Album Review: Ba’al – The Fine Line Between Heaven and Here (Road To Masochist)

Less than a year after the release of their critically acclaimed EP ‘Soft Eyes’, Sheffield post-black metal quintet Ba’al return with their most ambitious work to date. It is the band’s second full-length album, ‘The Fine Line Between Heaven and Here’, and it will be released on July 18th, 2025, via Road to Masochist.

There are very few bands who get to me on a truly emotional level, but I am proud to say that one of those bands is Ba’al. Who, ever since I experienced ‘Ellipsism’ in 2020, has consistently created music that makes me feel and I love them for that. They’re evolving too, evident on the Soft Eyes EP and this new album continues that dynamically evolved state while offering up layers upon layers of gorgeous, heart-wrenching, blackened post intensity. It’s Ba’al, but a bigger, bolder, and better Ba’al.

It speaks volumes about the confidence that this band has in their ability to grab and hold the attention of the listener as the record begins with a near-thirteen-minute track. Yet it is one that doesn’t feel it in the slightest and all because of how textured it is. There’s no easy way to define what Ba’al are doing here, easily and emphatically blending beauty and savagery, while experimenting with not only their own sound, but the definition of genres. It should be so challenging, and it is in places especially as Ba’al aren’t afraid to be a bit progressive, but their creativity is so compelling that few will find themselves not invested in it completely and willing to let it in.

Allow your mind to open, let Ba’al in, and experience the highs and lows of the best post-black metal music in the world. I kid you not. That is how good I think this band is and how strong I think this album is.

That opener is special. Ba’al’s instrumental heft, tender melodies, miserable tones, and varied vocal styles is gobsmacking. Yet, it’s just the start of an experience that can be summed up as transcendent.

Waxwork Gorgon is next, showcasing an unbelievable amount of dramatic sorrow and elaborate heaviness. Whereas Floral Cairn is the epitome of blackened post, haunting and hellacious, perfectly balanced, and still surprising (the desperate and pained clean vocals near the end). Then there is Well of Sorrows, an enthralling, gorgeous, intense, innovative, and unforgettable experience that comfortably passes the eleven-minute mark without feeling it in the slightest.

This is Ba’al at their absolute best, creating blackened post metal that embodies the style, but feels like nothing else in the genre too. Long term fans will find themselves in very comfortable territory too here.

Such a high point, of which there have been several, should mean the only way is down from this point onwards, but truth be told, that’s not the Ba’al way and they continue to push the boundaries of post metal music with another absolute epic (the longest track of all), The Ocean That Fills a Wound. What a rush this is. From the cinematic atmosphere (the horns at the end are gorgeous), the dreamy melodies, and blistering heftiness, it’s one of the album’s most powerful pieces. Digging into the emotions in ways few could ever expect.

Take a deep breath, it’s almost over, but not before Ba’al explore dark and terrifying depths with Legasov. A spectacular closing track that has a rawness that makes the nerve endings ache but fittingly feels like an end. It is so special, but what isn’t on this album!? Ba’al are the best, and somehow, they’re better than they’ve ever been before.

Ba’al – The Fine Line Between Heaven and Here Track Listing:

1. Mother’s Concrete Womb
2. Waxwork Gorgon
3. Floral Cairn
4. Well of Sorrows
5. The Ocean That Fills a Wound
6. Legasov

Links

Website | Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | Road To Masochist