origins in black metal and Nordic folk music , characterized by a lyrical and thematic focus on Norse mythology , Norse paganism , and the Viking Age . Viking metal is quite diverse as a musical style , to the point where some scholars consider it more of a term than a genre , but it is typically manifested as black metal with influences from Nordic folk music . Some common traits include a slow @-@ paced and heavy riffing style , anthemic choruses , use of both clean and harsh vocals , a frequent reliance on folk instrumentation , and often the use of keyboards for atmospheric effect . Viking metal developed in the 1980s through the mid @-@ 1990s as a rejection of Satanism and the occult , instead embracing the Vikings and paganism as the leaders of opposition to Christianity . It is similar , in lyrics , sound , and thematic imagery , to pagan metal , but pagan metal has a broader mythological focus and utilizes folk instrumentation more extensively . Most Viking metal bands originate from the Nordic countries , and nearly all bands claim that their members descend , directly or indirectly , from Vikings . Many scholars view Viking metal and the related black , pagan , and folk metal genres as part of broader <unk> and neo @-@ völkisch movements as well as part of a global movement of renewed interest in , and celebration of , local and regional ethnicities . 
