Turisas is a Finnish folk metal band from Hämeenlinna. They were founded in 1997 by Mathias Nygård and Jussi Wickström and named after an ancient Finnish god of war. Turisas combine elements of folk metal and power metal, with strong influences from symphonic metal as well. The album title Battle Metal has given rise to the term "battle metal" being used as a description for war-themed folk metal. On October 28, 2005, the guitarist Georg Laakso was badly injured in a car accident and due to the extent of his spinal cord injuries, on July 12, 2006 issued a statement of his permanent resignation from the band on the official website.