Norse mythology-inspired metal mongers Amon Amarth have announced their return, with plans to drop their first LP in three years this spring. Titled Jomsviking, it arrives March 25 via Metal Blade and will be supported with a North American tour.
A press release for the record, Amon Amarth's first since 2013's Deceiver of the Gods, notes that the band once again worked with producer Andy Sneap (Megadeth, Testament, Accept). Perhaps more surprising, for a band that's run with the Viking theme for over two decades, is that Jomsviking marks the band's first official, full-on concept album. It's described as "a tragic tale of love and revenge."
"The Jomsvikings were a shadowy and legendary sect of Viking mercenaries, as shrouded in myth now as they were when they fought across Europe and the Middle East," frontman Johan Hegg explained in a statement.
He added: "Ruthless and deadly warriors who fought for the highest bidder, their code was simple: Show no fear. Never retreat. Defend your brothers, and when called upon, avenge their deaths. I felt we were finally ready to use their story as the jumping off point for an Amon Amarth album."
Hegg further explained that the album's narrative involves a young man who accidentally commits a murder when he finds out that the woman he loves is being "married off." It's added that "the way the story evolves is not a happy story."
On the musical front, this is the first Amon Amarth album released since the departure of longtime drummer Fredrik Andersson in the spring of 2015. Andersson had played with the band for 17 years. Vomitory's Tobias Gustafsson is listed as Jomsviking's "guest session drummer."
Down below, you'll find a blood-spewing, narrative-minded music video for the record's "First Kill."
Info on pre-orders for the album, as well as bonus editions that come packaged with T-shirts and a "collectible Viking ship," can be found here.
Additionally, the new album will be promoted with a North American tour. Other metal marauders joining Amon Amarth on the trip include Entombed A.D. and Exmortus.
The trip includes Canadian stops in Quebec City, Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary and Vancouver. You'll find all of the date and venue details, as well as Jomsviking's tracklisting, below.
Jomsviking:
1. First Kill
2. Wanderer
3. On A Sea Of Blood
4. One Against All
5. Raise Your Horns
6. The Way Of Vikings
7. At Dawn's First Light
8. One Thousand Burning Arrows
9. Vengeance Is My Name
10. A Dream That Cannot Be
11. Back On Northern Shores
Tour dates:
04/07 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
04/08 Phoenix, AZ - The Pressroom
04/09 El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls
04/10 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
04/12 Dallas, TX - House of Blues
04/13 San Antonio, TX - The Aztec Theater
04/15 Houston, TX - House of Blues
04/16 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
04/17 Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
04/18 Tampa, FL - The Ritz
04/20 Charlotte, NC - The Fillmore
04/21 Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore
04/22 New York, NY - Best Buy Theatre
04/23 Boston, MA - House of Blues
04/25 Rochester, NY - Water Street Music Hall
04/26 Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
04/28 Quebec City, QC - Imperial
04/29 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
04/30 Toronto, ON - The Danforth
05/01 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
05/02 Detroit, MI - St. Andrews
05/04 St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
05/05 Chicago, IL - The Riviera Theatre
05/06 Lawrence, KS - The Granada Theater
05/07 Denver, CO - The Ogden Theater
05/09 Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium
05/10 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater
05/12 Winnipeg, MB - The Garrick
05/13 Saskatoon, SK - O'Brian's Event Centre
05/14 Calgary, AB - MacEwan Ballroom
05/16 Vancouver, BC - The Commodore
05/17 Seattle, WA - Showbox Market
05/18 Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
05/20 San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
05/21 Los Angeles, CA - The Wiltern Theater
A press release for the record, Amon Amarth's first since 2013's Deceiver of the Gods, notes that the band once again worked with producer Andy Sneap (Megadeth, Testament, Accept). Perhaps more surprising, for a band that's run with the Viking theme for over two decades, is that Jomsviking marks the band's first official, full-on concept album. It's described as "a tragic tale of love and revenge."
"The Jomsvikings were a shadowy and legendary sect of Viking mercenaries, as shrouded in myth now as they were when they fought across Europe and the Middle East," frontman Johan Hegg explained in a statement.
He added: "Ruthless and deadly warriors who fought for the highest bidder, their code was simple: Show no fear. Never retreat. Defend your brothers, and when called upon, avenge their deaths. I felt we were finally ready to use their story as the jumping off point for an Amon Amarth album."
Hegg further explained that the album's narrative involves a young man who accidentally commits a murder when he finds out that the woman he loves is being "married off." It's added that "the way the story evolves is not a happy story."
On the musical front, this is the first Amon Amarth album released since the departure of longtime drummer Fredrik Andersson in the spring of 2015. Andersson had played with the band for 17 years. Vomitory's Tobias Gustafsson is listed as Jomsviking's "guest session drummer."
Down below, you'll find a blood-spewing, narrative-minded music video for the record's "First Kill."
Info on pre-orders for the album, as well as bonus editions that come packaged with T-shirts and a "collectible Viking ship," can be found here.
Additionally, the new album will be promoted with a North American tour. Other metal marauders joining Amon Amarth on the trip include Entombed A.D. and Exmortus.
The trip includes Canadian stops in Quebec City, Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary and Vancouver. You'll find all of the date and venue details, as well as Jomsviking's tracklisting, below.
Jomsviking:
1. First Kill
2. Wanderer
3. On A Sea Of Blood
4. One Against All
5. Raise Your Horns
6. The Way Of Vikings
7. At Dawn's First Light
8. One Thousand Burning Arrows
9. Vengeance Is My Name
10. A Dream That Cannot Be
11. Back On Northern Shores
Tour dates:
04/07 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
04/08 Phoenix, AZ - The Pressroom
04/09 El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls
04/10 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
04/12 Dallas, TX - House of Blues
04/13 San Antonio, TX - The Aztec Theater
04/15 Houston, TX - House of Blues
04/16 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
04/17 Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
04/18 Tampa, FL - The Ritz
04/20 Charlotte, NC - The Fillmore
04/21 Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore
04/22 New York, NY - Best Buy Theatre
04/23 Boston, MA - House of Blues
04/25 Rochester, NY - Water Street Music Hall
04/26 Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
04/28 Quebec City, QC - Imperial
04/29 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
04/30 Toronto, ON - The Danforth
05/01 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
05/02 Detroit, MI - St. Andrews
05/04 St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
05/05 Chicago, IL - The Riviera Theatre
05/06 Lawrence, KS - The Granada Theater
05/07 Denver, CO - The Ogden Theater
05/09 Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium
05/10 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater
05/12 Winnipeg, MB - The Garrick
05/13 Saskatoon, SK - O'Brian's Event Centre
05/14 Calgary, AB - MacEwan Ballroom
05/16 Vancouver, BC - The Commodore
05/17 Seattle, WA - Showbox Market
05/18 Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
05/20 San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
05/21 Los Angeles, CA - The Wiltern Theater
