Thyrfing is a viking metal band from Sweden. The band is named after the royal sword Tyrfing from

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...

History

Thyrfing was formed in 1995 by Patrik Lindgren (guitar), Jocke Kristensson (drums), Peter Löf (keyboard) and Kimmy Sjölund (bass guitar). Northern mythology and the Viking age was an interest of all the members. After two

demo tape A demo (shortened from "demonstration") is a song or group of songs typically recorded for limited circulation or for reference use, rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed for ...

s that gained a lot of positive response in the underground scene, Thyrfing signed to the Dutch record label Hammerheart Records in 1997. In Stockholm's Sunlight Studio in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, their debut album was recorded, showing a much more varied songwriting. The album was then released in March 1998. For their second album, this time recorded in the Abyss Studios, their music took on a more symphonic approach. For future live performances, Henke Svegsjö from Winds was recruited on guitar. Once again with Tommy Tägtgren, ''Urkraft'' was recorded and released in August 2000. During that same year, the band also held two mini-tours with Primordial and Shadowbreed throughout The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. In the autumn of 2001, the band entered Dug-Out Studio with producer Daniel Bergstrand to record ''Vansinnesvisor'' ( en, Songs of Madness). The album was released in July the following year To support the album, Thyrfing played two gigs during the winter (for Freedom Call and Dismember) in Stockholm, and did a small headliner tour in Benelux with Cruachan and Shadowbreed. 2003 followed with further live-promotion, such as the Generation Armageddon Festivals (including Ancient Rites, Septic Flesh,

Primordial Primordial may refer to: * Primordial era, an era after the Big Bang. See Chronology of the universe * Primordial sea (a.k.a. primordial ocean, ooze or soup). See Abiogenesis * Primordial nuclide, nuclides, a few radioactive, that formed before ...

, Blood Red Throne and Skyfire), a 12-day European tour throughout Europe, and performances on the main festival stages of 2000 Decibel in Sweden and Wacken Open Air in Germany. Thyrfing entered EMI studios on 18 April 2005 to record their new album, ''Farsotstider'' ("Times of Plague"), which was released on 21 November 2005. The band played their first US show in January 2006 alongside Moonsorrow and

at the Heathen Crusade metalfest in Columbia Heights, Minnesota. On 13 March 2007, the band posted a message on the official Thyrfing site declaring that Thomas Väänänen (vocals) and Henrik Svegsjö (guitars) had decided to leave the band due to lack of motivation. Instead of Thomas, founder and ex-vocalist of

Naglfar In Norse mythology, ''Naglfar'' or ''Naglfari'' (Old Norse "nail farer") is a boat made entirely from the fingernails and toenails of the dead. During the events of Ragnarök, ''Naglfar'' is foretold to sail to Vígríðr, ferrying hordes of ...

, Jens Rydén, is currently handling the vocals. The band also decided to continue with one guitarist. In October 2008, Thyrfing released their album '' Hels vite''. Their latest album, ''Vanagandr'' was released 27 August, 2021.

Members

Current members

* Jens Rydén – vocals (2007–present) * Patrik Lindgren – guitars (1995–present) * Fredrik Hernborg – guitars (2008–present) * Joakim Kristensson – bass (2012–present), keyboards (2014-present), drums (1995–2012), vocals (1995–1996) * Dennis Ekdahl – drums (2012–present)

Former band members

* Peter Löf – keyboards (1995–2014) * Kimmy Sjölund – bass (1995–2012) * Thomas Väänänen – vocals (1996–2006) * Vintras – guitars (1998) * Henrik Svegsjö – guitars (1998–2007)

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Thyrfing'' (1998) * '' Valdr Galga'' (1999) * '' Urkraft'' (2000) * '' Vansinnesvisor'' (2002) * '' Farsotstider'' (2005) * '' Hels vite'' (2008) * '' De Ödeslösa'' (2013) * ''Vanagandr'' (2021)

Compilation albums

* ''Hednaland'' (CD) (1999)

Demos

* ''Solen svartnar'' (Demo) (1995) * ''Hednaland'' (Demo) (1996)

External links

Official website

Encyclopedia Metallum page
{{Authority control Swedish heavy metal musical groups Swedish viking metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1995