Epic metal
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Epic Metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music.
It lies between power metal, speed metal and classical heavy metal with a balance between slow and solemn hymns and the occasional outburst into powerful mid-tempos, epic metal includes some themes found in epic poetry and fantasy themes; they're not the only themes, however, and lighter elements like bikes, women, and a healthy amount of self-apology are just as frequent. A typical property of epic metal is a certain grandiose element and a penchant for trumpets, violins or even a full orchestra accompaniment.
Epic metal bands include Manowar, (early) Virgin Steele, Cirith Ungol, Omen and Medieval Steel from the US, Bathory (the Viking themed albums) from Sweden and more recently DoomSword from Italy. Recently, the Tolkien influenced Power Metal band Blind Guardian has been going in a more Epic direction than their earlier Power Metal albums. Most notable bands would probably include Dragonforce, Rhapsody and Nighthawk. A newer band called Viperine seems to have brought the second coming of Manowar
Battle metal (closely related to Epic metal) is a sub-genre of black metal drawing on themes of medieval or fantasy battle and fighting, and in the opinion of some would be suitable for the soundtrack for a Role Playing Game. Battle metal bands like Summoning were thought to be possible contributors to the soundtrack of the Lord of the Rings movies, but this was mainly because of the Tolkien-related content of their music and they did not appear on the soundtrack. Most bands who play battle metal also contribute to other sub-genres of black metal: for instance, Bathory are prominent in the Viking metal sub-genre, and Waylander are pioneers of three sub-genres of black metal: this one, folk metal and Celtic Metal. Other metal bands have produced songs that fit the battle metal genre; the power metal band Thy Majestie is an example. Turisas is considered to be the band who gave the genre its name by mixing all the previously mentioned styles and much more into one on their album "Battle Metal" (2004)de:Epic Metal