Amon Amarth

w/Entombed A.D./Exmortus

Mon., April 18, The Ritz Ybor

7 p.m., $22-$25

The members of Amon Amarth have been granted ungodly instrumental power, and like rolling thunder coming down from the mountains, they’ve used their gifts to produce some pretty epic music with a focus on Norse mythology. And the group wields all the brutality, cunning and tradition of the Vikings themselves, with lyrics steeped in cultural heritage you can feel in the beat of forcefully building war drums.

The band's lyricism is as sharp and polished as steel, steeped in the members' heritage of gods, monsters, and the stories of extraordinary men such as, “Thor! Hlödyn's son/ Protector of mankind/Ride to meet your fate/Ragnarök awaits” ("Twilight of the Thunder

Gods"). They’ve held on to this tradition throughout their career honing their instrumentals to match the epicness of their songs.

The band likes to center on war and struggle, “The first blood I spilled was the earls right hand man/When he came to take her away/I ran his own sword right through his throat”

("First Kill"), but victory is almost always the end goal of the songs, “So pour the beer for thirsty men/A drink that they have earned/And pour a beer for those who fell/For those who did not return” ("Raise Your Horns").

The band has a new album out this year called Jomsviking, the its tenth album and one

that continues the legacy and storytelling brilliance of the band. When listening, it conjures images of glory, wenches, ale, and a sense of taking the listeners back in time.