CD Odyssey Disc 1570: Tyr

For the second time in three albums I was treated to some Viking metal. I guess if you buy a lot of one kind of music in a short span of time, it is likely to show up on your playlist a fair bit.

Disc 1570 is…. The Lay of Thrym

Artist: Tyr

Year of Release: 2011

What’s up with the Cover? I believe this is a depiction of the end of the titular lay of Thrym. Thrym as a giant who stole Thor’s hammer and planned to ransom it back in return for Freya’s hand in marriage. Thor went and, after asking Thyrm politely, got the hammer back.

Just kidding, Thor dressed up as Freya to get into the wedding and then straight up murdered not only Thrym (lying dead in the foreground here), but also his older sister and all his kin (not pictured). The moral of this myth is self-evident: don’t steal another man’s hammer.

The two goats in the foreground also belong to Thor – they are called Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr and in Norse myth they pull Thor’s chariot. It looks like Thor's post-murderous exultation has them wanting to bolt, but if you happen to find them later, return them immediately. Thor is fucking serious about defending his personal property. Not the guy you want to borrow a lawn mower (or goat) from, and not return it on time. 

How I Came To Know It: Originally by way of my buddy Nick, but in the case of this record it was me digging through the band’s catalogue.

How It Stacks Up: I have three Tyr albums so far. I’m on the lookout for a fourth (2013’s Valkyrja). Of the three I have, I rank “The Lay of Thrym” at #3. Sorry, Thrym: someone has to be last.

Ratings: 3 stars

For those who don’t know them, Tyr is a metal band from the Faroe Islands that mix heavy metal with flavours of Norse mythology with traditional Viking chants that have been metalized. So a little of Column A, and a little of Column B, where A and B tend to..er…intermingle.

“The Lay of Thrym” has the same qualities that made me enjoy previous albums “Ragnarok” (2006) and “Land” (2008). The heavy thump of Kari Streymoy’s drum remains the best part of the band, as he thuds his way through each tune with a deliberate power that evokes memories of Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward. Streymoy shines brightest on “Evening Star”, the album’s ballad, or what passes for a ballad on a modern metal album like this. He gets to show off both a slow thud and a ferocious speed in the same tune, giving the song the solemn gravity of a funeral march and the rousing anthem of a war march all in a single tune. Streymoy is the jarl of this band, and the others are all rowing to his beat.

Singer Heri Joensen has a big traditional metal vocal that soars and delivers the lyrics with conviction. This isn’t easy, as some of the lines on these songs are awkward or create cramped phrasing as they try to fit too many syllables into each bar. Sometimes it works, as in the breakneck “Hall of Freedom” whereas other times it feels awkward, as what makes Streymoy’s drumming so interesting can make the lyrics feel like square pegs being pushed into round holes. Also lines like “Nine worlds of lore/This is the place we keep the weapon’s of war” don’t sound less hokey despite Joensen’s heartfelt efforts to make them cool.

The guitar work on the record is solid, although the solos let me down in places, resorting to a “look how fast I can play” noodle fest. I believe great guitar solos are forged from an alternate exploration of the melody, both a part of and separate from the song at the same time. Hoping a whole lot of notes and technical precision can replace this artistry rarely succeeds.  

This being Tyr, they work in a solid bit of traditional Scandinavian chants with both “Konning Hans” (Danish) and “Ellindur Bondi A Jadri” (Faroese). I liked similar songs on earlier records slightly more, but both of these are good. As ever they ‘metalize’ the songs in a delightful way that lends itself equally to pulling on the oar of a Viking longship and throwing your hair around in a mosh pit. I wonder if Vikings back in the day moshed when these songs got busted out in the longhouse? I like to think they did.

Viking metal bands tend to have a reputation for singing about Viking history and mythology to the exclusion of pretty much everything else. You’d expect a record called “The Lay of Thrym” to do just this, but I was surprised to see Tyr mixing mythology with modern social commentary. The title track seems to explore the concept of corrupt governance where I admit I was hoping for a lot more descriptors of Thor wreaking havoc at Thrym’s wedding feast. That said, all was forgiven when I heard the over-the-top line, “Hammer home to any despot’s dome.” Hammer to the dome, yo!

This record isn’t Tyr’s best, but if you already have “Land” and “Ragnarok” and want to branch out a bit farther, it is a solid entry in their catalogue and worth exploring.

