With Oden on Our Side

Untitled

With Oden on Our Side is the sixth full-length studio album by the Swedish death metal band Amon Amarth, and their first album to enter the Billboard charts, the Top Heatseekers and the Independent Albums chart, peaking at number 15 and number 26 respectively.

It was recorded in May and June 2006 and was released in Europe on 22 September 2006 by Metal Blade Records. A limited edition digipak was also released with a second disc that includes live songs, demos, and unreleased recordings. With Oden on Our Side was also released on a limited red LP. The songs "Runes to My Memory" and "Cry of the Black Birds" were both made into music videos.

Style

With Oden on Our Side takes on a heavier approach compared to their previous album Fate of Norns; according to vocalist Johan Hegg, in an interview with Dutch metal magazine Aardschok, the album would go back to their roots such as their debut, Once Sent from the Golden Hall. When asked about the meaning of the album's title, Hegg remarked:

Well, it kind of has several meanings to it. Oden is of course the highest god in Scandinavian mythology, and he's the god of warfare, wisdom, poetry and artistry. The reason we chose the title is that it suited the lyrical concepts of the album and signified the feeling we had during the writing and recording of the album. We literally felt as if we had the Gods on our side.

— PyroMusic interview with Johan Hegg

The inspiration for the album art is of a depiction of Odin on the Tjängvide image stone.

Cover art

The album cover art features the Norse God Odin riding on his fabled octopedal horse Sleipnir in a depiction borrowed from the Tjängvide image stone. The background depicts the Valknut, a symbol whose meaning is uncertain, though archeological evidence clearly shows it to be associated with Odin. Letters of the Runic alphabet can be seen on the edges of the triangles forming the Valknut. The Runes on top spell out "With Oden on our Side", whereas the bottom right runes spell "Amon Amarth" using characters from the Elder Futhark.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Blabbermouth.net	8/10

Public reception

With Oden on Our Side was well received by the public. On Rate Your Music the album has an average rating of 3.69 of 5, based on more than 2,300 ratings, and on Sputnikmusic the album has an "excellent" average rating of 4.0 of 5, based on more than 1,250 ratings.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Amon Amarth

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Valhall Awaits Me"	4:44
2.	"Runes to My Memory"	4:33
3.	"Asator"	3:04
4.	"Hermod's Ride to Hel - Loke's Treachery Part 1"	4:41
5.	"Gods of War Arise"	6:03
6.	"With Oden on Our Side"	4:35
7.	"Cry of the Black Birds"	3:50
8.	"Under the Northern Star"	4:17
9.	"Prediction of Warfare"	6:37
Total length:		42:17

Limited digipack edition bonus disc

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Where Silent Gods Stand Guard" (live at Wacken 2004)	6:11
2.	"Death in Fire" (live at Wacken 2004)	4:55
3.	"With Oden on Our Side" (2006 demo)	4:32
4.	"Hermod's Ride to Hel: Loke's Treachery Part I" (2006 demo)	4:49
5.	"Once Sent from the Golden Hall" (1997 demo)	4:03
6.	"Return of the Gods" (1997 demo)	3:34

Credits

Personnel

Amon Amarth

• Johan Hegg − vocals
• Olavi Mikkonen − guitar
• Johan Söderberg − guitar
• Ted Lundström − bass
• Fredrik Andersson − drums

Production

• Jens Bogren – production, engineering, mixing
• Anders "Shadow" Ström – additional recording
• Thomas Eberger – mastering

Studios

• Fascination Street studios, Örebro, Sweden
• Cutting Room, Stockholm – mastering
• Amon Amarth's rehearsal studio – recording (2006 demos)
• Sunlight Studio – recording (1997 demos)

Charts

Chart	Peak position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)	27
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)	21
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)	21

External links

• With Oden on Our Side at AllMusic
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