Unleashed – Odalheim (2012)

Continuing on the concept brought forth on “As Yggdrasil Trembles”, Unleashed delivers their every two years release with “Odalheim”. As one of the forefathers of Viking Metal, Unleashed keeps bringing it every time they release an album and with the high-intensity of “Odalheim” they keep maintaining their aggressive-yet-melodic brand of DM that many bands wish they could play.

Blasting through their opener “Fimbulwinter”, this release is off to a great start with fast riffing, blistering drumming and the always effective vocals of Hedlund. The riffing courtesy of the band’s longstanding guitarists Anders Schultz and Tomas Olsson nicely switches band from high-powered Viking Metal sections and some barebones DM chugs. It is very surprising to see that the band has not had any line-up changes in years and it shows in the overall quality and tightness of their music.

One of our favorite tracks of this release is the very interestingly named “White Christ”, a track that has a nice transition between different riffing styles and catchy solos. Also, the intensity of “By Celtic and British Shores” makes this song another great track for headbanging. Picking clear favorites from the rest is hard since all the remaining tracks are top-notch and very diverse. One thing for sure is that the band has been refining their songwriting skills over the years and it is very evident with “Odalheim”.

Whether you have liked Unleashed since the beginning and followed their musical progression since the beginning or you just started listening to them recently, it is evident that the band is at their pinnacle of their career and they keep releasing one excellent album after the other. If you are wondering where bands like Amon Amorth, Tyr, etc. came from, take a look in the Unleashed’s older catalog all the way through “Odalheim”, you will not be disappointed.

Release: April 20th, 2012

Country: Sweden