Amon Amarth Conquers Edmonton on “Metal Crushes All Tour” [Photos]

Sailing into Edmonton to kick off the week with pure intensity, Sweden’s Amon Amarth brought their “Metal Crushes All Tour” to the Edmonton Convention Centre. Along for the ride were Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, and Frozen Soul.

Spring may be in the air locally, but it promptly took shelter as Frozen Soul took to the stage. The “cold school” death metallers from Texas started the night with as much crunch and grit as you may expect, with a short and sweet six-song set to get the audience circle-pitting and ready for more.

Next up, Florida’s Obituary dominated the stage with that familiar swagger they’re so well known for. Hitting Edmonton with that classic stand-out groove, the Florida quartet slammed into “Redneck Stomp” to start their set, which sent bodies and hair into a whirlwind in the pits below. Consisting of mostly new tunes, Obituary progressed through their short seven-song set, touching on “Slow Death,” a fan-favourite classic.

Moving on through the night, the death metal forefathers of grimness and gore took to the stage. Buffalo’s own Cannibal Corpse performed with their expected blistering brutality. They touched on songs spanning their whole catalogue, including classics like “I Cum Blood” and “Evisceration Plague.” These songs had the bodies and hair of their Edmonton fans roiling in the mosh. Closing with the classic “Hammer Smashed Face” encore, the band left the stage with hoots and hollers from their die-hard fans, begging for more.

As the lights dimmed, the expected intro music of “Run to the Hills” by Iron Maiden boomed through the monitors; shortly after, the curtains dropped, revealing massive stage banners and unveiling an enormous traditional-style Viking helmet with glowing eyes. Immediately booming into “Pursuit of Vikings,” Amon Amarth conquered the stage by kicking this gig off into ultra-high gear right from the get-go.

With each roar of the audience, frontman Johan Hegg’s warm grin grew larger and larger. This was, of course, reciprocated by everyone in the front row who wasn’t windmill headbanging in time with the Viking-inspired tales flowing through the monitors. With very little encouragement, the audience happily shouted the chorus to Amon Amarth’s kick-off opening track back to the band before booming into yet two additional classics, “Tattered Banners and Bloody Flags” and “Guardians of Asgaard.”

Moving on throughout the night, Amon Amarth absolutely crushed their hefty 15-song set. They gave it their all as they progressed through each track, earning admiration for the energy and undeniable crowd involvement that came along with their performance. Live-action actors replicating the likes of the god of mischief himself, Amon Amarth, invited Edmonton to stretch their voices in singing the melody to “Deceiver of the Gods.” Coming to a close, the band ended on a high note with their swan song, “Twilight of the Thunder God.” A giant, inflatable Jörmungandr could be seen taking shape at the back of the stage and was promptly ‘defeated’ by Hegg and his mighty Thor’s hammer.

As folks retired for the night, leaving the demolished Edmonton Convention Centre behind, it’s easy to say that Amon Amarth is a band that many in the crowd will always happily see every time they grace Alberta’s soil with their presence.

Amon Amarth (w/ Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Frozen Soul) @ Edmonton Convention Centre (Edmonton, AB) on April 29, 2024

23 photos