Metal-Exiles.com caught up with AMON AMARTH frontman Johan Hegg during the band's North American tour with CHILDREN OF BODOM. The following is a brief excerpt from that meeting:

Metal Exiles: The new record, With Oden On Our Side, is a tremendous effort. Where did the title come from first off?

Johan: "I wrote the lyrics song before we chose it as a title but the song is a metaphor about us. We keep struggling, keep going forward, get better and more professional. It is trying to work harder and get past any setback. When we first started writing the album it felt like something was pushing us and being there for us. It felt as though the gods were with us. Since Odin is not only the Chief god, he is the God Of Poetry so we felt that it was a fitting title."

Metal Exiles: You said the gods were pushing you. Do you believe in God or do you have a religion?

Johan: "Personally, I have a philosophical approach to gods. The gods are inside you and when you are in balance with yourself you will feel them in you. My philosophy in life is Scandinavian philosophy; I just feel support from that. That does not mean that the gods exist in the sky it is just I am not a religious person but as a band we felt it was a fitting title."

Metal Exiles: You are big into the Viking lore, how much is there left to tell?

Johan: "You always find new angles and new ideas. I always find things in my life, the world in general and the bands life to use."

Metal Exiles: As a metaphor?

Johan: "Yes, as a metaphor just to express some feelings I have and I feel if you write a metaphor about something then someone can get something out of it to help them. There was a guy that told me that he would not have gotten through his studies if it was not for our music."

To read the entire interview go to this location.