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PowerNerd

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PowerNerd
Studio album by
Devin Townsend
ReleasedOctober 25, 2024 (2024-10-25)
Studio
  • Armoury (Vancouver)
  • Demi-Tone (Vancouver)
  • Lighthouse (Vancouver)
  • Mythgraven
  • Lip Service
GenreProgressive metal
Length44:04
Label
ProducerDevin Townsend
Devin Townsend chronology
Lightwork
(2022) 		PowerNerd
(2024)
Singles from PowerNerd
  1. "PowerNerd"
    Released: August 23, 2024
  2. "Jainism"
    Released: September 18, 2024
  3. "Gratitude"
    Released: October 14, 2024

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

[edit]

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

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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

[edit]

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]

Track listing

[edit]
PowerNerd track listing
No.TitleLength
1."PowerNerd"3:28
2."Falling Apart"4:23
3."Knuckledragger"4:30
4."Gratitude"3:29
5."Dreams of Light"0:54
6."Ubelia"3:58
7."Jainism"4:16
8."Younger Lover"4:09
9."Glacier"4:22
10."Goodbye"5:58
11."Ruby Quaker"4:32
Total length:44:04
PowerNerd – Digipak CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."Flow" (Demo)8:02
13."Trustfxxx" (Demo)8:17
14."Vast" (Demo)9:44
Total length:70:07

Personnel

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Musicians

Technical

  • Devin Townsend – production, mixing, engineering
  • Lynn Glessner – mastering
  • Troy Glessner – mastering
  • Jakob Herrmann – engineering
  • Sheldon Zaharko – engineering
  • Ben Searles – engineering
  • Kyle – engineering
  • Jon – engineering
  • Benji Ryen Smith – guitar re-amp recording
  • John Bertche – acoustic guitars recording
  • Mark Cimino – acoustic guitars recording
  • Paul Silveira – engineering assistance
  • Jess Schmidt – engineering assistance
  • Tricia Maier – engineering assistance
  • Theo Caseley – engineering assistance
  • Jasper Schuurmans – project coordination
  • Jean Savoie – bass technician

Visuals

  • Travis Smith – artwork, packaging design
  • Tanya Ghosh – photography

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for PowerNerd
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[11] 33
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 187
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[13] 57
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 15
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 32
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] 28
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 18
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[18] 21
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[19] 4

References

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  1. ^ Mendes, Thomas (October 22, 2024). "Devin Townsend - "PowerNerd"". Everything Is Noise. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  2. ^ "Devin Townsend Explains 'PowerNerd' Album Title". Blabbermouth.net. September 3, 2024. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Blum, Jordan (October 22, 2024). "Album Review: Devin Townsend PowerNerd". Metal Injection. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  4. ^ Wright, Holly (October 23, 2024). ""Maybe this was the catharsis he needed to propel his next chapter." Devin Townsend's PowerNerd isn't the all-out burst of Heavy Devy we expected, but it's still pretty damn good". louder. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  5. ^ Keenan, Hesher (August 23, 2024). "Devin Townsend Saves the Day with "PowerNerd", Album Due October 25". MetalSucks. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Devin Townsend 'PowerNerd' Interesting Facts Part 1". November 7, 2024 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ "Devin Townsend 'PowerNerd' Interesting Facts Part 2". November 12, 2024 – via YouTube.
  8. ^ McHugh, Dan (October 31, 2024). "Album Review: PowerNerd - Devin Townsend". Distorted Sound Magazine. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  9. ^ Blabbermouth (October 23, 2024). "PowerNerd". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  10. ^ a b "Album review: Devin Townsend – PowerNerd". Kerrang!. October 25, 2024. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  11. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Devin Townsend – PowerNerd" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – Devin Townsend – PowerNerd" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  13. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Devin Townsend – PowerNerd" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  14. ^ "Devin Townsend: PowerNerd" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Devin Townsend – PowerNerd" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  17. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Devin Townsend – PowerNerd". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  18. ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  19. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
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