59. Amon Amarth - "The Great Heathen Army"

Amon Amarth are the very definition of tenacity. It has taken them thirty years to finally claim the seat at metal’s top table that they now hold. Their story is the complete antithesis of overnight success and they have spent twenty years earning their dues by slaving away in early afternoon festival appearances and pointless support slots. 

They have also released an awful lot of music (The Great Heathen Army is album number twelve). Some of it great and some of it, to be brutally honest, not so great. You may think by now they have run out of Norse mythology to mine, but no they are back with yet another collection of unashamedly Viking-obsessed ditties. You do need to take your horned helmet off to Amon Amarth for keeping their one-trick pony going for so many years and still making it feel fresh and exciting. 

Lyrically there really is nothing new here. It’s still all tales of serpents, longships, and daring deeds done before breakfast. However, musically they take a step back to their roots. They have brought back into play the authentic melodic death metal template that they put into storage about a decade ago, when they started to really push for commercial success. This is undoubtedly a heavier and harsher record than they are made in a long time and that change in tempo results in it being far more interesting than the last couple of releases.