PowerNerd is the twenty-second studio album by Canadian metal musician Devin Townsend. It was released on October 25, 2024, through Inside Out Music and HevyDevy Records.[1]
Background
About the album's title, Devin Townsend commented "I would say that a powernerd would be somebody that has a tendency that society has deemed weak or not valuable, whether that's empathy or being an insular person or an introvert, and turns that into a type of personal power."[2] Townsend reportedly gave himself only 11 days to write the entire album, and 1 day to rehearse it.[3][4][5]
According to Townsend, of all the albums he's ever made, PowerNerd was "[the] most fraught with unexpected sidelines":[6] The album was originally meant to feature Eloy Casagrande on drums, Mike Inez on bass, and Wes Hauch on guitar; unfortunately, by the time of recording, Casagrande has joined Slipknot, Inez began touring with Elton John, and Hauch went on tour with Alluvial.[6] Additional, Townsend was hoping to outsource mixing the album as well, but that fell through due to scheduling as well. [6] Drums for the album were ultimately done by Darby Todd, who learned and recorded all his drums in a single day.[7]
Musical style
The album has been described as progressive metal.[8][9] Some critics noted that the album had a simpler, more accessible sound compared to Townsend's previous albums.[10]
Reception
PowerNerd received positive reviews from music critics upon release. Jordan Blum, writing for Metal Injection, gave the album a score of 9/10 and wrote "Without a doubt, Townsend still gets tons of mileage out of the uniquely philosophical and musical worlds he's crafted, making PowerNerd another superbly entertaining and intellectually, emotionally fulfilling addition to his catalog."[3]Kerrang! awarded it a score of 3/5 and stated "If you’re looking for divisive, multi-toned prog metal you’ll find little of that here – closer Ruby Quaker has a tongue-in-cheek blast therein – but should you appreciate the less eccentric side of this polymath’s output, plug in and power up."[10]
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