How a 1970 voyage to Iceland inspired a Led Zeppelin classic: “We weren’t being pompous”
The ultimate clincher for young rock fans dipping their feet into the murky world of Led Zeppelin, ‘Immigrant Song’ still sounds like nothing else.
Featured on the British rock group’s third studio album, the track is a tempestuous blend of chugging distorted guitar, primordial rhythms and soaring falsetto vocals. Few songs in the rock canon boast such a powerful unity between music, lyric and theme, the momentum generated by Robert Plant, John Bonham, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones evoking images of wave-ravaged ships sailing across a stormy sea.
Written during the band’s tour of Iceland, Bath and Germany in the summer of 1970, ‘Immigrant Song’ sees Led Zeppelin at their most dynamic. The outing took them to the Icelandic capital of Reykjavík, where, centuries ago, Viking raiders had launched ships in search of plunder. In crossing the north sea from Britain, Led Zeppelin were undertaking that same voyage in reverse.
The Iceland stop proved especially significant, offering the band more than just another date on the tour schedule. Surrounded by stark landscapes and steeped in Viking history, the environment fed directly into the song’s identity, giving it a sense of place that elevated it beyond a typical hard rock track.
That atmosphere seeped into every aspect of the composition. Rather than simply writing another high-energy number, Led Zeppelin channelled the imagery and mythology of the region into something far more cinematic, transforming their live experience into a piece of music that felt both ancient and immediate.
Robert Plant, a lifelong fan of JRR Tolkien, whose The Lord of the Rings trilogy draws heavily from the Norse myths, was subsequently inspired to write lyrics framing Led Zeppelin as Nordic invaders crossing the North Sea to bring their music to these new lands. “On we sweep with threshing oar,” Plant sings, “Our only goal will be the western shore.”
Explaining the meaning behind the song’s opening line in Led Zeppelin: The Stories Behind Every Led Zeppelin Song, Robert Plant said, “We weren’t being pompous. We did come from ‘the land of the ice and snow.’ We were guests of the Icelandic Government on a cultural mission.”
It’s a wonderful image, the long-haired band hurtling across the seas to Iceland. “We were invited to play a concert in Reykjavik, and the day before we arrived, all the civil servants went on strike, and the gig was going to be cancelled. The university prepared a concert hall for us, and it was phenomenal. The response from the kids was remarkable, and we had a great time. ‘Immigrant Song’ was about that trip, and it was the opening track on the album that was intended to be incredibly different.”
The band also incorporated various elements of Nordic myth into the lyrics. Plant sings of “Valhalla”, the great hall of Asgard, where the spirits of fallen Viking warriors were said to be taken by winged Valkyries. Then there’s the “hammer of the Gods”, which is probably a reference to Thor’s hammer – though Plant’s phrasing also brings to mind the Malleus Maleficarum, or Hammer of The Witches, a treatise on witchcraft written by medieval German clergyman Heinrich Kramer.
You can even read ‘Immigrant Song’ as a sort of rock and roll manifesto. “We are your overlords,” Plant sings, outlining the band’s quest for world domination. “So now you’d better stop and rebuild all your ruins / For peace and trust can win the day despite of all your losing.” Pretty macho stuff, right? You can learn more about how Led Zeppelin crafted ‘Immigrant Song’ here.
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