The band was far from hired day players just showing up for a gig. They’re die-hard fans of The Witcher series themselves. Percival Schuttenbach is the band’s full name, though they’re commonly known as just Percival. They chose the name because it was a gnome character in one of their favorite novels, you guessed it, The Witcher series. The story of how they formed is also enough to make any nerdy gatekeeper step aside and say, “right this way, go on in.”
They wanted to find satisfying characters to role-play at the yearly historical re-enactment, The Festival of Slavs and Vikings in Wolin. The band, founded by Mikołaj Rybacki and Katarzyna Bromirska, who were professional musicians in real life, decided they’d role-play as musicians from the past. They even went so far as to craft some of their own instruments. They were a ye olde hit at the festival and began going deeper, aiming to revive and spread the traditional melodies of ancient Slavs.
Festival of Slavs and Vikings
When it came time to find studio musicians for The Witcher 3 soundtrack recording, the band jumped at the offer, playing a wide array of different instruments, vocal techniques, and working with composers to craft a soundtrack that still utterly slaps. If there are any tour managers reading this, please, please book Percival a North American tour STAT. We could all use some more bağlama in our lives.
Related: All of Your Favorite Games Ripped Off Their Soundtracks
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