Amon Amarth简介
Country of origin: Sweden
Location:Stockholm
Formed in: 1992
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Themes: Vikings, Warfare, Mythology, Destruction
Current label:Metal Blade Records
Years active: 1988-1992 (as Scum), 1992-present
Heavy metal is a way of life, but it is not for the faint of heart. The history of metal is strewn with fading memories of bands that fell apart when times were tough. But history is written by the victors, and Amon Amarth have been marching purposefully from triumph to greater triumph for the last two decades. Formed amid the fertile Swedish metal scene in the mid ‘90s, these dedicated diehards brought a new sense of drama and destruction to the world of heavy music, propagating tales of Viking mythology and mortal combat over a devastating soundtrack of crushing rhythms, refined melody and rousing, rebellious refrains. From the release of their debut album Once Sent From The Golden Hall in 1998, Amon Amarth’s trajectory was firmly upward, as this band’s devotion to touring the world and spreading their inspirational creed began to resonate with ever-growing hordes of like-minded metalheads, first across Europe and then, in true Viking style, across the Atlantic and into North America.
With each successive album, Amon Amarth’s reputation grew; their arsenal of heroic hymns gaining strength and depth at the same time. Perhaps the most significant breakthrough came with cast-iron classic Twilight Of The Thunder God in 2008, wherein the band – vocalist Johan Hegg, guitarists Olavi Mikkonen Johan Söderberg, then drummer Fredrik Ander
Amon Amarth是一支深深根植于死亡金属并有着坚定而强烈的维京神话信仰的乐队。乐队的名字取自英国文学家J.R.R Tolkien那本著名的幻想历史小说《The Lord of the Rings》（指环王），Amon Amarth在小说中是指一个特定的地点，即The Mountain of Doom（厄运之山），Tiamat乐队为他们的一首早期经典作品也取了同样的名字。乐队的风格为比较凶狠的旋律黑死金属，双吉他，没有键盘。他们的歌曲整体上感觉比较压抑，但又不失凶狠，有点象At the Gates与Dark Tranqullity的结合。
1988年组建，当时命名为Scum，乐队原来的风格是Grindcore（碾核）。当Johan Hegg加入后，风格转向了Death 维京战神乐团（Amon Amarth）是一组以维京人为主题的瑞典旋律死亡金属乐团，成立于1988年[1]，团名是来自于J.R.R.托尔金中土大陆中的一座火山欧洛都因。到2011年为止，乐团已发行8张录音室专辑、一张EP；一张DVD和七首音乐录像带。
History
Formation (1988–1991)The band emerged from the previous grindcore (or death metal)[1] band Scum, founded in 1988 by Paul "Themgoroth" Mäkitalo (Dark Funeral) on vocals, Olavi Mikkonen on lead guitar, Petri Tarvainen on bass and Vesa Meriläinen played on rhythm guitar.[2][3]Early recordings (1992–1997)After a 1991 demo, Scum broke up and Amon Amarth formed in 1992. Hegg replaced Mäkitalo on vocals, Anders Hansson replaced Meriläinen on rhythm guitar and Ted Lundström replaced Tarvainen on bass, before recording its first demo Thor Arise in 1993. Raw and uneven in sound and execution, it was never officially released due to low quality standards,[4][5] but the band caught the attention of extreme metal fans with its own "infectious brand of epic-sounding brutality and unadorned conviction".[4] In 1994 another demo entitled The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter was recorded; with 1,000 copies being issued.In 1996, they signed with Pulverised Records, on which they released their first MCD, Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds, which sold 6,000 copies.[6]Signed with Metal Blade (1998–2007)Olavi Mikkonen in 2016Johan Söderberg in 2019Fans doing a rowingboatshowThey then signed with Metal Blade Records, releasing the debut album Once Sent from the Golden Hall. Described as "a compelling fusion of buzzsaw riff work, melodic harmonies and soul-crushing rhythms punctuated by Hegg's callous black/death roar and accounts of Norse battles and treachery" it made sure Amon Amarth's popularity rose internationally.[4] According to AllMusic, the song that bore the group's namesake was the most memorable, containing "the chaotic noises of battle, the screams of the dying, and much sword-clashing to boot."[7] Since then they have performed at multiple Canada and US tours, festival appearances, eight music videos, and appearances in over 100 metal magazines.[6]In June 1998, as the band was about to commence a tour alongside Deicide, Six Feet Under and Brutal Truth, guitarist Anders Hansson left and was replaced by Johan Soderberg. After the tour Martin Lopez quit to join Opeth[7] and Fredrik Andersson (ex-A Canorous Quintet) came in. With him in 1999 the band recorded and released their second full-length album, The Avenger. The release was supported by the X-Mas Massacre Festivals Tour with Morbid Angel headlining.[6]The Crusher, released in 2001, was considered[according to whom?] to be the group's most aggressive album. In support of it the band went on tour with Marduk and Vader, taking part in No Mercy Festival. Their first American tour, scheduled for Autumn 2001, was cancelled due to the attacks of September 11th and was held later in January 2002. In April 2002 the band toured Europe with Vomitory and in August performed at Wacken Open Air before a crowd of 12,000. Versus The World was released, alongside The Viking Edition, which contained a bonus CD with demos Thor Arise and Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter. Touring continued until Spring 2004 when the band started working on Fate of Norns, which was released on 6 September 2004.[6] The follow-up, With Oden on Our Side was released in 2006, and showed, (according to AllMusic) that "Amon Amarth continue to be champions of the worldwide death metal tournament"[8] and rose to #26 in the US Top Independent album charts.