Týr - The Lay of Thrym (2011)

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The Progressive Viking Metal kings mark their return with “The Lay of Thrym”, and as we can hear it is a pretty convincing one indeed. Two years have passed since “By the Light of the Northern Star”, and with this new album the band picks-up exactly where they left of and continue their onslaught with very well crafted Viking epics.

If you are not a stranger to Týr’s older works, you will definitely love “The Lay of Thrym”, however, if you are new to the band, this will be a very good introduction into the magical sound behind this very talented band. In the 10 tracks presented in this release, we are treated to very intricate guitar work, catchy clean vocals, and full songs that grab your attention and keep it for the duration of the release.

“Flames of the Free” opens the album with the typical guitar riffing from the band and a very catchy vocal section that immediately catches your attention. Heri’s voice is very easy to identify and digest for over 40 minutes and never get tired of it. The guitar work is outstanding (as in the band’s older releases) and creates the Viking atmosphere without the need of any keyboards or anything fancy.

In the second song “Shadow of the Swastika”, the band creates a very catchy chorus section that makes this song very appealing. “Take your Tyrant” is probably the first song of this album that will have fans of the band raising their fists up in the air and chanting “Take your Tyrant” non-stop. Bringing things down a notch, we have “Evening Star”, a very powerful vocal-driven song that mellows out the mood for a few minutes.

In the remaining songs, we have very memorable tracks with “Hall of Freedom”, “Ellindur Bondi a Jadri” and “Nine Worlkds of Lore” due to their catchiness and the effective band-choir sections in each of them, giving them that epic feeling. “Konning Hans” on the other hand has a very melodic nature and is considerably less ‘epic’ than the other songs making it our favorite song because it’s a bit different than the rest.

As you have expected, “The Lay of Thrym” is a very engaging and entertaining release, the band is just doing what they do best and refining some details here and there. The only semi-problem we have is that the album feels a bit formulaic in the sense that they follow the same Týr approach to their most popular songs. While the songs are considerably different from each other, you always have the déjà vu feeling to them since they remind you of an older song, or just another song in the album.

In general, Týr is one of the best bands in the genre and there is no arguing with that. With “The Lay of Thyrm” they have crafted an overall more epic, craftier, and more effective release. If you like your Viking Metal to be straightforward with brilliant guitar work and effective song structures, you should not miss this great release.

Band: Týr Album: The Lay of Thrym
Label: Napalm Records

Release: June 7th, 2011

Official Site myspace
Genre: Progressive Viking/Folk Metal

Country: Faroe Islands

Rating: 90/100
Year: 

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