Best tracks: Flame of the Free, Hall of Freedom, Evening Star, The Lay of Thrym

CD Odyssey Disc 1541: Tyr

If you count Saxon, three out of my last four reviews were metal albums obsessed with Vikings. Saxon had the one song anyway, and Amon Amarth and these next guys are all-in. I can assure you (and the full gamut of reviews on this blog will confirm) that this is a statistical anomaly, and I am obsessed with neither metal nor Vikings.

Is this a bad time to note that I also love the TV series, “Vikings”?

Disc 1541 is…. Land

Artist: Tyr

Year of Release: 2008

What’s up with the Cover? A man stands, arms akimbo, aboard a Viking longship. As the title of the record is Land, I’ll assume they’ve recently discovered the land behind him. That land has a whole series of tall torch beacons burning up both hillsides, which are probably local inhabitants letting everyone know, “holy shit, Vikings have landed. Look your doors and arm yourselves!”

How I Came To Know It: I knew about Tyr off and on over the years, but didn’t decide to check them out until my friend Nick went to the Faroe Islands. Nick was looking for some local music while there, and “landed” upon Tyr, which is one of the Faroe Islands most famous bands. I decided to give them a try based on his recommendation and liked what I heard.

How It Stacks Up: I have two Tyr albums, this one and 2006’s “Ragnarok”. Of the two “Land” is the better record and so, following the inherent logic of numbers, I rank it #1.

Ratings: 4 stars

Due to a hectic life and limited downtime, I have listened to Tyr’s “Land” a lot this week. At first blush I liked it, and on repeat listens I have come to love it. Some might consider this “Torshavn Syndrome” (like Helsinki Syndrome, except for the Faroe Islands) but I ascribe it to something a bit more direct. Tyr kicks ass.

If you don’t know Tyr, they blend traditional Faroese folk music with heavy metal. Viking chants, which are already filled with bombast and dread, are beautifully suited to “metallification” and few do it better than Tyr. These songs thud and pound like the sea carving a fjord out of stone; powerful and inexorable.

They are so much fun that I wanted to sing along, but unfortunately many of the songs are in Faroese or another Nordic language and I can’t understand what they’re saying. Fortunately, the topics are limited, as Tyr love their Norse mythology. You’ll get songs about Loki, the Valkyries, and every Vikings favourite, Thor. This latter song – “Hail to the Hammer” – is both glorious and in English. It opens like some kind of church organ at a hockey game, before descending into the true crunch that is the essence of what makes Tyr so brilliant. These guys dig down so deep, you imagine their guitars are scraping the studio floor as they play.

And as brilliant as that guitar work is, the star of this band is drummer Kári Streymoy. Streymoy is the fuel that ignites the band, with a thump so big and purposeful you’ll look behind you to see if some frost giant is crashing through the trees toward you. And he doesn’t just hit hard. His ability to hold the beat (but never lose it) gives a lot of these songs their anticipatory dread.

The songs don’t have to be in English to be enjoyable, though. Three of my favourites (“Sinklars Visa”, “Gatu Rima” and Lokka Tattur”) are all in various Nordic languages. I’d assume Faoese, but apparently the record also features Norwegian and Danish, and I am too ill-informed to tell them apart. Apologies to Scandinavian readers for my ignorance.

“Lokka Tattur” or “the Ballad of Loki” is the best of the bunch. Once again pushed along by the deliberate onslaught of Streymoy’s drums, this song assaults your ears like a Viking shield wall, only to slide back into an almost proggy laid back verse that would make Opeth proud. Then once, you are swaying slowly to that, the band throws in a bit of tempo and guitar to stir the blood. It is a journey of awesome.

This record also takes its time, clocking in at a languorous 68 minutes despite featuring only ten tracks. Epics abound, often taking you on a brilliant journey. This is the case with “Ocean” a ten-minute tale which feels part Viking saga of seafaring, and part existential crisis. When singer Heri Joensen sings “Days have gone down in the west” I even had chills of Tolkien’s Middle Earth, but that could be just me.

The title track is equally epic, but I enjoyed it less. It is another “sail across the sea” epic and is awesome in many places, but at over sixteen minutes it took just a little too long to…land. I don’t mind a long song about ocean travel either – Iron Maiden’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is as good as metal gets – but the song “Land” didn’t hold my attention the same way.

Not so, “Land” the album, which kept me thoroughly entertained for over a week and multiple listens. Tyr may hail from the very tiny Faroe Islands, but their talent is mighty and massive indeed.