[9] The album's material, though, was not included in the DVD Wrath Of The Norsemen, which released in May 2006.In early January 2008, the band's first tour of Australia and New Zealand took place, supporting Dimmu Borgir, after finishing a US and Canadian tour with Sonic Syndicate and Himsa.[citation needed]Renewed contract with Metal Blade (2008–2014)Ted Lundström in 2019Amon Amarth extended its record deal with Metal Blade Records for three more albums.[10] After extending its record deal, the band released Twilight of the Thunder God, which featured guest appearances by Lars-Göran Petrov of Entombed, Roope Latvala of Children of Bodom, and the cello metal band Apocalyptica. Accompanying the release of the album was an eight-page comic strip based on Norse mythology which was released by magazines in Europe. The album reached #50 in the U.S.,[9] #6 in Germany, #10 in Finland, #11 in Sweden, #14 in Austria, and #21 in Switzerland. It ended up at the #7 position in Revolver Magazine's Top 20 Albums that year.[6]Amon Amarth embarked on a North American headlining tour in October 2008, with support from Ensiferum, Belphegor, and The Absence.[11] In 2009, the band returned to the U.S. for another successful series of dates with Goatwhore, Skeletonwitch and Lazarus A.D. and later in 2010 with Holy Grail and Eluveitie. In between, Amon Amarth were named "Best Breakthrough Act" at Metal Hammer's prestigious Golden Gods Awards.[6] The band also supported Slayer in its Unholy Alliance Chapter III European tour. Amon Amarth played its first show in India, headlining the Deccan Rock Festival in Bangalore on 5 December 2009.[12]On 30 November 2010, Amon Amarth confirmed its next album entitled Surtur Rising would be released in Spring 2011.[13] The drums were recorded at Park Studios, while bass and guitars were recorded at Fascination Street Studios.[14] On 27 January 2011, Metal Blade Records released the new album's first single, titled "War of the Gods", on YouTube. On 29 March 2011, Surtur Rising was released in North America.[citation needed] To support the album, the band embarked on a 4-month world tour with Children Of Bodom and Ensiferum, among others.Amon Amarth performed at Wacken Open Air in 2012,[15] Hellfest 2013, Download Festival 2013, Sweden Rock Festival, and Mayhem Festival 2013.On 25 June 2013, Amon Amarth released its ninth studio album, Deceiver of the Gods. The album cover, according to the band, depicted Ragnarök, the last battle between the Æsir gods and Loki, accompanied by the army of the dead.[16]In 2014, Hegg co-founded Grimfrost, a company that produces and sells reproductions of Viking Age artefacts, as well as products inspired by Viking Age culture.[17][18]Departure of Fredrik Andersson and Jomsviking (2015–2017)Fredrik AnderssonOn 19 March 2015, Amon Amarth posted on its Facebook page that it had parted ways with drummer Fredrik Andersson after 17 years of collaboration.[19]The band released its 10th album, Jomsviking, on 25 March 2016. A session drummer, Tobias Gustafsson (formerly of Vomitory), was recruited for completion of the album.From 22 to 25 March, the band performed four intimate album release shows in London, Paris, Tilburg, and Berlin to mark the release of Jomsviking. They also supported Megadeth, Suicidal Tendencies and Metal Church on the Dystopia tour in the United States in September and October 2016,[20] and headlined a tour in the UK and Ireland with Testament as special guests.[21]On 30 September 2016, Amon Amarth announced Jocke Wallgren as their full-time drummer.In an August 2017 interview at Bloodstock Open Air festival, guitarist Johan Söderberg stated that Amon Amarth would begin working on their eleventh studio album after the end of the Jomsviking tour. He is quoted as saying, "After this summer, we're done touring with this album. That's when we're gonna start to write stuff for the next one."[22]In October 2017, Johan Hegg joined the DJ roster for Gimme Radio, promoting his involvement with Amon Amarth as well as his favorite music and playlists on the show, "Hammer of the North."[23]In November 2017, Ride & Crash Games partnered with Amon Amarth to release a self-titled video game centered around the band's songs and lyrics. It is currently available on iOS and Android.[24][25]Berserker (2018–2022)Jocke Wallgren in 2016On 7 January 2019, the band announced that they had finished recording their 11th studio album with producer Jay Ruston, tentatively due in the Spring. Vocalist Johan Hegg stated that he waited for the music to be completed entirely before writing any lyrics, a different approach compared to previous albums.[26] While saying that it is not a concept album, Hegg also revealed that one of the new tracks is titled "Berserker At Stamford Bridge" and "The Shield Wall". He stated, "It's also about sticking together in the face of adversity. Then there's more introverted stuff, as well – songs that relate to my private life, and I got the ideas for those songs from my wife."[27]In May 2019, Amon Amarth embarked on a North American tour as part of Slayer's final world tour, also featuring Lamb of God and Cannibal Corpse.[28]On 19 March 2019, the band released a new song, titled "Raven's Flight" and revealed the name of their next album was Berserker, and will be released on 3 May 2019.