I'm not even sure if 'oriental' is the right word here but I'm looking for something with that kind of vibe. The only example I can think of off the top of my head of what I'm looking for is Akercocke's 'The Promise.'

Thanks.

Are you looking for bands that are of the Orient nationality or have a bit of Oriental sound to them?

You might check out Melechesh and Al-Namrood- two very good black metal bands with a strong Middle Eastern sound. Then there's Orphaned Land, which is basically Middle Eastern folk metal, though I'd say Melechesh and Al-Namrood are a lot closer to that Akercocke song in their general atmosphere- Orphaned Land is pretty upbeat in their sound, while the other two sound much more sinister.

Give Tang Dynasty a shot. Has that Chinese vibe to their songs (especially songs like A Dream Return To Tang Dynasty).

Bands with that oriental sound to them like Tang Dynasty is what I'm looking for. Thanks ApocalypticxAngel

Melechesh, Al-Namrood and Orphaned Land didn't quite capture the atmosphere I had in mind but are still really good. Thanks as well.

You should give Whispered from Finland a shot. They've only got a few demos out (I believe their full length comes out sometime this year) but I think they're the kind of band you're looking for--they incorporate Japanese instruments and melodies with heavy power metal and harsh vocals.

orphaned land's mabool is one of the best albums of this decade though.

Rudra incorporate Indian and middle-eastern melodies in their music.

Magane - Beginning at the End has eastern Asian influences and instruments. It's also really good.

Try Yngizarm or Zuriaake. Two of China's best outputs; excellent stuff. Both have a folk-ish sort of feel too them.

Zuriaake are very awesome, thankyou. Yngizarm are also pretty good especially those ambient sections, but the drumming was pretty irritating.

Magane, Rudra and Whispered are all solid but not quite what I was looking for, but thanks anyway.

As a Egyptian ... i'd recommend those GREAT bands :


Aeternam :Oriantal/sympho death metal
http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php?id=3540285080

Arkan : Oriantal/melo death
http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php?id=62938

Amaseefer :Oriantal/sympho progressive
http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php?id=129795

Myrath : Oriantal/progressive
http://www.metal-archives.com/band.php?id=105456


REGARDING Orphened land you may pick mabool album ... one of the most brilliant doubts ...

Can't believe no-one mentioned Chthonic. They're basically a Taiwanese Dimmu Borgir, but if you like big-budget hollywood horror epics, then check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALSQypcw0Qc

I do like their use of the 'Er-hu' thingamajig, really captures the mystic East vibe for me (and my Orientalist views!).

EDIT: Also, I second Arkan, I can't believe they get no coverage at all, as they are a good melodic DEATH metal band, with great songs.

Nobody's mentioned Senmuth??? If you're looking for oriental, this dude has several albums full of it, and some egyptian as well.

What would you say is his most "oriental" sounding album?

I can't say I've heard anywhere near his whole discography, but of what I've heard, "Sthana Ekanta" has a very oriental feel. Of course, I can't say if it's the "most oriental" sounding or necessarily even really metal, but it definitely has strong Indian, I believe, vibe to it. Also, "Kami-No-Miti" has a strong Japanese sound to it, and is not quite as ambient as Sthana Ekanta from what I've heard. It might be a better choice to start out with. However, someone who's listened to more of Senmuth might be a better guide in this area, but that's my two cents.

I think Crick is the Senmuth expert round these neck of the woods. I'll definitely check out those two you recommended though. Thanks.

No problem, I hope you enjoy them. And yeah, I believe he's the one that told me about him as well, though I could be mistaken.

Oathean from South Korea and also, Anthelion from Taiwan.
I second the recommendation of Chthonic and Rudra.

Darkestrah, especially The Great Silk Road. Pagan black metal band originally form Kyrgyzstan. I'm not too familiar with their earlier material, but their last two albums - Epos and The Great Silk Road - have been nothing short of genius. I actually prefer Epos out of the two (it's my favourite album of 2007), but TGSR has this amazing oriental vibe going through it much more than Epos does. It's one of those albums that just gets better every time you listen to it. Highly, highly recommend this band.

OK dude

take this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4c3L4aMME8

Another bet would be The Eternal Blade. It's pretty symphonic and intense black metal that revolves around asian culture, though admittedly it's not so much the sound as the overall theme, so it might not be what you had in mind.

Anthelion were previously recommended, I guess you could try them as well, they're certainly oriental, again some mean-sounding symphonic black metal.

? No one mentioned the great NARJAHANAM yet? "Undama Tath'hur Al Shams Mn Al Gharb" is a fantastic piece of Bm with tons of oriental/arabic influences, percussions etc. A truly pasionate and evil atmosphere is build up!
To me personally way better than Al-Namrod... (discovered both at the same time)

http://www.myspace.com/narjahanam

Salem?

Granted they have a fairly strong metalcore influence, but Ego Fall from China culd be worth a listen. They incorporate various Chinese sounds and influences and also use Mongolian throat singing. Clean vocals are also present in some songs.

Sample:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI8wLCdd79M

Cthonic