Viking Metal Songwriting Advice

So you want to write Viking metal. You want riffs that feel like charging into a fjord. You want lyrics that smell of smoked salmon and mythology. You want vocals that range from throat tearing to tavern singing. This guide gives you the tools, the weird exercises and the ruthless editing moves to write Viking metal songs that actually land with listeners and do not just sound like someone playing a horn sample and yelling about Thor.

Everything here is written for artists who live on caffeine, playlists and the eternal scroll. We explain any jargon so you know what to do when the producer asks for more presence or the drummer screams for a key change. We include concrete examples, line edits, riff recipes, arrangement maps and stage tips you can use today.

What Is Viking Metal

Viking metal is a sub style of heavy metal that draws on Norse mythology, Viking imagery and Scandinavian folk music. It leans on epic atmosphere, chantable hooks and often a sense of ancient ritual. Bands use heavy guitar riffs, pounding drums, choirs and folk instruments. Vocals can be clean, guttural or both at once.

Important note about labels. Genres are useful buckets not prisons. You can borrow a Viking metal mood while keeping your own identity. If you want to trade authenticity for attention, you will lose both.

The Core Elements You Need

• Riffs that feel ritualistic not repetitive.
• Lyrics that balance myth and human detail.
• Vocal textures from chant to growl to clean lead.
• Rhythmic weight that drives both headbang and procession.
• Production choices that create wide cinematic space without turning the song into a movie trailer.
• Folk elements used tastefully for identity not for novelty.

Write Riffs Like a Longboat

Riffs are the skeleton of Viking metal. They need to be heavy and memorable. Start with a melodic motif of two to four notes. Repeat it with small variations. Let the rhythm be the difference maker.

Riff recipe

1. Pick a scale or mode. Common choices are natural minor, harmonic minor and Phrygian mode. Phrygian is like minor with a flattened second note. It creates a darker, exotic color.
2. Choose a rhythmic cell. Think in terms of beats per bar. 4 4 is fine. Try repeating a motif on beat one followed by syncopation on beat three.
3. Create contrast by adding a second riff that moves. Let one riff drone on the tonic note while the other dances above it.
4. Use palm muting and open notes as texture layers. Muted chugs give weight. Open notes give thunder.

Relatable scenario. Imagine you are on the bus with earbuds. You have thirty seconds before your stop. Play the riff you made in your head and see if it becomes a trailer in your skull. If you still hum it on the way home you have gold.

Scale choices and why they matter

Natural minor is the bread and butter. Harmonic minor adds a raised seventh which gives a classical or cinematic tension. Phrygian has a minor second which makes a riff feel ancient and dark. Mix these sparingly. Overuse drains impact.

Example motif in words

Try a four note cell like: low E to F then jump to B then slide back to E. That minor second between E and F is bruising. Repeat it with the rhythm: long short short long. Small changes each repeat keep attention.

Riff Writing Exercises

• Two note obsession. Limit yourself to two notes for two minutes. Build a rhythm that makes those notes sound epic.
• Pallette swap. Write a riff in natural minor then change one note to harmonic minor and play the emotional difference aloud.
• Drone court. Hold a single open string and write a melody above it. The drone gives a ritual feel.

Lyrics That Feel Like Saga Pages

Lyrics in Viking metal can be myth retelling, imagined scenes or personal stories told with Viking language. The trap is writing fancy words without feeling. Great Viking metal lyrics are human at the core and mythic in the image.

Three levels of lyric meaning

1. Surface story like a raid, voyage or ritual.
2. Personal undercurrent such as fear, longing or defiance that a real human can own.
3. Symbolic echo that links the story to a universal feeling.

Example before and after

Before: The ship sails into the night and we kill our foes.

After: Salt rides the lip of the oar. My brother hums a prayer that smells like pine. We cut the rope to the past and row into a sky that will not forget us.

See the difference. The after version gives images and a human detail. That is what the listener remembers.

Use of Old Norse words and pronunciation

Old Norse words can spice your lyrics. Use them as seasoning not main course. Pick one or two words like valkyrja, skjaldor, or seidr. Provide context in the lyric so listeners who do not speak Old Norse can still grasp meaning.

Pronunciation tip. Look up reputable linguistic sources or ask a philologist friend. If you butcher a word on a record you will be corrected forever.

