Twilight of the Thunder God is the seventh studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Amon Amarth. Twilight of the Thunder God was released in September 2008. The album's name and title track refer to Thor's slaying of the Midgard Serpent Jörmungandr.
| Twilight of the Thunder God | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 17 September 2008 | |||
| Recorded | May–June 2008 | |||
| Studio | Fascination Street Studio in Örebro, Sweden | |||
| Genre | Melodic death metal | |||
| Length | 43:34 | |||
| Label | Metal Blade, Sony Music | |||
| Producer | Jens Bogren | |||
| Amon Amarth chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editIn anticipation of this album, there was a series of six vlog-format studio diaries which displayed the recording process of this album in the studio. The first focused on Fredrik Andersson recording the drums.[1] The second vlog focused on Olavi Mikkonen recording the rhythm guitar position.[2] The third vlog focused on Ted Lundström recording bass guitar and band members preparing food. The fourth episode focused on Johan Hegg recording vocals. The fifth video was Johan Söderberg performing and recording guitar solos. The final vlog featured Olavi Mikkonen and Ted Lundström packing up the studio, as well as an album preview.
A series of 8-page comics were made during the production of the album, eponymously entitled "Twilight of the Thunder God", released in magazines throughout Europe.[3]
On 27 June 2008, the title of this album was announced. Twilight of the Thunder God features several guest appearances featuring Entombed vocalist Lars-Göran Petrov on "Guardians of Asgaard", Children of Bodom and Stone guitarist Roope Latvala who contributes a solo on the track "Twilight of the Thunder God", and Finnish cello metal band Apocalyptica guesting on "Live for the Kill".[4]
Approximately a month later on 25 July 2008, the album artwork was revealed, featuring Thor, the Norse God of Thunder, in battle with Jörmungandr.
On 27 August 2008, Amon Amarth released the information that they had recently finished work on a video clip for the title track of the album. The video clip was shot in Jomsborg,[dubious – discuss] Poland. The band notes that while they were there, a heavy storm came through the town, resulting in the roughest conditions the band has ever shot a music video in.[5]
Reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | (80/100)[6] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [7] |
| AllMusic |  [8] |
| Blabbermouth |    [9] |
| IGN | [10] |
| PopMatters | [11] |
| Sputnikmusic | [12] |
The album debuted at number 50 on the Billboard 200, and debuted at number 11 on the Swedish album charts. This makes the band's first album to chart on the top 200, and also the band's highest chart debut in their native country of Sweden, debuting 10 places higher than their previous release, With Oden on Our Side.
Initial critical response to Twilight of the Thunder God was positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 80, based on 5 reviews.[6]
The album was ranked number six on Metal Hammer's Top 50 Albums of 2008.[13]
Legacy
editSwedish power metal band Sabaton covered "Twilight of the Thunder God" as a bonus track on various renditions of their 2012 album Carolus Rex.
In 2013, Corvus Corax released a cover of "Twilight of the Thunder God" on their album Gimlie
In 2017, Swiss metal band Rage of Light released a cover version of "Twilight of the Thunder God".[14]
In 2021, Feuerschwanz released a cover of "Twilight of the Thunder God" on the Deluxe Edition of their album Memento Mori.
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Amon Amarth
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Twilight of the Thunder God" (featuring Roope Latvala) | 4:09 |
| 2. | "Free Will Sacrifice" | 4:09 |
| 3. | "Guardians of Asgaard" (featuring Lars-Göran Petrov) | 4:23 |
| 4. | "Where Is Your God?" | 3:11 |
| 5. | "Varyags of Miklagaard" | 4:18 |
| 6. | "Tattered Banners and Bloody Flags" | 4:30 |
| 7. | "No Fear for the Setting Sun" | 3:54 |
| 8. | "The Hero" | 4:02 |
| 9. | "Live for the Kill" (featuring Apocalyptica) | 4:10 |
| 10. | "Embrace of the Endless Ocean" | 6:44 |
| Total length: | 43:34 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | 2:38 |
| 2. | "Valhall Awaits Me" | 4:48 |
| 3. | "Runes to My Memory" | 4:45 |
| 4. | "Cry of the Black Birds" | 4:34 |
| 5. | "Asator" | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Pursuit of Vikings" | 5:50 |
| 7. | "Fate of Norns" | 6:50 |
| 8. | "Without Fear" | 4:31 |
| 9. | "With Oden on Our Side" | 4:47 |
| 10. | "Where Silent Gods Stand Guard" | 7:31 |
| 11. | "An Ancient Sign of Coming Storm" | 4:56 |
| 12. | "Victorious March" | 8:47 |
| 13. | "Death in Fire" | 6:02 |
| Total length: | 69:34 | |
Personnel
editBand members
edit- Johan Hegg − vocals
- Olavi Mikkonen − lead guitar
- Johan Söderberg − rhythm guitar
- Ted Lundström − bass
- Fredrik Andersson − drums
Guest musicians
edit- Lars-Göran Petrov − vocals on "Guardians of Asgaard"
- Roope Latvala − guitar solo on "Twilight of the Thunder God"
- Apocalyptica − cellos on "Live for the Kill"
- Ronny Milianowicz – horns, brass, choir vocals
Credits
edit- Tom Thiel − album artwork[15]
- Peter Damin − drum technician
Release history
edit| Region | Date | Label | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden, Finland | 17 September 2008 | Metal Blade | CD |
| Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, Italy | 19 September 2008 | Metal Blade | CD |
| The rest of Europe | 22 September 2008 | Metal Blade | CD |
| North America and elsewhere | 30 September 2008 | Metal Blade | CD, Enhanced CD |
References
edit- ^ Studio vlog on MySpace: News @ Amon Amarth official website Archived 4 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ New episode of studio diary on-line at MySpace: News @ Amon Amarth official website Archived 1 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Amon Amarth upcoming studio album information @ metalblade.de Archived 17 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ AMON AMARTH: New Album Title Revealed - 27 June 2008: News @ blabbermouth.net
- ^ Amon Amarth - Video Recorded For Twilight Of The Thundergod: News @ metalstorm.ee
- ^ a b "Twilight of the Thunder God by Amon Amarth". Metacritic. CNET Networks, Inc. Retrieved 19 March 2009.
- ^ Bowar, Chad. Twilight of the Thunder God review about.com. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
- ^ Prato, Greg. Twilight of the Thunder God review allmusic.com. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Bergman, Keith. Twilight of the Thunder God review Archived 3 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Ramirez, Carlos. Twilight of the Thunder God review Archived 7 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine music.ign.com. 3 October 2008. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Begrand, Adrien. Twilight of the Thunder God review popmatters.com. 28 October 2008. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Stagno, Mike. Twilight of the Thunder God review sputnikmusic.com. 16 September 2009. Retrieved 11 November 2009.
- ^ Metal Hammer's Top 50 Albums of 2008, Numbers 6 through 4 Archived 25 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rage of Light (22 February 2017). "RAGE OF LIGHT - Twilight Of The Thunder God (AMON AMARTH COVER)". YouTube. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
- ^ The Story Behind Metal's Greatest Album Covers; This Month: Amon Amarth's 'Twilight of the Thunder God', Revolver Magazine, May 2009, Page 82