Eluveitie - The Early Years

I've long had a theory that metal is a modern take on a type of folk music that's been around for thousands of years.

There have probably always been songs about war, brave deeds, evil men and the supernatural sung round campfires by groups of men to a receptive audience of similar young men. I'm sure that these would have been sung to the tempo of a galloping horse, with as much thunder as a hand drum and a lute could muster.

However, modern heavy metal hurdy gurdy and mandolin are quite a proposition, but in the hands of Swiss band Eluveitie they're a natural mix.

The band release a new collection entitles The Early Years on Nuclear Blast records, essentially a re-mixing of their debut album Spirit and a re-recording of their debut EP Ven. Both items have been out of print for years, and had become collector's items as the band's career took off, and both certainly deserved to be heard by the wider audience the band now has.

A special edition also  includes a newly recorded track.

The band released their most recent full studio album Helvetios earlier this year

Eluveite are currently touring with sweden's Sabaton, in what promises to be one of the best metal bills of the year. This video captures them playing at the Summer Breeze Open Air festival in 2008.