If you do a search for "samurai metal" on the internet, you will inevitably run across Finnish band Whispered's album Thousand Swords. This concept album about the story of a samurai is a hidden gem among metal albums. Incorporating the best of melodic death metal, extreme metal, and symphonic metal with a fusion of traditional asian instruments, this is a unique and thoroughly enjoyable album. Now, you may ask, how does a violin come into play here? The violin is sometimes imitating the traditional Chinese instrument, the erhu, and sometimes adds to the symphonic soundscape of this album's epic story. The violins on this album are played by none other than Olli Vanska, violinist of Turisas.
The violins are most noticably featured on the songs "Blade in the Snow" and "Dead Cold Inside."
