Kaaos TV spoke with vocalist Johan Hegg of Swedish melodic death metallers AMON AMARTH at the Finnish Metal Expo on February 18th in Helsinki, Finland. You can watch the chat on YouTube below:

Amon Amarth are gearing up to unleash Surtur Rising, the eighth studio offering in their critically revered pantheon of Viking-inspired death metal. Surtur Rising will be released in North America on March 29th via Metal Blade Records.

A track-by-track album review is currently online at Radio Metal.

Named in tribute to Surtur, leader of the fire giants of Muspelheim ("flame land") and the oldest being in the nine worlds of Norse mythology, the record features 10 tracks of sword-wielding, fist-pumping, hyper climactic battle anthems.

The follow up to 2008's monolithic Twilight Of The Thunder God full-length, was recorded again at Fascination Street Studios Örebro, Sweden with Jens Bogren and features strikingly brutal cover art by Tom Thiel. Check it out below:

Amon Amarth have unveiled the official album landing page. The new website, dedicated exclusively to Surtur Rising, will include album pre-orders for North America and Europe as well as up-to-the-minute news updates, tour announcements, videos and singles leading up to the record's release.

The page currently features a stream of 'War Of The Gods', the opening track off Surtur Rising. Check it out here.

North American fans will have ten Surtur Rising pre-order options:

Deluxe Box Set

Deluxe Box Set + LP

Deluxe Box Set + LP + Exclusive Shirt

Deluxe Box Set + Exclusive Shirt

CD/DVD

CD/DVD + LP

CD/DVD + LP + Exclusive Shirt

CD/DVD + Exclusive Shirt

LP

LP + Exclusive Shirt

The shirt is a Metal Blade US pre-order exclusive and will be unavailable for purchase after street date.

CD/DVD Digipak includes:

- 10 tracks of brand new music
- Multi-panel digipak
- 28-page full-color booklet
- DVD includes over four hours of live concert footage filmed during the Bloodshed Over Bochum concert series in 2008.

Deluxe CD/DVD Package w/ Surtur Action Figurine Includes:

- Limited collectible Surtur figure (approx 5.5" tall)
- 10 tracks of new music
- 2 Bonus Tracks: Kiss' "War Machine" and Accept's "Balls To The Wall"
- 28-page full-color booklet
- Multi-panel digipak
- DVD includes over four hours of live concert footage filmed during the Bloodshed Over Bochum concert series in 2008.

Picture Disc Includes:

- 2-sided Surtur Rising picture disc
- Die-cut gate-fold sleeve

Surtur Rising tracklisting:

'War Of The Gods'

'Töck's Taunt - Loke's Treachery Part II'

'Destroyer Of The Universe'

'Slaves Of Fear'

'Live Without Regrets'

'The Last Stand Of Frej'

'For Victory Or Death'

'Wrath Of The Norsemen'

'A Beast Am I'

'Doom Over Dead Man'

Amon Amarth recently announced their 2011 US headlining tour. Simply dubbed An Evening With Amon Amarth, this very special trek will find the band touring without support and instead performing two separate sets each night! One set will feature upcoming album Surtur Rising in its entirety. The Viking-inspired festivities will commence on April 14th in Chicago, Illinois and pillage its way through 17 cities throughout the country before drawing to a climactic close on May 7 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Elaborated drummer Fredrik Andersson: "We're really excited about the upcoming album, Surtur Rising. And what better way to showcase it by playing the full album on our first US tour for Surtur Rising?! It's definitely a unique opportunity for our fans because not only will the album be performed live but a second set with material from our previous albums will take place. We want our fans to really experience Amon Amarth."

An Evening With Amon Amarth dates:

April

14 - The Bottom Lounge - Chicago, IL
15 - Station 4 - Saint Paul, MN
16 - Granada Theater - Lawrence, KS
17 - The Summit Music Hall - Denver, CO
19 - Wonder Ballroom - Portland, OR
20 - Showbox Sodo - Seattle, WA
22 - The Regency - San Francisco, CA
23 - Ace Of Spades - Sacramento, CA
24 - House of Blues - West Hollywood, CA
25 - Nile Theatre - Mesa, AZ
27 - White Rabbit - San Antonio, TX
29 - Culture Room - Fort Lauderdale, FL
30 - Beacham Theatre - Orlando, FL

May

1 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
2 - Jaxx - Springfield, VA
3 - Peabody's - Cleveland, OH
5 - Best Buy Theater - New York, NY
6 - Paradise Rock Club - Boston, MA
7 - Theatre Of Living Arts - Philadelphia, PA

Tickets are on sale now through all local ticket outlets.