Song Structures That Fit Viking Metal

Viking metal benefits from epic forms but avoid bloat. You want a sense of journey not exhaustion.

Structure A Ritual march

• Intro motif
• Verse one
• Chorus or chant
• Verse two
• Bridge instrumental with a folk instrument
• Chorus chant
• Outro with a clean vocal refrain

Structure B Saga arc

• Slow intro with choir
• Riff heavy first act
• Middle breakdown with acoustic storytelling
• Reprise of main riff with full force
• Final chant and fading drum march

Choose the structure that supports your narrative. If the song is about a voyage, let the middle act be a storm that knocks you off course. If the song is about memory, include a quiet acoustic middle with a spoken line.

Vocals That Command the Fjord

Viking metal vocals are a toolbox. You want to know how to use each tool. The main categories are clean singing, harsh vocals, chants and spoken word.

Clean singing

Clean singing is melodic and can convey sorrow, pride or intimacy. Use it for refrains and story moments. Keep melody simple so the lyrics are heard in a live room. Double the lead on choruses for size.

Harsh vocals

Harsh vocals include growls and screams. They convey rage or ritual ferocity. Learn healthy technique from a coach. Shredding your vocal cords gets you none of the above. Two styles matter most. Fry based growls that are lower and raspier and false cord screams that are higher and cutting. Each requires breathing technique and support from the diaphragm.

Technique explained. Diaphragm support means you breathe deeply into the belly not the chest and push with controlled air. Imagine pushing air through a small doorway not blowing a trumpet.

Chants and group vocals

Chant sections create a communal feel. Record a choir of friends or double track a single voice with different inflections. Layering middle voices behind the lead gives a sense of ritual audience participation.

Vocal arrangement tips

• Use clean vocals for the hook or refrain.
• Place harsh vocals in peaks or to punctuate transitions.
• Let the chant breathe. Too many layers kills clarity.

Drums and Rhythm

Drums in Viking metal range from slow tribal beats to blast beats from extreme metal. Use rhythmic contrast for drama. A long slow march followed by a sudden double time section hits like a storm.

Common rhythmic devices

• Marching groove with a strong snare on two and four for processional feel.
• Double bass runs for power and drive. These are fast alternating hits on the bass drum.
• Blast beat where snare and cymbal pattern accelerate with the bass drum for an extreme metal burst. A blast beat is an intense rapid percussion technique that creates urgency.
• Rallentando which means slowing down gradually to create a sense of collapse or wonder.

Practical groove. If your song has a verse about rowers then use a steady pulse that mimics oars. In the storm use double bass and ride cymbal for chaos. After the storm drop everything to near silence and bring in a low choir line.

Folk Instruments and Orchestration

Folk instruments can make a Viking metal song feel authentic. But authenticity comes from respectful use. Do not paste a folk violin for five seconds and call it heritage. Learn the instrument role.

Common choices

• Nyckelharpa a keyed fiddle from Sweden. It has resonant droning strings.
• Hardingfele a Norwegian fiddle with sympathetic strings that create shimmer.
• Flutes and whistles for melody lines and air.
• Mandola or bouzouki for rhythm and arpeggio textures.

Recording tip. Capture the instrument close for detail and with a room mic for ambience. Blend into the mix rather than trying to dominate it.

Harmony and Chord Choices

Harmonic movement in Viking metal often favors modal and drone textures over dense chord changes. Keep the palette simple and let melody and rhythm define the drama.

• Use pedal points or drone notes to anchor the harmony while the top line moves.
• Employ power chords for weight. Power chords are two note chords consisting of root and fifth. They are not major or minor and provide a blank emotional slate.
• Add suspended chords to create unresolved tension before a chorus resolution.

Production That Moves Air and Not Money

Production can make or break Viking metal. The goal is a wide cinematic space that still leaves room for buzzsaw guitars and growls. You do not need a million dollar studio to achieve this.

Essential production checklist

• Guitar tone. Record DI bass and blend amp sims with reamped tracks for flexibility. Use a high pass to remove mud below 80 Hertz on guitars. Keep the low end for bass and kick.
• Bass. Tight and present. Use a blend of DI for punch and amp for color. Sidechain subtly to the kick if you want the low end to breathe with the drums.
• Drums. Use parallel compression to give punch without killing dynamics. Parallel compression means sending a copy of a drum mix to a bus with heavy compression then blending it back under the original to add impact.
• Choirs and vocals. Use reverb for space and a short delay to add width. Double the main lines and pan copies for stereo swell.
• Folk instruments. Place them slightly forward in the mids during acoustic sections and pull them back under heavy riffing.

