Amon Amarth Returns with “Berserker”
Amon Amarth has returned with their eleventh studio album, called Berserker. While the effort is not a full concept album like their last recording, Jomsviking, the lyrical content once again draws on Viking lore. Its title and accompanying track refers to “The Berserker of Stamford Bridge,” who fought during the Vikings last stand against the English army in 1066.
“The Vikings were cut off from their supply ships, so they had to retreat over Stamford Bridge, with the whole English army hard on their heels,” vocalist Johan Hegg explains. “The Vikings sent just one man out on the bridge to hold the whole English army back, about 15,000 men. So this guy, equipped with a Dane Axe, I think he killed between 40 and 70 people before they got him. And the only way they could get him was to send four guys onto the river on a raft, and they got him from beneath with spears! So it’s the perfect story for a great metal song.”
One new aspect for the band was working with producer Jay Ruston, who has worked with Anthrax, Steel Panther, Diana Ross, and more. This proved to be a big positive, especially for bassist Ted Lundström. “The biggest improvement on this album compared to the other ones is that our producer is a bass player, too. I think my bass got a lot more room in the mix, so you’ll hear my bass a lot more on this album than the previous,” Lundström told Loud TV.
Hear a piece of Berserker with this video for “Raven’s Flight”:
Berserker is available now on CD, vinyl and as a digital download (iTunes and Amazon MP3).
Berserker Track List:
- Fafner’s Gold
- Crack the Sky
- Mjölner, Hammer of Thor
- Shield Wall
- Valkyria
- Raven’s Flight
- Ironside
- The Berserker at Stamford Bridge
- When Once Again We Can Set Our Sails
- Skoll and Hati
- Wings of Eagles
- Into the Dark
