Vancouver based black folk metal group Scythia is more than a group and guys and girls singing about elvish folklore — they also dress the part.
You’ll be able to see for yourself when the make their first “siege” on Lethbridge, at Finnegan’s Pub, Aug. 17 with Enceladus and Datura.
“We’re not just a group of guys and girls in jeans and t-shirts on stage singing about folklore,” said guitarist Dave Khan, who will be wearing a leather breastplate.
“We’ll be playing these characters,” he said.
The other band members, drummer/ vocalist Celine Derval, Keyboardist Scott F. Thompson, bassist Terry Savage and “oboe of death” player Morgan Zentner will be sporting an array of armour, kilts, fur shirts and other medieval style garb.
But it’s not just a dress me up, it’s also about the music which appeals to people who like the complexity of metal music as well as people who like the instenity of punk.
“The tour’s been going excellent so far. We played in Grande Prairie and they have an excellent crowd there. We’ve never played there before and Prince George was crazy. We had punks versus metal there and they were all moshing in front of our merch booth. We thought they were going to destroy it,” Khan continued adding they were all having a good time together.
“The music we play has a lot of punk in it. Punks can get into its energy,” he said.
There is also a lot for metal heads who enjoy the classical elements.
The band embraces their classical roots.
“The whole band enjoys classical music,” said “oboe of death” player Morgan Zentner, who has a masters degree in music from the University of British Columbia and held the principle oboe position with the Kamloops Symphony. But found it wasn’t exciting enough, so decided to change musical directions, which lead to a move to Montreal, then back to the west coast.
“The oboe of death does give us that something different,” she said.
“It adds a different element to the genre,” she continued.
“it’s something that could have gone pretty well or really not well,” she said.
While the whole band contributes to their contributions, Khan composed most of the music at the beginning.
“It was really hard to write for the oboe,” he said.
New bassist Terry Savage is also contributing a lot to the composition.
They are looking forward to their Lethbridge debut.
“It’s going to be great,” Khan said.
“Anybody who wants to party should come,” he said adding the band is also giving out prizes to any fans who come up dressed in their best medieval garb.
The show begins at 7 p.m. Admission is by donation.
