Review Summary: Jomsviking: A tale of vengeance, romantic tragedy and musical predictability.
Horned helmets off to Amon Amarth, no one quite does heavy metal like them. What other band can produce [now] 10 albums themed around the Viking era and make them all sound so consistently appealing? Whatever your answer, this trait is a double edged sword. While most of their back catalogue is an impressive collection of adrenaline fuelled metal, they lack identity and diversity- essentially you could pick and mix tracks from every album to form a new one and the outcome would be that it still sounds like every other release.
“Jomsviking” is the first release by Amon Amarth that is truly identifiably and the reason behind that fact is because it is a concept album. The basic story of it tells the tale of a man’s life in an elite mercenary group called the Jomsvikings which he joins after he murders a man that tries to steal his lover from him. After many perils in the Jomsviking brotherhood, the hero seeks out his woman once again only to find that she doesn’t want him anymore and even threatens to kill him. Heartbroken, he returns to the only thing he has worth fighting for: The Jomsvikings.
“Amon Amarth made an album featuring romance you say?!”
Fear not… “Jomsviking” is packed full of the brutish characteristics that everyone always craves for from this band. ‘First Kill’ kicks things off with a menacing narrative of the hero’s attack and instantly showcases, new drummer, Tobias Gustafsson’s precision behind the kit. Darker tracks such as ‘The Way Of Vikings’ and ‘One Against All’ are both typically ferocious chapters that wield spiralling hooks and savage riffs which sail along seas of traditional tremolo-picking assaults. ‘At Dawn’s First Light’ displays a good balance of ruthlessness and melody however Andy Sneap’s- usually brilliant- production seems to sway towards the melodious side of Amon Amarth here which undesirably extracts the muscle behind the power that “Jomsviking” constantly seems to yearn for.
Johan Hegg displays his excellent lyricism throughout in the story that increases the sense of drama in each song. He portrays vivid imagery through a first person viewpoint that really makes us feel involved in his character’s adventure. Musically, ‘One Thousand Burning Arrows’ is a slow ballad-like song that appears a bit serious for Amon Amarth’s signature sound but lyrically, it richly depicts a traditional procedure of a Viking funeral for the Jomsvikings’ fallen leader. ‘Raise Your Horns’ incorporates a more sludgier sound that we’re used to but with anthemic chants and infectious choruses you can’t resist the pride that this song illustrates after their victorious battle. ‘A Dream That Cannot Be’ is the penultimate chapter when the hero discovers that his lover chooses her own freedom and even threatens to kill him. Doro Pesch (Warlock) even makes a guest appearance to sing the lover’s perspective which gives the song a genuine sense of character.
If you’ve listened to Amon Amarth’s past work, you’ve essentially have already heard what this album sounds like. But in contrast, their renowned take on Viking obsessed death metal with a wild array of riffs sharp enough to whet a blade, “Jomsviking” was never really destined to disappoint anyone- and it definitely does not.
