If you throw a stone in Jamaica, there’s a good chance it’ll hit a reggae singer in the head. Similarly, if you toss a sword in a Nordic country, it’ll come down and split the skull of a Viking metal musician. The main difference between Amon Amarth and other Norse death-metal storytellers is this Swedish quintet is likely to be wearing battle helmets. For nearly two decades, the rampaging hoard has spit tales of Loki and the like, set to spine-shattering riffs and solos sent straight from Asgard. Amon Amarth’s latest, Surtur Rising, is another bloody chapter in its own Poetic Edda. Songs such as “War of the Gods,” “For Victory or Death,” and “Wrath of the Norsemen” are epic battle cries for pagan warriors and suburban-parking-lot heshers alike. The band’s concerts are intense, tribal affairs, too, filled with synchronized audience headbanging—but thankfully, no swords.

Amon Amarth performs at 8 p.m. at Jaxx Nightclub, 6355 Rolling Rd., Springfield. $23 in advance, $28 day of show.