Amon Amarth - Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds

A vicious take on the "Gothenburg Sound", Amon Amarth come at you full force, ready to pummel your brain into mush. The store did compare them to In Flames, but if I had to draw a comparison, I would say they sound ten times more like Dark Tranquillity than In Flames... It's in the guitar work, which plays the melodic lines as 16th notes, instead of solo-esque melodies. This is just during the first three songs though, because it's on the last two tracks that Amon Amarth really come into their own as a band. The last track kicks serious ass. It's weird, the sound undergoes this immense transition (to my ears), but gradually, so that by the end, they sound almost like another band, but you've hardly noticed it. This is a really strong E.P. (about 20 minutes) which hopefully is a good precursor to their recently released Once Sent From the Golden Hall, available through Metal Blade Records. Kudos also to Metal Blade for picking this band up, hopefully with their new signings they can continue to stick around for another 15 years.