- Country: Sweden
- Style: Melodic death metal
- Label: Metal Blade Records
- Release date: 5 August 2022
The Great Heathen Army is Amon Amarth’s twelfth studio album, produced by Andy Sneap. The formula has not changed much. Mid-tempo riffs, twin-guitar melodies and Johan Hegg’s low bark about Vikings, raids and gods. What has changed is the weight. Sneap gives the guitars real grit and the drums plenty of punch, and Hegg himself has called it one of their heavier records.
The opening pair is strong. “Get in the Ring” is built for the live show, and the title track stomps along with a chorus that writes itself. “Heidrun” is pure singalong fluff, but it works on its own terms. The real oddity is “Saxons and Vikings”, where Biff Byford of Saxon trades lines with Hegg. It sounds more like Saxon than Amon Amarth, which is either charming or jarring depending on your mood.
Nine songs, no filler to speak of, nothing that will surprise anyone who knows the band’s last few records. “The Serpent’s Trail” closes on a slower, darker note and is quietly one of the best things here.
Best tracks:
Get in the Ring
The Great Heathen Army
Find a Way or Make One
The Serpent’s Trail
Author’s rating: 7.9/10
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