Tip on reverb. For epic sections use a large hall reverb with a long tail but automate the send so the reverb does not smear the fast riffing. Keep reverb tails shorter for heavy parts to preserve clarity.

Mixing Tricks for Crowd Ready Sound

• Clarity chain. High pass everything except kick and bass. Add a small mid scoop around 300 to 600 Hertz on guitars if they feel boxy.
• Stereo width. Use mid side EQ to widen choirs and folk instruments while keeping the low end mono for punch.
• Automation. Ride the vocal levels. Increase the vocal presence in quiet lines and pull back a touch when drums explode.
• Master bus. Light compression and a limiter for glue. Avoid heavy clipping that crushes dynamics. Preserve impact.

Arrangement Choices That Make Songs Feel Huge

Arrangement is how you order emotion. Take listeners on a path rather than bulldozing them with noise.

Epic arrangement map

• Intro with single instrument motif or choir
• Verse one with narrow instrumentation
• Chorus with full band and chant
• Verse two introduces a folk instrument or acoustic guitar
• Bridge with rhythmic shift and vocal duel or solo
• Final chorus with added harmony and faster double bass
• Outro with lingering drone and whispered line

Use the bridge to reveal new emotional information. If both verses are about glory then make the bridge about cost or doubt. Contrast is what gives repetition meaning.

Lyric Devices and Storytelling Tools

Ring phrase

Repeat a short phrase at the start and end of a chorus. It anchors memory and becomes chantable by crowds. Example ring phrase: We sail for the sun.

List escalation

Three items that increase in magnitude. Start with small trade and finish with cosmic scale. Example: I lose my coat then my compass then my name.

Callback

Bring back a line from verse one in the final chorus to show change. Change one word to show growth or loss. The listener feels closure.

Real Life Scenarios and Application

Scenario one. You are writing late after rehearsal. Your drummer texts that he can not make practice but has a new blast beat idea. You record your riff and send a clip that sits in 90 beats per minute. Ask the drummer to play the middle section half time and a blast beat lift for the storm. Build the bridge around that lift. This gives the drummer a role and makes the song dynamic.

Scenario two. You have a folk singer friend. Invite them to record a short melody line on a flute and do not show them the rest of the track. Let them improvise. Often the free performance will give a motif you can repeat and weave into the chorus. Credit and pay them. Collaborations are how scenes grow.

Marketing and Identity Without the Costume Store

You do not need chainmail for authenticity. You need a clear aesthetic and a story. Your image can be modern while your music embraces Viking themes. For Gen Z and millennials authenticity is not about dressing the part it is about sincerity. Show how the songs connect to you. Show the research. Show the mistakes. Fans love process more than props.

Content ideas

• Short videos explaining a lyric line and its source material.
• Behind the scenes of a fiddle session with a caption about the instrument history.
• Live sessions with acoustic versions to highlight melody and lyric.

Copyright, Folklore and Respect

Using traditional melodies can be powerful. But not all folk tunes are public domain. Research whether a melody is copyrighted in an arrangement. If in doubt, change the melody or clear it. Also acknowledge cultural context. Do not appropriate a living tradition as a costume moment. Cite your sources. It is both ethical and it makes your music more interesting.

Songwriting Exercises Specific to Viking Metal

1. Saga Sprint. Twenty minutes. Write a chorus that contains a human image and a mythic line. The human image should be specific like a carved wooden mug or a burned map. The mythic line can be a name or an event. Keep lyrics under four lines.
2. Riff Drone. Ten minutes. Pick one open string drone. Write a riff above it that repeats and evolves every four bars. Change one note on the third repeat to surprise.
3. Vocal duel. Fifteen minutes. Write a short script where one voice is a warrior and the other is a seer. Use alternating lines and finish with a shared final line that becomes the chorus.
4. Tempo Drama. Build three bar loops. Bar one is march at 80 BPM. Bar two doubles in energy at 160 BPM. Bar three is silent with a whispered line. Loop this three bar cell for a minute then expand.

Before and After Lyric Edits

Theme journey and loss

Before: We sailed away and I felt sad.

