POWERNERD

Well, Devin Townsend is surely one of the most impeccable composers of complex and quirky metal music that transcends genre and categorizations, and his latest work, 2024's 'PowerNerd' is yet another fascinating installment in the Canadian musician and prog maestro's enviably eclectic and unpredictable discography. The album is pretty tight and relatively straightforward, a stunning collection of songs that virtually celebrates the complete musical palette of the Devin Townsend microcosm. There are pacy and aggressive riffs as well as raging, rattling vocals all over, there are also some incredibly melodic and ambient-like washes of sound, intertwined with equal amounts of silliness or serious reflection upon the state of the world. Townsend does not shy away from adopting his usual "wall of sound" style of production here, which serves this powerful and manic album rather fittingly, so to say.

Confining himself to just eleven standard-length songs, Townsend has allowed himself to craft a cohesive and meticulous album that offers both an energizing and a somewhat nostalgic feel as his more recent albums have been leaning towards this lighter presentation and highlighting texture and nuance more. 'PowerNerd', on the other hand, is absolutely riff-heavy, blasting collection of well-structured songs with memorable, and occasionally anthemic, choruses - definitely some of the most sing-along material on a Devin Townsend album ever. An uplifting album that drags you in through the fast-paced opening track, allowing us to understand just how much Mr Townsend likes petting the cats (among other deeds), after which the album goes through the massive-sounding 'Falling Apart', the heavy rocker 'Knuckledragger', the prog metal hymn that is 'Gratitude' as well as the tricky and intricate heavy number 'Jainism'. 'Ubelia' and 'Glacier' once again bolster that rich and vibrant production style, where each instrument plays a part in the large wash of sound that serves as the song's backbone. Of course, closing track 'Ruby Quaker' should sum up brilliantly what this entire record is all about, that itchy Devin Townsend-ness that has compelled music fans for decades now.

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