Devin Townsend has announced a new album titled PowerNerd, while also unveiling its title track featuring guest vocals from Hatebreed frontman Jamey Jasta. The 11-song LP is set for release on October 25th.
Over the past 30 years, Townsend has built a legendary career as a solo artist and as frontman of Strapping Young Lad and the Devin Townsend Project, among other projects. A press release describes PowerNerd as the start of the veteran musician’s “newest era.”
In defining the album’s title, Townsend stated, “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. It’s like, ‘OK, yeah, I’m sensitive to this, that and the other thing, but man, I am going to pull through! I am going to do things with that sensitivity that are rooted in strength.’”
Townsend fully embraces that persona in the music video for the title track, which humorously depicts him as the superhero PowerNerd.
According to a press release, Townsend wrote the entire album in 11 days. He explained, “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 a bit 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.”
As of now, Townsend is scheduled to play a handful of acoustic shows in the UK supporting Myles Kennedy from November 25th through December 3rd (pick up tickets here). Watch the video for “PowerNerd” below and pre-order the album here.
PowerNerd Artwork:
PowerNerd Tracklist:
01. PowerNerd
02. Falling Apart
03. Knuckledragger
04. Gratitude
05. Dreams of Light
06. Ubelia
07. Jainism
08. Younger Lover
09. Glacier
10. Goodbye
11. Ruby Quaker