Review Summary: Made by bearded vikings, for bearded vikings.
Heavy riffs. Pounding percussion. Viking themes. What more could you ask for in a band?
Amon Amarth - Fate of Norns
Amon Amarth has really made a name for themselves over the past few years. They've released some very impressive albums before this, especially
Versus The World. The band's name means "Mount Doom" in a language used in Lord of the Rings, which fits the band. All of their songs are based on fantasy, especially viking battles. This album was the first one that I got by the band and still remains to be my favorite.
Amon Amarth is:
Fredrik Andersson - drums
Johan Hegg - vocals
Johan S"derberg - guitar
Olavi Mikkonen - guitar
Ted Lundstr"m - bass
What was good about the album:
-- The overall "feel" of the album, if you will. The band has one mission it seems: to conquer the earth. With their epic lyrics and very crushing riffs, they are on their way to achieving this goal.
-- The guitar riffs are very enjoyable. While never being mind-bendingly hard, they are still above average in terms of difficulty and are very pleasing to a metal head's ears. Some of the albums best riffs can be found in "An Ancient Sign of Coming Storm", "Where Death Seems to Dwell", and "The Pursuit of Vikings".
-- Johan's vocals are very unique and fit the band. These vocals are very low and evil, which are great for a melodic death metal band. You can really hear how low his voice is in the beginning part of the second track.
-- The production and mixing of this album is great. All of the levels are great because you can actually hear the bass on this album. In most modern metal acts the bass has been turned down a considerable amount, but this album is an exception.
What was bad about the album:
-- The rhythm section, while being heard, doesn't ever do anything worthy of rememberance. The parts of this album that you will have repeating in your head are the guitar riffs and vocals, but never a bass line or drum beat. The bass always backs the guitar and never takes an alternate route. As for the drums, they're very basic. The drumming is just a bunch of consistent double bass beats that carry the song along but never really stand out.
-- The band only plays in one key throughout. This is a very minor setback, but I like for bands to play in different keys so that the album doesn't start to sound like one giant song.
-- Slight repetition in the album, but not enough to annoy the listener.
-- This album may be too heavy for some listeners.
Highlights:
An Ancient Sign of Coming Storm
Where Death Seems to Dwell
The Pursuit of Vikings
Arson!!!
This album was yet another great installment to my growing melodic death metal collection. This band has gained my respect and makes me want to get the rest of their releases thanks to this album. If you're a fan of melodic death metal, vikings, or even some power metal I would advise you to check this out. This album ranks high up there for being one of the best albums of 2004.
Final Rating: 4/5
