Ondt Blod – Bauta

When Ondt Blod started around 2012, they were probably among the world’s northernmost hardcore punk bands. Based in Kirkenes, in the far northeast corner of Norway, the band came from a place known to be part of Sápmi, the traditional homeland of the Indigenous Sámi people. From the beginning, this Indigenous tradition has influenced the band’s outlook, lyrics, and message, with singer Aslak Heika Hætta Bjørn relentlessly advocating for Sámi rights and social justice.

All this background made Ondt Blod a band worth following for me, and their career has also been pretty interesting. Their debut album, Finnmark, came out in 2016 and quickly pushed them toward bigger stages, including a nomination for the Norwegian equivalent of the Grammy awards and tours with names like Kvelertak. Their second album, Natur, followed in 2018 and was a masterpiece, featuring guest vocals from the excellent pop/folk singer Ella Marie Hætta Isaksen. I got Natur on vinyl more than five years after its release, when it was already hard to find, and I’ve been praising that record ever since.

We interviewed Ondt Blod for DIY Conspiracy in 2024, when they mentioned that a third album was in the works, but it ended up taking eight years after Natur to arrive. The delay makes sense when you consider that the members have been divided between Oslo and Kirkenes, almost 2,500 km apart despite being in the same country, alongside Aslak’s activism and involvement in local politics. So, after such a long wait, Bauta finally arrives as a record that feels both familiar and much more ambitious than anything they’ve done before.

Bauta starts with a half-minute intro before exploding into “AUX,” a fast, energetic, melodic hardcore track with massive choruses and a snarling hardcore drive that brings to mind Comeback Kid and other big names in the game. If you haven’t heard Ondt Blod before, you’ll probably be surprised by Aslak’s vocal performance. He sounds at his best on this record, way above your average hardcore singer, moving naturally between aggression, melody, and huge singalong hooks.

“Blodklubb” kicks in next with the same kind of speed, huge anthemic choruses, and tons of energy. It’s punchy, snarly, and super catchy, before “FinnmarKING” introduces the band’s weightier side. This is where you can hear some of that Every Time I Die metalcore influence, which was one of Ondt Blod’s primary musical references when they started the band. Halfway through the track, police sirens and a hip-hop part featuring the guest appearance of Klish, a well-known Norwegian rapper from Tromsø, are brought in. Across these first three proper tracks, Ondt Blod sound punchy, fast, and as catchy as they can, with relentless drumming and huge choruses all over the place.

Then comes “Mortal Enemy,” probably my favorite track on the record. It’s faster, more aggressive, and chock-full of thrashier metallic riffs, showing that Ondt Blod can hit even harder. “Joker Nord” closes the A-side with swift tempo changes, stepping away from the direct approach of the first four tracks and adding slower, off-beat moments before ending on some over-the-top eurodance electronic beat.

Side B starts with “Máddu,” and this is where things really move in a different direction. The song stretches into a 7-minute post-metal piece with a much darker, sludgier, and more foreboding feel. This is where the prog melodies from the earlier records shine the most, and there’s even a bit of Mogwai or Russian Circles in how the track builds and expands. “Savne Dæ” then shifts gears again into the band’s more upbeat, pop-oriented side, sounding almost like a late Blink-182 track, with the drummer coming across like the Norwegian reincarnation of Travis Barker.

“Flamma” follows with guest vocals from pop-rock singer Ida Maria, though it’s also my least favorite track on the record. It’s essentially a darker pop song, and while it has some interesting moments, it doesn’t really move the needle for me. The fade-out at the end also makes it feel a bit unfinished. The closing title track, “Bauta,” is another seven-minute piece, starting with heavy metallic chugs that build tension for the first three or four minutes before releasing it into a familiar pop/punk territory. The two seven-minute tracks stand apart from the shorter, punchier songs on Bauta, but they also give the record a much wider frame. I’m not really sure if I like everything here, and the album definitely has its ups and downs, but it’s without question one of the most ambitious hardcore punk records I’ve heard this year.

Bauta takes the foundation of both Finnmark and Natur and pushes it further in every direction at once. In terms of musicianship and Aslak’s vocals, it’s definitely Ondt Blod’s strongest recorded output to date. It also has a radio-friendly production on par with mainstream bands like Turnstile or Scowl, which is not exactly something we often write about or praise at DIY Conspiracy. I feel a bit weird writing about a record like this, since most our usual readers might not be into something as pop-driven and accessible as Bauta. Meanwhile, those who listen to more mainstream punk and hardcore probably won’t even hear about it, since it’s not sung in English and it won’t receive enough hype from the bigger music outlets.

Overall, Bauta is not the kind of hardcore record that fits neatly into any corner. To be honest, if this was sung in English and stripped of the band’s far-north background and Indigenous left-wing politics, I’m not sure I would connect with the band in the same way. But with all the pieces together, Ondt Blod still feel like a truly great band, one that keeps pushing its own limits while carrying a sense of belonging, struggle, and identity that makes their music stand apart.