[29]On 15 April 2019, Amon Amarth announced a headlining tour of North America to begin in September in support of Berserker alongside fellow Swedish bands Arch Enemy, At the Gates and Grand Magus.On 17 April 2019, the band released the music video for Berserker's second single "Crack the Sky".[30]On 3 May 2019, the band released the album Berserker.In Late 2019, it was announced the band would play South America with support from Powerwolf. [31] The tour was scheduled between 28 February, beginning in Brasilia, and ending on 21 March in Bogota. However, the tour abruptly came to an end on 14 March after the Hell and Heaven Metal Fest in Mexico due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [32]On 28 May 2021, the band released a re-recorded version of the song "Masters of War" for the 20th anniversary of their third album The Crusher.On 16 February 2022, the band released the stand-alone single Put Your Back Into the Oar.[33]The Great Heathen Army (2022–present)Amon Amarth announced in June 2022 that their 12th full-length album was titled The Great Heathen Army. It is their first album that features the band themselves on the album cover since their debut album. Paired with the announcement of the album was a release of a music video for "Get in the Ring" featuring Erick Redbeard, a wrestler for AEW.[34] The album was released on 5 August 2022.Amon Amarth toured with Machine Head for the Vikings and Lionhearts Tour 2022, a concert tour of Europe taking place in September and October 2022.[35]Amon Amarth headlined 2022 the Great Heathen Tour of North America in November and December 2022, with support from Carcass, Obituary, and Cattle Decapitation.Musical style and lyricsUnder their original name Scum, the band played grindcore.[2] However, in 1992 the band changed their name to Amon Amarth and adopted a more death metal-orientated style.[2][3] The band is now usually considered melodic death metal.[3][37][38]The band bases most of its song lyrics on Norse mythology, the Viking Age, and the pre-Christian world, which thematically comprise a heavy metal style known as Viking metal. Viking metal originally emerged in the late 1980s and early 1990s as an ideological offshoot of black metal, made popular by such bands as Bathory and Enslaved. Amon Amarth, though a death metal band, is often labeled as Viking metal due to its lyrical themes.[39]In regard to the band's reputation as a Viking metal band, Imke von Helden writes in "Barbarians and Literature: Viking Metal and its Links to Old Norse Mythology" that "During the 1990s, Swedish Amon Amarth added a new dimension to the definition of viking metal by means of its death metal style of music."[40] She further explains in "Scandinavian Metal Attack: The Power of Northern Europe in Extreme Metal" thatThough most Viking metal bands have a black metal background, Viking metal is defined by topics rather than music. That is why death metal bands like Amon Amarth and Unleashed are often included in the league of Viking metal bands.— Imke von Helden[41]When asked to comment on the band's genre, vocalist Johan Hegg remarked:We play death metal. We write about Vikings so, therefore, some refer us to Viking metal, but I have no idea what that is. I can't imagine the Vikings were into metal at all except on the swords and stuff. And musically, I guess they only played these strange lip instruments and some bongos or whatever.— The Metal Web's interview with Johan HeggHegg has also addressed the band's relationship to the pagan metal phenomenon and its choice of subject matter:We don't really see ourselves as one of those bands doing pagan folklore music. The reason we took the Viking theme and mythology theme as a lyrical theme for the band was, perhaps, more accidental from the start. When we wrote the first song with Viking lyrics, we felt it was a topic that suited the music that we wanted to write really well...It was something different, as well, from a lot of other bands. In Sweden, I think only Bathory and Unleashed had done anything like it. For us, it was to do something different, to stand out a little bit, to use those lyrics.— The Norse Mythology Blog's interview with Johan HeggJournalists have noted that, due to the co-opting of Viking and Norse mythology and symbolism by members of white supremacist or neo-Nazi groups (especially by metal bands with white supremacist or neo-Nazi members), Amon Amarth has sometimes been mistakenly assumed to be associated with such ideologies.[17][42] As examples against such associations, Sophia DeBoick of The New European noted Hegg's disapproval of a Kentucky official's refusal to issue same-sex marriage licenses, as well as a disclaimer on the Grimfrost website which states that the company does not "approve the usage of cultural features or the symbolism of our forefathers in association with white supremacy, racial elitism or other forms of extremism."[17] Beat Magazine's Kosa Monteith referred to the band's Viking aesthetic as "almost camp or kitschy", arguing that their resistance of the "Viking metal" label derives from "Vikings being somewhat co-opted by the far right and fascists for their own shitty ends. Amon Amarth aren't fascists. They're not Nazis. Not even Scandi occultists [...] They don't claim to be honouring the spiritual tradition of a thousand-year racial ancestry. The name? Not Norse. Not even Swedish. It's Elvish: the name for Tolkien's Mount Doom. They're just pleasant dudes geeking out about fantasy and cool stories. Which is pretty metal.
