Amon Amarth
Metaldays - 2017
Text: Tobias Nilsson Photo: Lunah Lauridsen
Being one of the mightiest bands around in this day and age, when it comes to metal, it wasn’t surprising to see Amon Amarth headline the day they appeared at Metaldays. The band has a long and glorious history with the festival, even back from the days it was called Metalcamp, so the question here was really only, what’s new guys?
“Sorry about the rain, but we are here to warm you now, with a true viking feast!”
- Johan Hegg (vocals)
Amon Amarth coming out after that symphonic intro, and kicking the show into gear with the live-staple The Pursuit Of Vikings surely didn’t feel new, but that didn’t make it any less entertaining. The fact that they were half an hour late in showing up did feel new, but that didn’t exactly help the entertainment bit.
Amon Amarth had a huge show with them, that much was obvious, but it wasn’t without problems. The most pressing one, was not a fault of their own however - for some reason, the festival had lowered the overall volume, so that the music came out very low. This problem sadly proved to be a curse the band, and the audience to an even bigger degree, had to live with for the entire show.
Good then, that the band had so much else prepared for us! A mighty pyro show began warming us in As Loke Falls, a couple of vikings fought it out with a deadly result during The Way Of Vikings, and then came back with friends and banners for Tattered Banners And Bloody Flags (such an awesome song), and later still had a battle of bows during Runes To My Memory.
Loki himself showed up, wearing his finest Deceiver Of The Gods outfit, and gave a speech which led into Father Of The Wolf. Backdrops (and yes, the pluralization is indeed intentional) were changed, runes were set ablaze, and Maidenesque sing-along’s took to the sky, all leading up to one inevitable showdown. A feat of strength, and courage. Thor fighting the wicked Jormungandr. Thor here in the guise of Johan Hegg, and Jormungandr in the guise of a giant, inflated balloon animal. Set against a backdrop of rain and lightning, and accompanied by the sound of Twilight Of The Thunder God, what an epic battle this was!
“Everytime we come to Metalcamp, you prove to us you are the toughest, meanest metalheads around, so let me hear you scream!”
- Hegg (vocals)
If a fully filled battleground in front of the stage wasn’t enough to prove that Amon Amarth had Metaldays (yes, Johan, the festival has changed its name since you were last here), the outfits of many of the crowd should also be an indicator. Seriously, it was impressive to see so many people dressed up in viking attire just for this show. Never before have so many vikings been seen crowdsurfing, sword, shield, and horn in hand (that’s a lot of hands), and it will be a long time before it happens again, I bet. Sure, there were regular folks crowdsurfing as well, but that’s nothing new at this place.
The fan dedication Raise Your Horns saw, or rather heard, a deafening response from said fans during the sing-along, it coming close to deafening out the music actually, but it wasn’t the only song garnering such a response. It’s hard to count the number of sing-along friendly live staples Amon Amarth have created over the years, but they are numerous, and many of them worked their magic this very evening, delving deeply into the reserves of energy that the festival goers had here halfway through this weeklong musical holiday.
“Seriously guys, you’ve been standing here in scorching sun, thunderstorms, and cold rain. Much respect!”
- Hegg (vocals)
So, while the setlist may not always get a good overhaul, Amon Amarth constantly up their game with new and fancy performances. Adding to this, the great mood the whole band was in this evening, and you had a very clear lesson of what it takes to deliver a headlining show, and definite proof of why Amon Amarth held this enviable position. I was thrilled, entertained, and awestruck - nothing more needs to be said.
Setlist:
The Pursuit Of Vikings
As Loke Falls
First Kill
The Way Of Vikings
At Dawn’s First Light
Cry Of The Black Birds
Deceiver Of The Gods
Destroyer Of The Universe
Tattered Banners And Bloody Flags
Death In Fire
Father Of The Wolf
Runes To My Memory
War Of The Gods
Raise Your Horns
Guardians Of Asgaard
Twilight Of The Thunder God
“Sorry about the rain, but we are here to warm you now, with a true viking feast!”
- Johan Hegg (vocals)
Amon Amarth coming out after that symphonic intro, and kicking the show into gear with the live-staple The Pursuit Of Vikings surely didn’t feel new, but that didn’t make it any less entertaining. The fact that they were half an hour late in showing up did feel new, but that didn’t exactly help the entertainment bit.
Amon Amarth had a huge show with them, that much was obvious, but it wasn’t without problems. The most pressing one, was not a fault of their own however - for some reason, the festival had lowered the overall volume, so that the music came out very low. This problem sadly proved to be a curse the band, and the audience to an even bigger degree, had to live with for the entire show.
Good then, that the band had so much else prepared for us! A mighty pyro show began warming us in As Loke Falls, a couple of vikings fought it out with a deadly result during The Way Of Vikings, and then came back with friends and banners for Tattered Banners And Bloody Flags (such an awesome song), and later still had a battle of bows during Runes To My Memory.
Loki himself showed up, wearing his finest Deceiver Of The Gods outfit, and gave a speech which led into Father Of The Wolf. Backdrops (and yes, the pluralization is indeed intentional) were changed, runes were set ablaze, and Maidenesque sing-along’s took to the sky, all leading up to one inevitable showdown. A feat of strength, and courage. Thor fighting the wicked Jormungandr. Thor here in the guise of Johan Hegg, and Jormungandr in the guise of a giant, inflated balloon animal. Set against a backdrop of rain and lightning, and accompanied by the sound of Twilight Of The Thunder God, what an epic battle this was!
“Everytime we come to Metalcamp, you prove to us you are the toughest, meanest metalheads around, so let me hear you scream!”
- Hegg (vocals)
If a fully filled battleground in front of the stage wasn’t enough to prove that Amon Amarth had Metaldays (yes, Johan, the festival has changed its name since you were last here), the outfits of many of the crowd should also be an indicator. Seriously, it was impressive to see so many people dressed up in viking attire just for this show. Never before have so many vikings been seen crowdsurfing, sword, shield, and horn in hand (that’s a lot of hands), and it will be a long time before it happens again, I bet. Sure, there were regular folks crowdsurfing as well, but that’s nothing new at this place.
The fan dedication Raise Your Horns saw, or rather heard, a deafening response from said fans during the sing-along, it coming close to deafening out the music actually, but it wasn’t the only song garnering such a response. It’s hard to count the number of sing-along friendly live staples Amon Amarth have created over the years, but they are numerous, and many of them worked their magic this very evening, delving deeply into the reserves of energy that the festival goers had here halfway through this weeklong musical holiday.
“Seriously guys, you’ve been standing here in scorching sun, thunderstorms, and cold rain. Much respect!”
- Hegg (vocals)
So, while the setlist may not always get a good overhaul, Amon Amarth constantly up their game with new and fancy performances. Adding to this, the great mood the whole band was in this evening, and you had a very clear lesson of what it takes to deliver a headlining show, and definite proof of why Amon Amarth held this enviable position. I was thrilled, entertained, and awestruck - nothing more needs to be said.
Setlist:
The Pursuit Of Vikings
As Loke Falls
First Kill
The Way Of Vikings
At Dawn’s First Light
Cry Of The Black Birds
Deceiver Of The Gods
Destroyer Of The Universe
Tattered Banners And Bloody Flags
Death In Fire
Father Of The Wolf
Runes To My Memory
War Of The Gods
Raise Your Horns
Guardians Of Asgaard
Twilight Of The Thunder God