Not the Village People: Rock and metal mix it up with traditional folk music

 

Rock music infiltrated almost every corner of the globe, and was initially considered completely separate from local, traditional music.  In fact, in many places it was greeted with hostility by the older generation, who feared contamination - some countries even tried to ban it. But the generations who grew up with rock are now merging it with their folk music, and the results can be amazing.  Folk mashed up with metal is even more exotic, because folk music and metal are fundamentally opposites:  "Folk music", by definition, is local and is rooted in tradition.  Metal is borderless, and is all about technical innovation.  It takes special inspiration to combine the two ideas successfully.  Here are some groups around the world that are doing just that. 

 

 

Irish Family Affair

The Corrs are four siblings who blend Irish folk music with rock into something all their own.  Here they are with guest artist Mick Fleetwood:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIi3AZe3Sik

Respect

Rock, blues and funk owe themselves mostly to African musical tropes brought to the West through the slave trade and by way of the Caribbean.  Now, African musicians are taking rock themes and instrumentation, and mixing them with their traditional melodies and rhythms.  Here’s one I really like: Malian composer, singer and instrumentalist Fatoumata Diawara. She mostly writes and sings about societal concerns like freedom, sovereignty, civil war, emigration, genocide, misogyny and race relations, but always with a sense of hope that things can be better.  She has little visibility in the U.S. but a big international following.  Bonya means "Respect".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji729K2Xuxs

 

The Who?  no, the Hu!

After being warred over by the Russians and Chinese, Mongolia regained its independence 99 years ago. Today, it is a country of 3 million, still sandwiched between Russia and China. Theirs is a precarious existence, one that requires a lot of moxie.  The Hu have that in spades. They mix traditional instruments and throat-singing with a metal vibe.  A good throat-singer can sing a low note and one or more high harmonics simultaneously, a startling effect if you haven’t heard it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4xZUr0BEfE

 

Tuareg Santana?

Bombino taught himself guitar by watching rock videos while in exile during one of Niger’s civil wars. Music became so associated with the Tuareg rebellion that guitars were briefly banned in Niger, and some musicians were executed. This is from a documentary about him made during a lull in the fighting. He has performed with major Western artists like Robert Plant and the Black Keys, has released several albums, and was nominated for a Grammy in 2019. He still sings mainly in Tuareg.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Adfb17JQYtg

 

Protecting your village from invasion for over 100 generations!

Why be confined to the present day?  These folks play human bones, animal-hide drums and other assorted prehistoric instruments reconstructed from archaeological digs. They sing in several languages, including proto-Germanic, a language reconstructed by academicians from Old Norse and other modern and archaic languages. They also wear antlers.  Since it’s basically Bronze-age music, I’d say that makes it metal.  I was 2000 years late in finding them, but better late than never!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRg_8NNPTD8

 

Lady of the Desert

Oum’s name means “Lady of the Desert”. She sings in several languages, and blends influences from Moroccan folk music and sub-Saharan rhythms to American jazz. She has amazing vocal control and agility. Not sure this is rock, but it rocks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=297klwcKKmI

 

Hijab Metal.  Believe it.

This group have received death threats for doing what they do: Being a teenaged, all-female band from a rural Muslim village in Indonesia, playing a mashup of local folk songs, metal, and rap while wearing hijab.  Their songs are political—how can they not be, when you are singing about having your own mind in a country that finds the idea subversive?  Some of the lyrics are in English, if you listen for it.  Musical nerd note: They are all solid on their instruments, but the bass player is extraordinary.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aZX-C8HKJc

 

In a galaxy far, far away...

Why confine ourselves to this planet?  In 2019 the Hu were commissioned to create the opening song for the soundtrack of the new Star Wars video game.  The result will have you wanting to go out and save the galaxy.  Here it is:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJZfEh3EciU

 

Shredding on the Koto and Shamisen

Finally, my favorite in this list.  It is an ambitious interlacing of western rock instrumentation with Japanese traditional instruments, scales and harmonies.  The individual musicians are all masters at what they do.  I don't think anyone has ever played the shamisen or koto quite like this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2meWkWqc-I