中文介绍
Amon Amarth是一支深深根植于死亡金属并有着坚定而强烈的维京神话信仰的乐队。乐队的名字取自英国文学家J.R.R Tolkien那本著名的幻想历史小说《The Lord of the Rings》（指环王），Amon Amarth在小说中是指一个特定的地点，即The Mountain of Doom（厄运之山），Tiamat乐队为他们的一首早期经典作品也取了同样的名字。乐队的风格为比较凶狠的旋律黑死金属，双吉他，没有键盘。他们的歌曲整体上感觉比较压抑，但又不失凶狠，有点象At the Gates与Dark Tranqullity的结合。1988年组建，当时命名为Scum，乐队原来的风格是Grindcore（碾核）。当Johan Hegg加入后，风格转向了Death Metal（死亡金属）。1992年，乐队更名为Amon Amarth。Amon Amarth取自英国作家托尔金的小说《指环王》，Amon Amarth在小说中是指一个特定的地点，即位于中土世界的末日山。1993年乐队发行了第一张Demo《Thor Arise》。1994年乐队发行了第二张Demo《The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter》，限量1000张，在不到12个小时内销售一空。2张Demo后，乐队终于签约新加坡著名极端金属公司Pulverised Records，并于1996年发行了首张MCD《Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds》，卖出6000张。之后乐队签约老牌死亡金属公司Metal Blade Records，并于1998年发行了首张大碟《Once Sent from the Golden Hall》，大受欢迎。从此名扬世界！Amon Amarth是一支来自瑞典通巴的死亡金属乐队，创建于1992年。乐队名取自托尔金的小说《指环王》中位于中土的末日火山(Mount Doom)，Amon Amarth是Mount Doom的辛达林(精灵语)译名。乐队成员包括主唱Johan Hegg，吉他手Olavi Mikkonen和Johan Söderberg，贝斯手Ted Lundström以及鼓手Fredrik Andersson。Amon Amarth已经发行了八张录音室专辑，一张EP，一张DVD，和七个MV。Amon Amarth的雏形Scum 最初建立于1988年。当时成员包括主唱Paul "Themgoroth" Mäkitalo，吉他手Olavi Mikkonen、Vesa Meriläinen，鼓手Nico Mehra，以及贝斯手Ted Lundström。以"交错的riffs，黑暗的氛围，无数的辛辣的独奏段落和大量丰富的甜蜜的旋律"为基础的碾核是乐队的早期风格。在斯德哥尔摩金属迅速发展的背景下，Scum并未给人留下什么印象。但是在Johan Hegg加入后，乐队风格开始发生变化，加入了与维京神话相关的主题。Hegg“魁梧的身材和雷神索尔般的咆哮”使乐队开始塑造成型。1991年Scum发行了一张Demo。1992年，乐队更名为Amon Amarth。Amon Amarth取自大名鼎鼎英国作家托尔金的魔幻小说—《指环王》(现在早已拍成电影了)，Amon Amarth在小说中是指一个特定的地点，即The Mountain of Doom(厄运之山)，即位于中土世界的末日山。也许是对旋律的偏爱，他们的创作总是喜欢用一些和谐的和声，歌词几乎都是关于维京文化的北方诸神。1993年乐队进入Lagret录音室录制了第一张小样《Thor Arise》, 其中包括了一首Black Sabbath的翻唱歌曲：《Sabbath Bloody Sabbath》，由于音质差、制作粗糙，这张Demo从未官方发行，但是乐队“极具感染力的名字，史诗般壮丽残忍的声音，朴素的信念”引起了极端金属乐迷的注意。乐队继续排练并且积累了更加丰富的素材，1994年乐队满怀信心的再次进入录音室，并录制了他们的第二张样带 《The Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter》，这次的结果乐队成员都非常满意，无论是音响效果还是音乐本身。这张小样在瑞典地下音乐界一经发行，便以不可阻挡之势，限量1000张，在不到12个小时内销售一空。1995年对于Amon Amarth来说是有喜有悲。乐队的排练室遭窃，一切设备都被洗劫一空，他们也因此被赶出了这个排练场。无奈Amon Amarth只好一切从头开始，买乐器，找场地。