With Oden on Our Side | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 22 September 2006 | |||
Recorded | May–June 2006 | |||
Studio | Fascination Street Studio, Örebro, Sweden | |||
Genre | Melodic death metal | |||
Length | 42:17 | |||
Label | Metal Blade, Sony BMG | |||
Producer | Jens Bogren | |||
Amon Amarth chronology | ||||
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With Oden on Our Side is the sixth studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Amon Amarth, and their first album to enter the Billboard charts, the Top Heatseekers and the Independent Albums chart, peaking at number 15 and number 26 respectively. [1]
It was recorded in May and June 2006 and was released in Europe on 22 September 2006 by Metal Blade Records and Sony BMG. A limited edition digipak was also released with a second disc that includes live songs, demos, and unreleased recordings. With Oden on Our Side was also released on a limited red LP. The songs "Runes to My Memory" and "Cry of the Black Birds" were both made into music videos, with the first single being featured in the 2011 video game Saints Row: The Third by developer Volition.
With Oden on Our Side takes on a heavier approach compared to their previous album Fate of Norns ; according to vocalist Johan Hegg, in an interview with Dutch metal magazine Aardschok, the album would go back to their roots such as their debut, Once Sent from the Golden Hall . When asked about the meaning of the album's title, Hegg remarked:
Well, it kind of has several meanings to it. Oden is, of course, the highest god in Scandinavian mythology, and he's the god of warfare, wisdom, poetry, and artistry. The reason we chose the title is that it suited the lyrical concepts of the album and signified the feeling we had during the writing and recording of the album. We literally felt as if we had the Gods on our side.
The album cover art features the Norse God Odin riding on his fabled octopedal horse Sleipnir in a depiction borrowed from the Tjängvide image stone. The background depicts the Valknut, a symbol whose meaning is uncertain, though archeological evidence suggests it to be associated with Odin. Letters of the Runic alphabet can be seen on the edges of the triangles forming the Valknut. The Runes on top spell out "With Oden on our Side", whereas the bottom right runes spell "Amon Amarth" using characters from the Elder Futhark.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Blabbermouth.net | 8/10 [3] |
Since its release, With Oden on Our Side has received favorable reviews. Greg Prato of AllMusic gave the album three and a half stars naming it a competent example of the melodic death metal genre, stating that Johan Hegg's vocals complement the Iron Maiden-esque guitar riffing from Olavi Mikkonen and Johan Söderberg. [2] Blabbermouth.net gave With Oden on Our Side a score of 8 out of 10 comparing its quality to that of Versus the World and Fate of Norns . [3]
Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank |
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Loudwire [4] | US | Top 100 Hard Rock + Metal Albums of the 21st Century | 2016 | 63 |
All tracks are written by Amon Amarth
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Valhall Awaits Me" | 4:44 |
2. | "Runes to My Memory" | 4:33 |
3. | "Asator" | 3:04 |
4. | "Hermod's Ride to Hel - Lokes Treachery Part 1" | 4:41 |
5. | "Gods of War Arise" | 6:03 |
6. | "With Oden on Our Side" | 4:35 |
7. | "Cry of the Black Birds" | 3:50 |
8. | "Under the Northern Star" | 4:17 |
9. | "Prediction of Warfare" | 6:37 |
Total length: | 42:17 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Where Silent Gods Stand Guard" (live) | 6:11 |
2. | "Death in Fire" (live) | 4:55 |
3. | "With Oden on Our Side" (demo) | 4:32 |
4. | "Hermod's Ride to Hel - Lokes Treachery Part 1" (demo) | 4:49 |
5. | "Once Sent from the Golden Hall" (Sunlight Recording) | 4:03 |
6. | "Return of the Gods" (Sunlight Recording) | 3:34 |
Total length: | 28:04 |
Chart | Peak position |
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Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [5] | 27 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [6] | 21 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [7] | 21 |
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Amon Amarth are a Swedish melodic death metal band from Tumba, formed in 1992. The band take its name from the Sindarin name of Mount Doom, a volcano in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. Their lyrics mostly deal with Viking mythology and history, and so they have been sometimes erroneously labeled "Viking metal", although the band prefers the term melodic death metal.
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Versus the World is the fourth studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Amon Amarth, released on 18 November 2002 by Metal Blade Records and Sony Music. It was also released with a bonus disc featuring the Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds EP as well as their two demos; Thor Arise, The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter and a German version of "Victorious March" entitled "Siegreicher Marsch" which was on Once Sent from the Golden Hall. The song "Death in Fire" was made into a music video. Versus the World was the first Amon Amarth album to showcase a more midpaced and heavy sound, unlike their earlier faster works. A deluxe edition was released in 2009 that featured the album remastered by Jens Bogren, and a bonus cd of the original album played live in its entirety in Bochum, Germany.
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