Goddamn, is the new NAILS lineup ever fired-up. Coming off the recent arrival of the California metal force’s first single in five years, vocalist-guitarist Todd Jones and his reshaped quartet have delivered a molten-scorched second taste of their forthcoming Every Bridge Burning album. It’s called “Give Me the Painkiller,” and we could use a few Tylenols after hearing this, too.
Driven by a perma-thunderous double-kick from new skinsman Carlos Cruz (Warbringer), “Give Me the Painkiller” is a multi-barreled assault that toes the line between first gen Bathory and perhaps the Americanized D-beat of Every Bridge Burning producer Kurt Ballou’s Axe to Fall era with Converge.
No matter how you split it, Jones is unleashing pure hellfire with his quick-rolling fretboard licking. Likewise, he gets harrowing, yet possibly hopeful, as he howls out about being broken down by the darkness of a bad friend. Then again, despite seeing the light, “the worst is yet to come.” Damn, dude.
As previously reported, NAILS’ Every Bridge Burning is the first full-length to find Jones supported by Cruz, bassist Andrew Solis (Despise You, Apparition) and guitarist Shelby Lermo (Ulthar). It’s likewise the band’s first album since 2016’s You Will Never Be One of Us.
Every Bridge Burning arrives August 30th via Nuclear Blast Records, and will be supported through tour dates alongside 200 Stab Wounds, Mammoth Grinder, Tribal Gaze, Xibalba and more. You can check out those tour details here.