不过幸运的是凭借Demo的强大力量，乐队这时候得到了新加坡著名极端金属公司Pulverized Records的一份合同：发行一张MCD。签约之后的乐队决定精益求精，这次要在著名的Abyss录音室录制他们的第一张细碟《Sorrow Throughout The Nine Worlds》。95年的9月乐队开始录音工作，一切都进展的十分顺利，录制工作只用了5天时间。这张5首歌的MCD中包括了三首新歌以及两首重新录制的来自他们第二张小样的作品。96年4月，这张MCD《Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds》发行，卖出6000张。打响了Amon Amarth的第一炮！标准的瑞典死亡金属风格，残暴的唱腔、厚重的音墙和彪悍的高速双踩里加入了美妙的吉他旋律，水平相当高的一张处女作，迈出了乐队前进中坚实的一步。这张专辑通过将维京特有的野蛮狂放与现代黑死音乐中猛烈极端之感的完美结合，成为一种富有包容性的金属风格。音乐中狂暴的激情在这张《Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds》中被表现得异常愤怒而彻底，听众会不由自主地随着那怒火喷射出的旋律和蛮横残忍的节奏晃动起自己的脑袋。《Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds》作为乐队的第一张专辑，虽然是MCD，但是无论制作还是编曲、演奏，都达到了相当水平的成熟，专辑内的Black Metal成分比较多，曲风比后期极端一点，基本上有点哥德堡的感觉再加上没有键盘的Emperor，大篇的轮拨和唯美的独奏，虽然后期的AA也有，但是专辑的感觉绝对和后期不一样，更极端。Amon Amarth令人叹服地将"激光鹰般的RIFF，和谐优美的旋律，足以粉碎灵魂的节奏，海哥冷酷无情的咆哮以及对北欧战役和背叛的叙述”完美融合，使他们在全世界受到欢迎。根据Allmusic音乐指南，他们的同名曲是最令人难忘的，包含了“战斗的混乱噪音，死亡时的惨叫和刀剑盾牌的撞击声”。96年六月当时的鼓手Nico退出乐队，接替他的是Martin Lopez。在这期间老牌死亡金属公司Metal Blade Records向乐队伸出了橄榄枝，在经过慎重的考虑之后乐队选择了签约Metal Blade。1997年Amon Amarth进入Sunlight录音室录制他们签约Metal Blade之后的第一张正式专辑《Once Sent From The Golden Hall》，不过由于专辑的制作很差劲，乐队又在9月份回到了Abyss录音室，让 Peter Tagtgren把专辑重新录制了一遍，并于1998年发行了首张大碟《Once Sent from the Golden Hall》，大受欢迎。从此名扬世界！《Once Sent From The Golden Hall》基本上延续了上张MCD的风格，没有大的变动，在副歌的编排上稍有不同，已经有了后期AA的雏形，更加大气，Black Metal的元素少了一点，更多的是Melodic Death Metal，我一直不同意把AA的东西称为“Viking Metal”，应该是有Viking内涵和情绪的Melodic Death Metal。这张专辑描述了一场残酷激烈的战争，一如既往的宏伟壮阔的主旋律，在刀剑相碰血光冲天中嘶吼呐喊不绝于耳，并营造出大气磅礴的史诗氛围，可以说是AA最具原始野性的一张专辑。要说和后期AA的最大不同就是录音和吉他的音色，这个时期的AA依然算是一支很极端的乐队。之后，鼓手Martin Lopez去了Opeth，于是前 A CANOUROUS QUINTET乐队的Fredrik Andersson被临时找来救急。在录制完成专辑《Once Sent From The Golden Hall》之后，Amon Amarth与Deicide，SIX FEET UNDER以及BRUTAL TRUTH一起在98年的六月进行了巡回演出，7月，吉他手Anders Hansson退出乐队，这个空缺很快就由Johan Soderberg填补，组成了完整的阵容。现在这个阵容基本已经固定下来，在此基础上乐队于99年的三月再次来到Abyss录音室录制他们的第二张正式专辑《The Avenger》，这次是由乐队自己担任制作,专辑的发行受到了由Morbid Angel领衔的圣诞大屠杀音乐节的支持。在这张专辑中，乐队力图制造出更有进攻性的维京金属以及残暴死亡金属，在搅混了死亡金属与黑金属的界限之后，他们已经找到了理想的最佳结合点，这正是时下最流行的黑死金属。