Denver cosmic death metal innovators Blood Incantation have released All Gates Open (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) today via Century Media Records. Available digitally, on vinyl, and as a Blu-ray package, the release presents both the complete soundtrack to the band’s documentary and the 73-minute film chronicling the creation of their acclaimed 2024 album, Absolute Elsewhere.
Originally included exclusively with the deluxe Absolute Elsewhere artbook, All Gates Open is now available as a standalone release for the first time. The collection follows the band’s recent nationwide takeover of Alamo Drafthouse theaters and offers fans an immersive look into one of the most ambitious chapters of the group’s career.
Alongside the release, Blood Incantation have unveiled a new video for the soundtrack track “Dawn,” directed and produced by Miles Skarin of Crystal Spotlight. The visually stunning clip transports viewers to a mysterious desert world filled with ancient ruins, floating rock formations, and portals to alternate realities, continuing the narrative established in previous visual works tied to Absolute Elsewhere.
“‘Dawn’ takes you to the dusty surface of a faraway desert planet,” explains Skarin. “Remnants of a lost civilisation are found across the desert badlands. The sun rises, planets and moons march overhead in the sky. Gravitational anomalies create pockets of floating rocks as the proximity of the neighbouring planets increases. A doorway to another reality opens…”
Unlike previous videos that relied heavily on digital animation, “Dawn” was filmed on location in a desert environment, creating a more tangible and cinematic extension of the band’s expansive science-fiction mythology.
More than a companion release, All Gates Open documents the origins of Absolute Elsewhere. Composed in 2021, the soundtrack’s four lengthy pieces showcase a markedly different side of Blood Incantation’s sound, emphasizing ambient textures, acoustic instrumentation, and exploratory synthesizer improvisations.
Guitarist and vocalist Paul Riedl describes the material as the “yang energy” counterpart to the darker atmospheres explored on Timewave Zero.
The accompanying documentary, directed by Niklas Tschaikowsky and Tammo Dehn, follows the band during their month-long stay at Hansa Tonstudios in Berlin, where they wrote and recorded Absolute Elsewhere. The film provides an intimate look at the band’s creative process and features appearances from members of Tangerine Dream, Hällas, and Sijjin.
Reflecting on the release, Riedl notes: “It’s not the next album or follow-up to Absolute Elsewhere, it’s the soundtrack to the documentary about making the album with songs that are from before. The documentary deserves to be experienced, not just as content for the internet. The soundtrack captures the very first seed of what led to Absolute Elsewhere. This is where that era started.”
Mixed and mastered by Arthur Rizk and featuring retro-futuristic artwork by Jodie Day, All Gates Open serves as both a historical document and a creative companion piece, completing the artistic journey that culminated in Absolute Elsewhere.
All Gates Open (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Track Listing:
- Balance (20:47)
- Flight (20:37)
- Dawn (05:43)
- Rain (13:43)
Blood Incantation are currently touring throughout Europe and the United Kingdom.
Blood Incantation Lineup:
- Paul Riedl
- Isaac Faulk
- Morris Kolontyrsky
- Jeff Barrett