By Brian Maddox
Birmingham, AL (The Hollywood Times) 10/17/24 –
POWERNERD – noun
- A person of any gender who has, through tenacity and perseverance, turned what society may deem as a ‘weakness’ into a superpower.
- A total fucking badass.
As I’ve mentioned in the past, music albums that are conceived with the intent to both exude quality and withstand the test of time shouldn’t take a decade or more to produce and refine. While taking such tremendous amounts of time to create, polish and distribute one’s own laborious efforts is without a doubt admirable and much appreciated, fans unfortunately aren’t in the position of having all the time in the world to wait around for the next astonishing composition from their favorite artists to finally meet the eyes and ears of the masses.
Suffice it to say that when an artist actively takes the time to scrutinize every single note written or performed with a fine-toothed comb, their respective fandoms are sure to eagerly anticipate imbibing the final result concocted from every ounce of the creative juices that the artist feels has been sufficiently blended into the project itself.
In another vein however, some of the most memorable and undeniably poignant music of our time has come solely from some undeclared source of pain or implicit abstract suffering, acting as the palette from which the artist endeavors to draw inspiration. Doing so not only removes from the artist a hefty psychological burden, but in turn reminds us of all that we truly aren’t alone in the universe in terms of our own individual psychosis.
For an artist with the musical facility such as Canadian singer, songwriter and musician Devin Townsend, 11 days was more than enough required to write and produce his latest solo effort, PowerNerd.
As the founder, frontman and instrumental extraordinaire of extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad, Townsend has carved out an authentic musical legacy in his 30-year career that has been based around his own personal battles with mental health and depression; proof positive that the inherent struggles that bedevil any given individual can indeed spur genuine art from deep within the chasms of their own internal rifts.
From finding his own musical identity by way of performing in numerous metal bands throughout his youth, Townsend was eventually called upon by one of countless record labels to carry out vocal duties on Steve Vai’s 1993 studio album, Sex & Religion.
Having had his impression of the music industry as a whole become severely tainted from the experience, Townsend opted to apply his distinctive skill set toward the development of his own solo career with his 1995 debut, Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing. It’s from this particular album that Strapping Young Lad would adopt its noted sobriquet, courtesy of its opening track, “S.Y.L.”
The band would go on to amass worldwide acclaim by releasing 5 studio albums between 1995 and 2006 before permanently dissolving in 2007, providing Townsend with much welcomed additional time so as to properly seclude himself in order to shift his focus more towards writing and recording his solo work.
With his hallmark array of incredible guitar techniques ranging from sweep arpeggio picking, tapping and polychords, Townsend has since developed a uniquely innovative style that could easily be described as both audibly enthralling and emphatically riotous to the senses.
With his latest solo effort, PowerNerd promises to exhibit Townsend’s eminent polymath swagger with songs like the album’s thrashing title track, the dreamlike aura of Ubelia, and of course my new personal favorite, the internally uplifting Gratitude.
On writing the new album in just 11 days, Townsend says:
“It was a conscious thing. I thought ‘I’ve spent so much time overthinking every aspect of my work — what would happen if I didn’t?’ Maybe I would have the opportunity to be more direct with what it is that I’m trying to do. I really wanted to see if I could cut through some of the meandering.”
PowerNerd is slated for release on October 25th.
For more info on Devin Townsend, please visit:
Instagram – @dvntownsend
X – @dvntownsend
Facebook – Devin Townsend