从这张专辑开始的三张专辑的封面都是同样的风格，包括同样的Logo位置和同样的专辑名位置，从某种程度上算是个三部曲。作为头名的《The Avenger》我不是很喜欢，水准没有上张专辑高，风格没有突破，感觉有点黔驴技穷，录音上也不完美，主音的声音太小。《Metalwrath》算是比较有新意一点的歌。2001年发行的专辑《The Crusher》被认为是最具侵略性的。从第一首歌开始，轮拨的速度变慢更加抒情，吉他的音色变得亮(貌似所有的乐队从2000年开始都变了吉他音色？= =)，慢下来的速度，以及在演奏优美副歌时不再那么嘈杂的铺垫，使得这张专辑获得了成功，也是转型的第一步。为了宣传这张专辑，乐队和Marduk以及Vader一起巡演，参加No Mercy音乐节。尽管在2001年他们的第一次美国巡演因为911恐怖袭击而被迫取消，但在2002年1月演出得以重新举办，这次没有Marduk，由Amon Amarth领衔。2002年4月，乐队与Vomitory在欧洲巡演，8月份，乐队在Wacken Open Air的12000多名金属乐迷面前表演。2003年在Malmo的Berno录音室，《Versus The World》录制成功。这张专辑包含了一张附赠CD，里面收录了两首Demo：《Thor Arise》和《Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter》。其中最明显的改变是金属炮火的猛烈度不减反增，连带也使得述说英勇豪迈的维京战士色彩更增添犹如惨烈战役的残酷感，令人震撼不已。这次Amon Amarth不仅带来了9首全新创作，更加收了14曲的Bonus CD，包含现已绝版的首张Demo《Thor Arise》，第二张Demo《The Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter》，与第一张MCD《Sorrow Throughout The Nine Worlds》，可说是珍贵异常，绝对超值珍藏！这张专辑音色再次变化，依然比较明亮，但是更加硬朗，也是AA后期的经典音色，新世纪的AA也再次找到了前进的方向，第一首歌《Death In Fire》就很不俗，恰到好处的点弦让人非常舒服，喜欢后期AA的乐迷从这张开始。回到前面的所谓“三部曲”的问题，我不知道AA这之前有没有预料到会造就经典的转型之路，他们自己可能也意识到了过去的风格已经江郎才尽，通过这系列的专辑来让乐迷接受转变？总之，非常成功非常成功，不仅在商业上，在音乐性上也是美妙的升华，再次证明好的极端音乐不在于音乐形态本身的极端性。巡演一直持续到2004年春天，乐队开始投入到《Fate of Norns》的制作，这张专辑在2004年9月6日正式发行。2004年的《Fate Of Norns》，Amon Amarth的第五篇光荣战斗史诗，热血沸腾维京旋律渴望战死沙场的骄傲与殊荣！《An Ancient Sign of Coming Storm》血红风暴的抢滩攻防，《The Fate of Norns》连神都无法干预的注定之事，《The Pursuit of Vikings》可歌可泣的维京迷航，《Valkyries Ride》女武神迎接光荣战死之勇猛狂战士....Amon Amarth的音乐，永远有办法让你热血沸腾，想像自己是顽强勇猛的维京战士，渴望战死沙场的骄傲与殊荣！！这恐怕是AA最经典的一张专辑，录音饱满扎实，RIFF编写得心应手，非常大气。过去乐队还翻唱过《The Fate of Norns》这首歌。很棒很棒，做到了雅俗共赏，无论是喜欢听流行音乐的，还是MetalHead，这张专辑都是完美的礼物，要说不足，就是封面没有“三部曲”时代精致，这个时代的伟大杰作！！！2006年发行的《With Oden on our side》是公认的2006年最佳金属专辑之一,也是本人至爱的超级经典。音色再次变亮，更有力量，感觉这个时候的AA已经露出的王者风范，各方面都无懈可击的一张专辑（当然，封面的问题依然是仁者见仁智者见智）。这张专辑收录了9首作品，整体风格没什么太大的变化，整齐激扬的旋律从始至终，Amon Amarth也一直是个很讲究音乐质量，发挥也比较稳定的乐队。低沉撞击开场，熟悉的旋律，新作拉开序幕，旋律编排延续着他们一贯的风格比较紧凑，始终保持在较高的密度下，厚实的音墙突现出一股股的冲击力，两位吉他手的实力早已不用多说，配合也非常出色，无论是短促的高潮段落还是长段的旋律氛围都很到位，主旋律也交织而生。