Blut Aus Nord – Ethereal Horizons

Metalcatto

Not many bands can embody the meaning of the term eras like Blut Aus Nord. We have the Vetusta saga, the 777 saga, Disharmonium. A band that basically invented a niche with The Work Which Transforms God (a 5/5 in my list). I’m a huge fan if you haven’t noticed. So comparing Ethereal Horizons with the rest of the band’s work was way more challenging than I expected. All of its albums are different, and yet they share the same identity. So, where to put this one? Let’s see!

It was freaking hard! But I’d risk putting Horizons as the missing link between a Vetusta album and Hallucinogen. It’s harsh, mysterious, but it also has that psychedelic edge. The songs are elaborate journeys through some kind of outer-body experience or something close to that. You never know with Blut Aus Nord because mystery is one of its strongest suits, and Horizons continues this tradition of hypnotic, captivating, and uncertain Black Metal. It’s not as Avant-Garde as a lot of the older work or even as dissonant. If anything, it’s a return to the more cosmic and grand side of the band.

You have eternal riffs that mutate into each other seamlessly. Horizons’ tracks are long—maybe too long at times. Thankfully, the vocals and the drums are there to throw us a curveball here and there. It’s an album where consistency reigns supreme, and that’s always a plus when it comes to work as idiosyncratic as this. If anything, I’d dare to say Horizons is an excellent intro to Blut Aus Nord for those of you who somehow are too distracted or too young to have tried the band yet. If you dread the experimental parts or the dissonant assaults, then this is what you need to get comfortable.

Now, I’m back to the two main points that keep me from losing my mind about this album. The tracks are indeed rather long—as in, maybe a few fewer rounds would’ve helped, especially in the final track. Second, I think for once Blut Aus Nord is playing it safe. That “safe” is still better than 95% of bands out there, but I can’t avoid comparing this work with the legendary catalogue the band already has. But honestly, this is all nitpicking. This album is a solid display of restraint and mastery by a band that has nothing left to prove.

So, if you’re a noob that wants to try Black Metal that bends what the term even means—but you fear the absolute noise-walls that bands like Imperial Triumphant or Deathspell Omega can be—then Horizons is the way to go. An album that will keep you guessing as much as it’ll stick to the friendly side of the hostile lane. Notice how “friendly” means it won’t totally chop your head off, but if you put it on in the middle of the night, you might pee yourself a little bit. But then again, that’s nothing new for you.

Label: Debemur Morti Productions

Release date: November 28, 2025

Website: https://blutausnord.bandcamp.com/album/ethereal-horizons

Country: France

Score: 4.0/5.0