On March 25th, Swedish metal kings Amon Amarth will release their 10th studio album, Jomsviking, via Sony Music (International) and Metal Blade Records (North America).

In a new interview with Greg Prato for Songfacts, Johan Hegg discusses the new album.

“First of all, it's a concept album, which we've never done before”, says Hegg. “So there is a story that goes through the whole album chronologically, which also gives it a slightly more epic touch to the songs.

“We went about it differently: writing songs for the album was sort of like writing movie music. That gives it a lot more direction, which really lifts the whole thing, compared to older Amon Amarth albums. There is more room for melodies and riffs, to take place without having to drop any of the aggressiveness, which I really enjoy. Also, we have a new drummer on the recording [Tobias Gustafsson] whose style is different from Fredrik's [Fredrik Andersson]. So there are a couple of major differences, but it still sounds very much like Amon Amarth. I don't think any fans of Amon Amarth are going to be disappointed.

About the album's storyline, Johan states: “The story I have been thinking about writing for a long time, I just never really got around to it. It was sort of a private project for me, but for this album, I just had to start writing this script and show the guys the pieces and a concept album to make, and they said it was cool, so we went for it.

“The story is very intriguing: it's a story about a man who commits a murder, and has to flee. And in doing so, he joins a group of Viking mercenaries called the Jomsvikings, and he becomes one of them. In short terms, that is kind of what happens. I based my story - which is the general story - on the saga of the Jomsvikings, which is an old Norse legend written around the 12th century. There is a lot of brutality and treachery and violence in it, but it's a pretty cool story.”

Read more at Songfacts.

Jomsviking - the band's first concept record in their storied career - tells a tragic tale of love and revenge, backed by the Swedes' trademark anthemic metal. The record was produced and mixed by Andy Sneap (Megadeth, Testament, Accept) and also features special guest session drummer Tobias Gustafsson (Vomitory).

The epic original story is set in the world of the Jomsvikings, the pagan order of mercenary Vikings from the 10th & 11th Centuries. Frontman Johan Hegg explains, "The Jomsvikings were a shadowy and legendary sect of Viking mercenaries, as shrouded in myth now as they were when they fought across Europe and the Middle East. Ruthless and deadly warriors who fought for the highest bidder, their code was simple: Show no fear. Never retreat. Defend your brothers, and when called upon, avenge their deaths. I felt we were finally ready to use their story as the jumping off point for an Amon Amarth album. The Jomsvikings and their world is the background for the story of a young man that is in love with a girl but unfortunately she's being married off. He accidentally kills a man when this happens and he has to flee - but he swears to have revenge and win her back. He can't let go of the past. He feels that he's been wronged and his life has been destroyed. The way the story evolves is not a happy story."

German rock legend Doro Pesch adds guest vocals to the song "A Dream That Cannot Be". Hegg comments on the collaboration, saying, "It was a great pleasure to work with Doro. She's a very nice person and did a great job! She was actually the only one we could picture singing this song."

By far their most ambitious project to date, Jomsviking is available for pre-order in various formats at this location. Fans can view the video for the album's first single, "First Kill”, below. Produced by Grupa 13 and directed by Darek Szermanowicz (Behemoth), "First Kill" was filmed in Gohrweide (Germany) and Warsaw (Poland) and features a cinematic depiction of the brutal lyrics, along with stunning live footage of the band performing with their full dragon head and pyro stage-set.

Jomsviking tracklisting:

“First Kill”
“Wanderer”
“On A Sea Of Blood”
“One Against All”
“Raise Your Horns”
“The Way Of Vikings”
“At Dawn‘s First Light”
“One Thousand Burning Arrows”
“Vengeance Is My Name”
“A Dream That Cannot Be” (featuring Doro Pesch)
“Back On Northern Shores”

“First Kill” video:

Shortly before Jomsviking's release, Amon Amarth will embark on a special European mini tour of intimate venues where the band will debut some of the album’s material for the first time. Tickets for these tiny shows are extremely limited and will sell fast.

One of the dates will be held in London, at the Underworld, on March 22nd - which was the venue for the band’s very first UK show, back in 2006, when tickets were priced £8.50. The show sold out and has since led to a number of sold out tours, seeing the band play bigger and bigger venues on each subsequent visit. For the March 22nd show, only 300 tickets in total will be put on sale (priced £15 + fees), but the first 50 fans to buy tickets for it can snap them up for £8.50 in commemoration.

Grab London tickets at this location from 4 PM on Wednesday, January 27th.

The special dates are:

March
22 - London, England - Underworld
23 - Paris, France - Divan Du Monde
24 - Tilburg, Netherlands - Hall Of Fame
25 - Berlin, Germany - Postbahnhof

Following Jomsviking's release, Amon Amarth will tour North America with Entombed A.D. and Exmortus. Pre-sale tickets are available now at amonamarth.com. Tickets go on-sale on Friday, January 29th at 10 AM, local time at amonamarth.com.

April
7 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues
8 - Phoenix, AZ - The Pressroom
9 - El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls
10 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
12 - Dallas, TX - House of Blues
13 - San Antonio, TX - The Aztec Theater
15 - Houston, TX - House of Blues
16 - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
17 - Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
18 - Tampa, FL - The Ritz
20 - Charlotte, NC - The Fillmore
21 - Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore
22 - New York, NY - Best Buy Theatre
23 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
25 - Rochester, NY - Water Street Music Hall
26 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
28 - Quebec City, QC - Imperial
29 - Montreal, QC - Metropolis
30 - Toronto, ON - The Danforth

May
1 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
2 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrews
4 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
5 - Chicago, IL - The Riviera Theatre
6 - Lawrence, KS - The Granada Theater
7 - Denver, CO - The Ogden Theater
9 - Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium
10 - Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater
12 - Winnipeg, MB - The Garrick
13 - Saskatoon, SK - O'Brian's Event Centre
14 - Calgary, AB - MacEwan Ballroom
16 - Vancouver, BC - The Commodore
17 - Seattle, WA - Showbox Market
18 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
20 - San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
21 - Los Angeles, CA - The Wiltern Theater