The Avenger is
Amon Amarth's second album for Metal Blade, and it features new guitarist Johan Söderberg in place of the departed
Anders Hansson. It's not dissimilar to
Once Sent from the Golden Hall -- basic Scandinavian death/black metal, somewhere in between the predominant flavors of the Norwegian and Swedish scenes, mixing lightning-quick rhythms and noisy guitar textures with deep, growling grooves. [A remastered edition features a bonus track, "Thor Arise," as well as a bonus disc of live material recorded in 2008 at Zeche Bochum, Germany.] ~ Steve Huey