Review Summary: The vibes are immaculate.
Over the course of Blut Aus Nord's 30 year career, they have cemented themselves as one of the premier black metal with their subversive, avant-garde approach, and their constant shapeshifting and evolving of their sound. Over their career they have delved into different ideas, often for multiple albums, before then progressing and moving on to the next idea. Whether it was their Memoria Vetusta trilogy which combined more traditional black metal with environmental and nature imagery, their highly experimental 777 trilogy, or their seminal The Work Which Transforms God, which was a cold, industrial feeling album, no one could ever accuse them of ever coasting.
The roots of this new album can be traced back to 2019’s Hallucinogen, which is maybe the most psychedelic black metal album I can recall. I’ve described this album as being like a bad acid trip in the past, with its trippy but nightmarish theme. This then lead into the band’s last 2 albums, the 2 Disharmonium albums, which took that sound and expanded it into full Lovecraftian terror. Ethereal Horizons is the natural evolution in this current thread from Blut Aus Nord. We have consumed the mushroom spores, the codyceps have taken over our brains, we’ve seen the visions of the Great Old Ones, and now we are transcending to a higher plane and seeing God.
And that word
transcending, or
transcedent, really is the main descriptor of this album. I love when album arts really capture the vibe of the album, and looking at the gorgeous artwork for this, it immediately gives you an idea of the motif of the album. The majority of this album consists of very strong melodic, mid-tempo riffs, ghostly, almost heavenly sounding synths that drench everything, and a mix of standard black metal monster growls along with some light clean singing and chanting which sort of sit in the background lower in the mix. The result is an album that sounds excellent, like the production is top shelf and the guitar tones rule, and conjures a fantastic, hypnotic atmosphere. I would say this is actually fairly accessible, as far as black metal albums go, its not that heavy or extreme, relatively speaking, and much more melodic and vibe focused than most of the bands previous output.
Just the as the album art implies, the atmosphere and sound is both gorgeous but still has that sinister, Lovecraftian tone under the surface, like you’re coming face to face with Chutulu himself. In some ways the synths may be the star of the show, creating a sense of cosmic horror that is haunting and unsettling.
The opener,
'Shadows Breathe First', really does a good job of introducing the vibe, with huge synths, switches between the harsh and clean vocals, and it’s also one of high tempo tracks on the album. I really dug the way the really clean sounding guitars wash over the blastbeasts and more complex drumming in the second half.
'The Ordeal' was the other single for this and is still massive sounding. A truly hypnotic track that conjures up more images of giant figures arising from their slumber and the awe that would come with that. The riffs absolutely kick ass, it’s a shame BAN are a strictly studio project because this is the kind of track that begs to be played live.
'The Fall Opens The Sky' has an OK first half, but then breaks in the second half into this awesome mesmerizing clean guitar section that feels absolutely transcendent. This is music to ascend to a higher plane to.
'What Burns Now Listens' has maybe the most horror vibes, with the cult-like chanting, and lead guitars that cut through the atmosphere, almost like they are searing or burning through the noise. The closer,
'The End Becomes Grace', is very similar in structure to
'The Fall Opens The Sky', maybe too similar, as it also has a bit of a mid first leg before building to a big crescendo with the wailing guitars and chanting vocals. It does have some nice effects with the sound of water and some weird monster noises that again evokes that image of ancient alien gods rising out of the oceans to mind-flay us all.
My only points of critique here would be that it is quite repetitive, but that’s clearly be design to add to the hypnotic feel of the album, but that combined with the mid-tempo nature of most of it makes me feel it has less staying power and the weaker tracks don’t have much of a punch. For example, the closer feels very similar to
'The Fall Opens The Sky', and that track gives us a more exciting climax that comes half way through the album. This is an album that is first and foremost about the atmosphere and the vibes, and those vibes are immaculate and the atmosphere it creates really is awesome.
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I really enjoyed some of the key tracks, and the whole feel and sound of the album, though some of the other tracks are less memorable. This is another strong album by Blut Aus Nord that continues to push their sound forward and expand on their recent works in the world of cosmic horror black metal.