Best tracks: Sinklars Visa, Ocean, Gatu Rima, Lokka Tattur, Hail to the Hammer

CD Odyssey Disc 1299: Tyr

Given my busy job and other commitments I am often asked where I find the time to write all these reviews. On busy weekends like this one, where I’m juggling multiple deadlines and activities, I’m tempted to ask myself the same thing.

Motivationally it helps that the CD Odyssey also serves as the pilot light for my creative writing when I don’t have time for a longer writing session. But the truth is, I love music and writing about it only deepens my appreciation for each record in my collection. If something is important to you, you make the time.

Disc 1299 is… Ragnarok

Artist: Tyr

Year of Release: 2006

What’s up with the Cover? Will you look at this place? Just look at the blood you've left on your sword and helmet! If this battlefield isn’t tidied up by the time I get back then Ragnarok is cancelled!

What's that? This is after Ragnarok? Well, you still better clean it up before the All-Father gets home!

How I Came to Know It: I had heard about Tyr in passing over the years but never had taken the time to check them out. Then my friend Nick went to the Faroe Islands and came back talking about Tyr, which is that country’s most famous metal band. He played a few tracks for me and I liked what I heard. I dug through their discography, and while not everything made the grade, a couple of albums appealed to me, including “Ragnarok.”

How It Stacks Up:  Tyr has eight studio albums, but I only have two. Of the two, “Ragnarok” comes in at #2.

Ratings: 3 stars

With an album titled “Ragnarok” it should come as no surprise that Tyr loves Norse (Scandinavian) mythology. Fortunately, I’m also a huge fan of Norse mythology, which was likely one of the deciding factors in my purchasing this album.

It also helped that Tyr plays a sub-genre of metal– folk metal – that I’ve only recently discovered, and there is no fervor like the fervor of the recently converted. As the name suggests, this genre combines folk and metal. It has the power chords and soaring melodies first popularized by Iron Maiden, matched with the melodic structures of local folk music. Sometimes bands incorporate traditional folk instruments as well.

Tyr aren’t big on the original instruments side of the equation, but they definitely borrow from old Viking song structures. Half the songs on “Ragnarok” either being traditional songs or containing lyrics or melodies from them. The first music I explored when I began looking outside of metal and hard rock was traditional folk music, so hearing these structures in a metal song is like introducing my two oldest friends to each other and finding out they get along great.

On “Ragnarok” Tyr also throw in some progressive elements, with changes in tempo and some mysterious atmospheric guitar work. There’s also a bit of the double-bass drum which is commonplace to most metal music from the mid-oughts on. I don’t think the progressive flourishes add a lot to the songs, but they aren’t offensive either. As for the double-bass all I ask is that bands not overuse it, and Tyr is appropriately restrained.

A great example of this is “Torsteins Kvaedi” a traditional Faroese song with a rhythmic unison singing. It sounds like something Viking raiders would chant while pulling at the oars of their longships a thousand years ago. Tyr then adds the wail of electric guitar and modern production. I’m not saying this makes it more heroic, but it sure doesn’t hurt.

The songs on the record are principally about ancient myth. Ragnarok is the ancient final battle of the gods in Norse mythology, and features prominently in the lyrics. Other songs cover famous legends such as the forging of Thor’s hammer Mjolnir, and other fun-filled (and sometimes tragic) tales of adventure.

At its best, “Ragnarok” delivers some serious fist-pumping, hair-swinging crunch, such as on “The Hunt” which drops into an early groove and then climbs out one thump at a time, helped along the way by a pretty sweet guitar solo shared between Heri Joensen and Terji Skibenaes.

At its worst, songs like “Lord of Lies” plod a bit, particularly where the folk lyric structures fail to find a good fit with the modern elements. There are also guitar solos that make a common mistake in metal music, which is to focus on being fast over being interesting.

The album also has a host of little instrumentals strewn throughout. There are six of these tracks, ranging in length from 27 seconds to just under two minutes. The intent of these seems to be to glue the record into a cohesive whole, but they didn’t add a lot to my listening experience. Also, they collectively push the album to 16 tracks and 60 minutes long. Not uncommon for a modern metal record, but that extra content has to be uncuttable, and that wasn’t always the case here.

Overall, “Ragnarok” is a mixed bag and on my first couple of listens I was inclined to part company with it. However, it grew on me as I developed a better feel for what the band was trying to accomplish. Also, there are songs on here (“Torsteins Kvaedi” and “The Hunt” in particular) which are just too damned good not to grace my CD collection.

Best tracks: Hammer of Thor, Torsteins Kvaedi, Grimur A Midalnesi, Wings of Time, The Hunt