The first seconds of “AUX” make it clear that Ondt Blod didn’t come back to ease themselves in. Seven years gone, and they swing right into a track that feels like picking up an unfinished sentence — blunt, local, and completely uninterested in smoothing out their edges for anyone south of where they grew up. The new single lands November 14, ahead of the album “Bauta”, out March 13 via Playground Music.
The band has been doing this since 2013: Kirkenes-born hardcore with a melodic streak, sung in Northern Norwegian and shaped by a place where politics, everyday grind, and old grudges sit comfortably next to snowmobiles and homemade booze. The press info sums it up in the way only they can get away with: “Full of northern Norwegian defiance and Sami pride.” Another line puts it even plainer — the band plays songs about “political oppression, racism and other bullshit,” right next to the typical local joys.
What makes “AUX” stand out is the clarity of its message. The track is presented as “a shout-out and thank you to friends and enemies, to industry losers and the authorities within the city centre.” The band frames it as a song about leaving Oslo behind — “throwing a match over your shoulder and moving away from Oslo” — with enough heat in the verses and a chorus built to linger. It’s described as “a classic Ondt Blod hardcore banger with raging verses and a catchy chorus,” and the recording backs that up without drifting into gloss.
The production comes from Yngve Andersen of Blood Command, with mixing and mastering by Simon Jackman. Nothing in the band’s description of the track suggests a dramatic stylistic shift; instead, it reads like a continuation of what they’ve always done, tightened by time and sharpened by the long gap between releases.
They’re aware of how unusual it is to come back after seven silent years. In the email exchange, the team surrounding the band notes that “Ondt Blod coming back after seven years really feels special,” and they emphasize that the band is ready to talk about what changed in their environment during that time — in the region, in the scene, and around their own perspective.
Their history ties into that perspective. The group — vocalist Aslak Heika Hætta Bjørn, drummer Håvard Sotkajærvi Rushfeldt, bassist Jørgen Store Johansen, and guitarists Alexander Mortensen and John Nilsen — grew into national recognition with their albums “Finnmark” (2016) and “Natur” (2018). Both records pulled in strong praise, including a Spellemann nomination, and the band went on to play across Norway, Europe, and Japan. Even with that momentum, they kept their direction tied to where they came from. The short bio included with the new track sums it up simply: “Straight from the gut and straight from the heart.”
The comeback is framed as a return to work. The song sets the tone for the album ahead, and if the quoted line about tossing a match over the shoulder is any indication, Ondt Blod are moving forward with the same stubborn clarity that shaped their earlier records — and “AUX” is the first sign of that next chapter. Still rooted in Kirkenes, still writing in their own dialect, still carrying the same mix of irritation and affection toward the world around them.
