Hello! Welcome to a new series of posts run by yours truly titled Peeling Back the Leather (at least until I find a more clever name). In this series, I will be interviewing folks from some small(ish) labels that are operating in the metal community or adjacent to it and which I find interesting. That's right - I call the shots. Get used to it.
The idea is to shine a light on an often misunderstood part of our industry. I know that sounds silly, as labels have been around for ages and their role in making music is legendary and infamous. However, I feel like the role of labels has changed drastically several times over the past two decades, with the advent of streaming, crowdfunding, and other trends. Just like listeners wildly underestimate how much it costs and takes to make an album (seriously, it's more than you think) so too do they not fully grasp what goes into running a successful, indie label.
And there you have it! For the first installment of this series, I chose none other than Fiadh Productions, purveyors of excellent black metal, punk, folk, and memes involving cute animals holding medieval weaponry (go follow them on Bluesky for the latter). They are one of the labels I enjoyed following the most in 2025 so the choice was natural for me. What follows is a short email interview where we discussed what a label does today, the role of softness in black metal, and more!
Hail Fiadh! Thanks for taking the time to chat with us.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with ME! You run an incredible site staffed by awesome people, and your work is appreciated.
Letβs get right to it - what do you think is the role of a label these days? Obviously the olden days of label influence are gone (for bad and for good) so why are labels still around?
I really want to crush any remaining vestiges of labels being a mark of Χ΄prestigeΧ΄ - but I also want to take this opportunity to remind folks of something super important. Labels, especially small ones, are not bank accounts, and are usually one or two people taking serious financial risks because they believe in an artist. The role of a label is to invest in a release in order to support the creators behind it as well as ensuring it has a platform to reach others. They also should help newer AND veteran artists navigate a very unforgiving industry by being open and transparent about how it all works, using their networks and contacts to benefit them and ultimately to work with them to achieve whatever (realistic) goal that artist has. For many of them, it means moving to a bigger label, so sometimes the role of smaller labels is to prepare them for that! Many younger artists also donβt have the knowledge or means to produce physical merch so they look to labels for that as well.
As a label that handles a lot of βharshβ genres (like black metal), you introduce a lot of care and warmth to your online presence, communications, and even the physical releases themselves. Is that just who you are, a conscious choice with a goal, or even a bit of both?
I am so glad that this is coming through! Something I keep stressing is that this genre, like other βharshβ genres, is home to many folks who have experienced hardship and trauma. Of course that isnβt a requirement to enjoy any of it, but I do think itβs fair to say a good number of us have connected to crust, black metal, etc. because something in it speaks to spiritual, physical & mental anguish (even nature based atmospheric black metal fans, dare I say?)
Why is this important? Because "kvlt" edgelords who gate-keep the genre, mainly white cis men with privilege, are insistent that not only is black metal βnot for these peopleβ (marginalized folks who have suffered at the hands of society in addition to any personal hardship), but that these people should suffer more. Absolutely not. There is enough suffering in our past, in the daily lives of too many fans, that they do not deserve more. Itβs my feeling that folks who are uncomfortable with Fiadhβs aesthetic & vibe arenβt the ones truly in need of small joys & comfort - and thatβs OK! I want to reach the extreme metal fans who have never felt welcome, safe, or warm - and while Fiadh certainly isn't the only place where they can feel that way, it will always be one.
As for me, I have lived and worked with traumatized companion animals at shelters, rescues & vets for over 15 years in addition to being a mom to two little ones so gentleness is my natural approach (yay sobriety).
Staying on the topic of black metal, what would you say is the most interesting development in the sound of the sub-genre today? Thereβs a lot of different directions itβs going in and a lot of attention towards it; what is black metal doing today that you like the most?
I like that people are having more fun with it despite having to fight for that, which I could talk about for ages, but sound-wise I am appreciative of the steady inroads crust and the associated punk values continue to make into more mainstream black metal (for example, the massive popularity of DΓΆdsrit despite evolving sound or Totem Skin for whose Weltschmerz I did PR via Halo of Flies, which is another underrated gem of a label)
Shifting gears, a lot of the music on Fiadh has folk influences or is downright folk music. Have you always listened to folk music? What is the potential for folk music in metal spaces, beyond the βclassicβ use of it as interlude or contrast to heavier music?
Yes, I have always listened to folk music! It was a big part of my upbringing and culture, formative experiences spent at sessions growing up. Additionally, my mom is a piper and Iβm a pipe band drummer, so there is also a constant personal overlap into those spaces. Beyond your standard howling wind / acoustic noodling βintroβ (which I still love) and the folk metal genre itself, what interests me most is incorporating more traditional folk instrumentation into metal. The potential here goes beyond the music itself, because exposing listeners, especially western ones, to new sounds and experiences in an authentic, non-gimmicky way is crucial. There are already many examples of pipes and hurdy gurdys, but we have Book of Sand using gamelan, Matthew Broadley (formerly of Dawn Rayβd) spotlighting the harmonium with his excellent project Greet, and many others introducing lesser known instruments into metal or metal-adjacent projects. This is such a good opportunity to re-contextualize the way we approach folk music as well as, in some cases, decolonize it.
I also encourage everyone interested in folk music to follow musician and educator Adam Matlock on socials!
If you had to choose five releases (sorry!) from the Fiadh catalog, which ones would you recommend our readers listen to first and why?
So unfair!
Weald + Woe - For the Good of the Realm
Lust Hag - Lust Hag
The Blood Mountain Black Metal Choir - Demo I: Folklore
Lammoth - Tales of Treachery
Bull of Apis Bull of Bronze - The Fractal Ouroboros
Hircine - Old Kings Fall
Terzij de Horde - Our Breath is Not Ours Alone
Lastly, whatβs next for Fiadh? Is the plan to stick to your guns and just keep publishing great music or do you have plans to expand the label and its operations?
STICK TO MY GUNS! However, the label has been getting a bit bigger than I can handle with my kids, dogs, full time job, research & pipe band so I am thrilled to have brought my best friend Jeff on (Weald + Woe, By Fire & Sword, booktok pillar) to help with everything, especially logistical stuff & math. Nothing will change - still no contracts, still just me packing everything in a corner of the basement, but we will definitely be more organized for 2026 thanks to him. A few other things weβve been approached about that weβre working on is a fest & something in the EU for folks there so stay tuned :)