The band is composed of lead guitarist Olavi Mikkonen, vocalist Johan Hegg, bassist Ted Lundström, rhythm guitarist Johan Söderberg, and drummer Jocke Wallgren. Amon Amarth has released 12 studio albums, one compilation album, one EP, one video album, and ten music videos. Their first studio album, Once Sent from the Golden Hall, debuted in 1998. Five more studio releases followed, before the band saw its breakthrough with the 2008 album Twilight of the Thunder God, which debuted at No. 10 on the Swedish album charts and No. 50 on the US Billboard 200. Five more albums, Surtur Rising, Deceiver of the Gods, Jomsviking, Berserker, and The Great Heathen Army followed in 2011, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2022 respectively.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amon_Amarth
Studio albums
Once Sent from the Golden Hall (1998)
The Avenger (1999)
The Crusher (2001)
Versus the World (2002)
Fate of Norns (2004)
With Oden on Our Side (2006)
Twilight of the Thunder God (2008)
Surtur Rising (2011)
Deceiver of the Gods (2013)
Jomsviking (2016)
Berserker (2019)
The Great Heathen Army (2022)
Tattered Banners and Bloody Flags
Amon Amarth Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lusting for revenge
He leads the legions of the dead
Towards the Aesir's realm
They march in full battle dress
With faces grim and pale
Tattered banners and bloody flags
Cries ring out, loud and harsh
From cracked and broken horns
Long forgotten battle cries
In strange and foreign tongues
Spear and sword clash rhythmically
Against the broken shields they beat
They bring their hate and anarchy
Onto Vigrid's battlefield
There comes Lopt, the treacherous
He stands against the gods
His army grim and ravenous
Lusting for their blood
[Chorus]
Nowhere is longer safe
The earth moves under our feet
The great world tree Yggorasil
Trembles to its roots
Sons of muspel gird the field
Behind them Midgaard burns
Hrym's horde march from Nifelheim
And the Fenris wolf returns
Heimdal grips the Giallarhorn
He sounds that dreaded note
Oden rides to quest the Norns
But their web is torn
The Aesir rides out to war
With armor shining bright
Followed by the Einherjer
See valkyries ride
[Chorus]
The lyrics of Amon Amarth's Tattered Banners and Bloody Flags describe the chaos and destruction brought forth by Lopt, the treacherous, and his army of the dead, marching towards the realm of the Aesir. The army marches with faces that are grim and pale while carrying tattered banners, bloody flags, rusty spears, and blades. The cries from their cracked and broken horns join in with long-forgotten battle cries in strange and foreign tongues. The sound of spear and sword collision against the broken shields is rhythmic and harsh, bringing hate and anarchy to the battlefield. Lopt and his army are pitted against the gods, and amidst the chaos, there is a sense of impending doom as nowhere is longer safe, the earth trembles, and the great world tree, Yggdrasil, trembles.
The chorus of the song underlines the magnitude of the impending cataclysm - the Muspel sons gird the field, Midgaard burns behind them, Hrym's horde marches from Nifelheim, and the Fenris wolf returns. Heimdal, the watchman of the gods, blows his horn, Oden rides to quest the Norns, but their web is torn. The Aesir ride out to war, their armor shining bright, and are followed by the Einherjer while valkyries ride.
The lyrics of Tattered Banners and Bloody Flags infuse Norse mythology's apocalyptic myths with heavy metal, conveying the message of the fragility of our existence through its powerful music and lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
There comes Lopt, the treacherous
Lopt, known as Loki, arrives with revenge on his mind
Lusting for revenge
Loki has an insatiable desire for revenge
He leads the legions of the dead
Loki commands an army of the undead
Towards the Aesir's realm
Loki and his army are marching towards the home of the Norse gods
They march in full battle dress
The undead soldiers are dressed and prepared for battle
With faces grim and pale
The soldiers' faces are hardened and show no fear
Tattered banners and bloody flags
The soldiers' standards are ripped and stained with blood
Rusty spears and blades
The weapons of the undead soldiers are old and decaying
Cries ring out, loud and harsh
The undead soldiers yell out in a fierce and brutal manner
From cracked and broken horns
The horns used to call the soldiers to war are old and damaged
Long forgotten battle cries
The soldiers' cries are from an ancient time
In strange and foreign tongues
The soldiers' language is not native to the land of the gods
Spear and sword clash rhythmically
The sound of battle echoes across the land in a rhythmic pattern
Against the broken shields they beat
The undead soldiers strike against their own shields, which are already damaged
They bring their hate and anarchy
The soldiers are here to spread destruction and chaos
Onto Vigrid's battlefield
The battle takes place on Vigrid, the great plain of the gods
He stands against the gods
Loki is fighting against the Norse gods
His army grim and ravenous
The undead soldiers are deadly and starving for blood
Lusting for their blood
The undead army desires the blood of the Norse gods
Nowhere is longer safe
The world is in chaos and no place is safe
The earth moves under our feet
The world is shaking with the intensity of the battle
The great world tree Yggorasil
The tree that connects the nine worlds of Norse mythology
Trembles to its roots
The battle is so intense that it shakes the tree, affecting all the worlds
Sons of muspel gird the field
The fire giants are here, ready to join the battle
Behind them Midgaard burns
The world of Midgard, home to the humans, is being destroyed by the giants
Hrym's horde march from Nifelheim
The army of Hrym, the giant from Nifelheim, is approaching the battlefield
And the Fenris wolf returns
The monstrous wolf who was chained by the gods has now been released
Heimdal grips the Giallarhorn
Heimdall, the watchman of the gods, sounds the Giallarhorn
He sounds that dreaded note
The horn signals the start of the battle
Oden rides to quest the Norns
Odin goes to the Norns, who spin the threads of fate, to change the course of the battle
But their web is torn
The fate of the battle cannot be altered
The Aesir rides out to war
The gods go to battle to defend their realm
With armor shining bright
The gods are decked out in shining armor
Followed by the Einherjer
The dead warriors who fought bravely in battle have been called to fight once again
See valkyries ride
The valkyries, the female warriors who choose who will fight in battles, ride into battle
Chorus
Repeats the main theme of the song
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: TED OSCAR LUNDSTROEM, OLAVI MIKKONEN, JOHAN SOEDERBERG, FREDRIK ANDERSSON, JOHAN HEGG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind