Týr

Born in the late 1990s around Faroese musicians, Týr took shape in 1998 in Copenhagen, with strong roots in Tórshavn and the Faroe Islands. The band, now organised as a quartet around Heri Joensen, Gunnar H. Thomsen, Tadeusz Rieckmann and Hans Hammer, plays a form of metal that mixes folk metal, viking metal, power metal and progressive elements, drawing on the melodies of the Faroese kvæði, Norse narratives and songwriting often driven by carefully worked harmonies. After a demo in 2000 and the single Ólavur Riddararós in 2002, Týr released How Far to Asgaard (2002) and then Eric the Red (2003), the album that established Heri Joensen as lead vocalist. The discography was later expanded with Ragnarok (2006), Land (2008), By the Light of the Northern Star (2009), The Lay of Thrym (2011), Valkyrja (2013), Hel (2019) and Battle Ballads (2024). Over the years Týr has circulated across the European and North American metal scenes—via Paganfest, Ragnarök Festival and 70000 Tons of Metal—and on tours with Ensiferum, Korpiklaani, Finntroll and Amon Amarth. Despite several lineup changes, Týr retains an identity centred on the intersection of Faroese tradition and melodic metal.