After: The oar hummed like a lost throat. I watched my village shrink to a nick in the map and swallowed the day.

Theme battle pride

Before: I fought with my clan and we won the fight.

After: My shield smells of iron and pine. My brother laughs with a missing tooth and the sky keeps score.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

• Too much trivia. If every verse is a Wikipedia dump the song will feel like homework. Fix by choosing one concrete image per verse and make it do the emotional work.
• Over layered choir wall. When everything is huge nothing is huge. Use space. Pull some layers back and let a single line cut through.
• Vocal technique abuse. Do not attempt continuous harsh vocals without training. Fix by alternating harsh lines with clean lines and booking lessons.
• Forgetting the hook. Riffs are not always hooks. Make sure the chorus has a melodic phrase that humans can hum after one listen.
• Overuse of Old Norse words. If listeners have to Google every other line you lose them. Use a few words and make them meaningful in context.

Performance and Stagecraft

On stage Viking metal is spectacle with honesty. You can be theatrical and sincere. Use lighting to create a procession feel. Crowd chants are your friend. Teach the line by repeating it and then leave space for the audience to reply.

Stage tips

• Open with a motif the audience can recognize quickly.
• Teach the chorus in quiet before exploding into full volume.
• Use props sparingly. A single carved cup or a banner can read better than a full costume.

Finishing Workflows That Help You Ship

1. Draft. Write a riff and a chorus in a demo. Keep it rough.
2. Feedback. Play it for two trusted listeners who do not know your secret. Ask which line they remember.
3. Polish. Clean the vocal take and edit lyrics for imagery and clarity.
4. Production pass. Do a mix pass focused on clarity of low end and vocal presence.
5. Master and release. Prepare one version for streaming and one for live set. Live may need rawer settings.

Tools and Terms You Should Know

DAW stands for digital audio workstation. That is the software you record in like Ableton, Logic or Reaper.

BPM stands for beats per minute. It sets the tempo. Viking metal songs can vary widely from slow marches at 60 BPM to furious parts at 180 BPM.

DI means direct input. A DI capture is a dry guitar or bass signal recorded before amp coloring. It lets you reamp later.

Parallel compression is a technique where a heavily compressed copy of a track is mixed under the original to add weight without losing dynamics.

Pedal point means holding a note while the harmony above changes. It is a very effective way to create ancient ritual feeling.

Action Plan You Can Use Tonight

1. Pick a scale. Try Phrygian or harmonic minor.
2. Write a two note riff and repeat it for four bars. Make a rhythmic pattern and hum a melody over it.
3. Write one verse with one concrete object and one mythical line. Keep it to four lines.
4. Try both a harsh vocal and a clean vocal for the chorus. Record both takes.
5. Send a rough demo to one friendly producer or musician and ask for one focused change. Make that change and then record a two minute video explaining the lyric line on social media.

Viking Metal FAQ

What scales work best for Viking metal

Natural minor, harmonic minor and Phrygian mode are great starting points. Phrygian has an old world bite because of the flattened second. Harmonic minor adds a rising tension with a sharpened seventh. Use a drone and let the melody do emotional work.

Do I need folk instruments to make Viking metal

No. Folk instruments add color. You can create the same vibe with synth pads or processed guitars. If you use folk instruments record them well and integrate them into the arrangement rather than throwing them on top as decoration.

How do I write lyrics that are both mythic and personal

Anchor mythic ideas with one human detail per verse. The detail keeps the listener tethered. Use symbolic lines sparingly and make sure each symbolic line connects back to a person feeling something.

How can I add ritual feel to a song without sounding cheesy

Use repetition with variation. A chant is fine if it changes each repeat slightly. Keep dynamics in mind. Start small and build. Use real instruments or layered voices rather than canned samples.

Is clean singing or harsh vocals better

Both. Clean singing can sell melody and hook. Harsh vocals sell intensity. Use them as contrast. Many great songs use clean for hook and harsh for peaks.

How should I record a choir on a budget

Invite friends and record in a room with natural reverb like a church or rehearsal hall. Record multiple takes with different vowel shapes and double track. Blend the takes and add light reverb in the mix to unify them.

Can I mix Viking metal with other genres

Yes. Viking metal can fuse with black metal, folk, doom or even post rock. The key is to keep the narrative and atmosphere coherent. Do not mix styles without a clear reason. Cohesion beats cleverness.