主唱的唱腔依旧是主要使用低吼和类似黑嗓两种唱腔，不过随着旋律的变化，还有些细微的调整，比如低吼一度演变成水喉，唱腔多样，但主唱拿捏的还是很准，激情演绎这充满战士的豪情和浴血奋战的激扬。鼓手Fredrik Andersson是Amon Amarth中我最喜欢的成员，他同时也其他几支乐队担当鼓手，拥有稳实的基本功以及对乐器出色的驾御能力，在这张专辑中也表现的很出色，稳重不乏激情，干净利落的鼓点都值得称道。现在已经蜕化变质的《重型音乐》把这张专辑排在2006 TOP25，充分证明了AA的音乐已经脱离了极端音乐的范畴，变得更加大众化，虽然如此，我依然甚至更加喜欢这支乐队，好的音乐不总是孤芳自赏。Amon Amarth在变得更加所谓“时髦”的时候，我对他们给予最真诚的祝福，他们在突破的自己的风格瓶颈之后，在商业上也取得了巨大的成功，但是这种成功和Children of Bodom之流不同，没有做作的装扮，没有媚俗的姿态，我做为毫不妥协的MetalHead也真心地为Amon Amarth他们的音乐鼓掌，无论未来的路，AA如何走，它都见证了又一个极端金属传奇的诞生。《With Oden on Our Side》（2006）表明（根据AllMusic的数据）“Amon Amarth继续成为全球死亡金属竞赛中的冠军”，并且在美国最佳独立专辑排名表中上升到第26位。尽管这张专辑中的素材并没有出现在2006年5月发行的DVD《Wrath Of The Norsemen》中，但这张DVD已在美国成为黄金销量（Gold – high sales），在加拿大为白金销量（Platinum – very high通常是黄金销量的2–2.5倍）。2008年1月初，乐队结束了和Sonic Syndicate及Himsa在美国加拿大的巡演，与Dimmu Borgir一起开始了他们在澳大利亚和新西兰的首次巡演。在与金属刀片延长合约后，乐队发行了《Twilight of the Thunder God》，并邀请了Entombed乐队的Lars Göran Petrov，Children of Bodom的Roope Latvala和Apocalyptica乐队友情客串。这张专辑被评为08年最佳金属专辑Top 4,在左轮手枪杂志的当年最佳20张专辑中排名第七。这张作品旋律方面键盘比重增加，更加“动听”，而RIFF方面血腥的力道丝毫不减，可谓演绎了一场“唯美的残忍”。经过十八年的磨砺，Amon Amarth已完全成长为一支成熟、大气、令人激动的维京团。随着专辑的发行，一套根据北欧神话改编的8页漫画在欧洲的杂志上发表。2008年10月AA和Ensiferum, Belphegor,The Absence开始北美巡演。2009年乐队与Goatwhore，Skeleton Witch，Lazarus AD参加了一系列演出，2010年与Holy Grail，Eluveitie一起演出。在这期间，AA在声望很高的金属音锤杂志的金神奖中被评为最具突破表演奖。乐队还参与了Slayer的“邪恶联盟第三章”欧洲巡演。2009年12月5日，班加罗尔Deccan摇滚节，乐队第一次在印度演出。2010年1月27日面向日本发行了一张精选集—《Hymns To The Rising Sun》，包含了乐队的13首经典之作和一首Black Sabbath的翻唱歌曲：《Children Of The Grave》。2010年11月30日，AA确认他们的下一张专辑《Surtur Rising》会在2011年春天发行。专辑的鼓在Park Studios完成录制，而贝斯和吉他在Fascination Street录音室完成录制。根据乐队官网的消息，专辑在美国的发布日期为3月29日。同时他们开始着手准备与Children of Bodom、Ensiferum等乐队的为期4个月（2011年3月—6月）的世界巡回演出。2011年1月27日，金属刀片在优吐蕃上发布了AA新专辑中的首支单曲《War of the Gods》。Amon Amarth还出现在了2011年发行的电影《Rap Sucks》中。2011年3月29日,在千呼万唤间，北欧维京旋死神团Amon Amarth终于发行了第八张全长专辑。依旧维京味十足的Surtur Rising在风格上较以往的专辑没有太大的变化，但是依旧可以使我们重拾第一次听Amon Amarth音乐时的惊艳感。不以速度见长的Amon Amarth此次在新专辑中为我们带来了数段唯美精致的吉他SOLO，除此之外，大量键盘烘托的独奏段落使得乐曲的气势磅礴，却又不失气质。把维京金属与旋律死亡风格如此结合的乐队，世界上仅Amon Amarth一支了。相较哥德堡之声的没落和大批北欧乐队的美国化，Amon Amarth的回复无疑是坚决的，他们要誓死捍卫北欧的金属文化，哪怕他们已是最后一位斗士。
