Eluveitie + Týr + Metsatöll @ Théâtre Corona Virgin Mobile

Man, soggy autumns make my bones itch to run through the misty woods by moonlight, naked as a jaybird and drunk as a skunk. Fortunately, we as a species have devised many canny outlets for such urges, and so on Saturday, October 18th I brought my primal hindbrain on down to the Corona Theatre for an evening of folk-metal fun times. The fact that I came back alive should not be taken as disparagement.

Hailing from the distant forests and mires of Estonia, the vanguard for the evening was Metsatöll (whose new album Karjajuht is available courtesy of Spinefarm). The spectrum of the genre more or less runs from making metal sound folky to making folk sound metal, and these Baltic wolves fall roughly in the middle. Their solid roots as a heavy epic-ized three-piece are clearly visible, but since adding a fourth (one who plays all the traditional instruments) they've concocted a motley blend. No, not Mötley, shut up. With familiar chugging riffs garnished with your choice of flute, torupill (google it), kannel (you're not the boss of me), and good ol' fashioned mouth harp, their music is designed to get people moving, and did so to great effect. A song that started off all Amon Amarth would soon devolve into zither solos and, I sh*t you not, motherf*cker playing the bagpipes behind his head like Stevie Ray F*cking Vaughan, eventually winding down with harmonized droney-chantey a cappella, which I can only assume is something totally awesome.

Next up was Týr, a pretty big band from some tiny little islands, who in their own words "play heavy metal, and sometimes put folk in." They brought your standard fare of upbeat riffs, meedley-meedley-mee (the technical term, I believe), and everything else you could possibly want from a heavy proggy powery folky act. They sang about Vikings and Viking stuff and just being a goddamn Viking. 'Nuff said.

The returning champions of the night were, of course, Eluveitie. This Swiss sensation is my go-to paradigm for the far folky end of the aforementioned spectrum. Fans of traditional Celtic music appreciate their tight adaptations of the canon (specifically the Gaulish stuff), and fans of going ape-balls in the pit appreciate getting down and dirty to some hurdy-gurdy. Riding in hard on the heels of their latest endeavour Origins, they played a never-ending set with damn fine energy. That's a lie, it did end, and when they took longer than usual to come out for the encore, I thought the seething multitudes would tear the place apart. The crowd was already well lathered by halfway through Metsatöll's first f*kken song, so extrapolate about two hours from there (long long juicy sets mmm) and by the time the headliners are on you've either got spent charnel or an incandescent mass on your hands. I shouldn't have to specify that in this scenario it was the second one. Goddamn, man, pay attention. The crowd surfers were being offered up like a steady tide of animal sacrifices, and I hadn't seen an honest to goodness wall of death in a dog's age, but Glanzmann's will is law in the sweaty demiplane of that Saturday night. They didn't even need to have the Fleurdelisé flying from their bagpipes, but did anyway. Bonus points, Eluveitie, and well played. Everyone on the rest of the tour better buckle their pants.

--DJ Spacepirate hosts Burnt Offerings every Sunday at 6 PM EST on CJLO. It's a bit confusing but to the point.