音乐风格和主题
Amon Amarth是一支深深根植于死亡金属并有着坚定而强烈的维京神话信仰的乐队。乐队的名字取自英国文学家J.R.R Tolkien那本著名的幻想历史小说《The Lord of the Rings》（指环王），Amon Amarth在小说中是指一个特定的地点，即The Mountain of Doom（厄运之山），Tiamat乐队为他们的一首早期经典作品也取了同样的名字。乐队的风格为比较凶狠的旋律黑死金属，双吉他，没有键盘。他们的歌曲整体上感觉比较压抑，但又不失凶狠，有点象At the Gates与Dark Tranqullity的结合。很多宏大的气势都是轮拨出来的，现在的乐队大多都是靠键盘的烘托，随便怎么烘托，也没有吉他出来的气势强悍，那个旋律既霸道又邪恶。轮拨的速度之快，通常一个节奏我得练一段时间才能完全达到他们的速度，黑暗、沉闷的吉他重复段创造了一种幻想中的世界末日，充满了毒品，死亡和超自然的迷惑。死亡金属和黑暗金属以粗糙，阴冷的风格成长，产生了两种类似的，起源于鞭挞的风格，他们创作了一些最为重要的研磨，剧烈，超速的音乐和金属世界。个人感觉，论技巧，并没有Metallica等乐队复杂，Amon Amarth的曲子多半用轮拨，不断的节奏重复，但却很有气势。一般都使用纯正的金属效果，很少使用失真和延时，更很少在曲子之中使用清音和电琴。Amon Amarth的音乐大多基于北欧神话，维京时代，以及异教世界。二十世纪九十年代初期，这种独特的神话传说的元素最先出现于黑金属的一个分支进而成为一种新的流派，即维京金属。Bathory和Enslaved等乐队使这种风格开始流行。但是Amon Amarth并不同意将自己归入维京金属。当被问到乐队的风格时，主唱Johan Hegg说道：“我们玩的是死亡金属。我们写了关于维京人的故事，所以有人将我们归为维京金属，但是我并不知道维京金属是个神马东西。我无法想象维京人（指古代维京人）会对金属感兴趣除了刀剑等东西。（海哥你好幽默= =）,就音乐上而言，我猜测他们使用这些奇怪的唇乐器和一些bongos（一种鼓）或者其它任何东西。”Hegg道出了乐队被列为维京金属的不情愿，并坚持认为他们从未将自己称为维京金属。“在我们的意识里，这种金属风格与那些挪威出来的乐队有着十分紧密的联系，他们以玩非常黑的金属乐为目的，而那并非我们所玩的音乐。当然，一谈到歌词主题时，我们有着相同的灵感，但是就音乐本身而言，我们是两种完全不同类型的金属，所以这很复杂。”Hegg补充道。Hegg还谈论了乐队与异教金属现象的关系以及对题材的选择：“我们实在没有把自己看成那些异教民谣乐队中的一员。我们选择维京和神话作为歌词的主题更多的或许是因为一开始的偶然。当我们的第一首歌以维京为歌词时，我们感觉这就是我们想要的、适合我们音乐的主题……此外，这与其他许多乐队是不同的。我认为，在瑞典只有Bathory和Unleashed曾经用过类似的主题。对我们而言，使用这些歌词就是为了比别人更出色一点，就是要与众不同，就是要玩出位。”“我们从来没有称自己为维京金属，和大多数音乐人一样，我们只是不喜欢给自己贴标签。在我们的意识里，这种金属风格与那些挪威出来的乐队有着十分紧密的联系，这些乐队以玩非常黑的金属乐为目的，而那并非我们所玩的音乐。当然，一谈到歌词主题时，我们有着相同的灵感，但是就音乐本身而言，我们是两种完全不同类型的金属，所以这很棘手。对于那些从来没听过我们但是也许听过Enslaved、Borknagar或者Einherjer的人，他们会期待一些和我们所做的完全不同的东西。”MembersCurrentOlavi Mikkonen − lead guitar (1992–present)Johan Hegg − vocals (1992–present)Ted Lundström − bass (1992–present)Johan Söderberg − rhythm guitar (1998–present)Jocke Wallgren − drums (2016–present)FormerNiko Kaukinen − drums (1992−1996)Anders Hansson − rhythm guitar (1992–1998)Martin Lopez − drums (1996–1998)Fredrik Andersson − drums (1998–2015)Session musicians
