Led by singer Zack Borzone and juggernaut drummer Sam Pickard, YHWH Nailgun release their debut, 45 Pounds. On 10 tracks that add up to around 21 minutes, the band revel in frenetic vibes, Borzone channeling unbridled id energy via truncated melodies and fragmentary lyrics. 45 Pounds puts Nailgun’s chemistry on relentless display, as they strike a fertile balance between crafting incidental cohesions and indulging in rampant deconstruction.
On opening track “Penetrator”, Borzone’s lyrics are largely indistinguishable, his vocal conveying despair, aggression, some barbed version of longing unfulfilled. The jumpy soundscape is punctuated by Pickard’s rapid-fire drum rolls. If this is hardcore, and indeed it is, it emerges from a refreshingly eclectic vision: dada, free jazz, the afterglow of hyperpop, self-flagellation as theater – the band recast these styles, genres, and motifs, furthering a loose yet signature aesthetic.
In short, a listener is drawn in, certainly cerebrally (as is the case with a band such as Black Midi) but also viscerally (as with, say, Gilla Band). “Castrato Raw” spotlights Borzone’s breathy vocals, the singer bolstered by a Waitsian backdrop. Again, there’s a frenzied quality here, and yet, as adrenalized as the band are, there’s restraint too. The piece is choppy when it could simply sprawl. Borzone is volatilely measured, when he could easily spew or howl without parameters, groping for catharsis at all costs. Midway, Pickard’s drums are offset by Jack Tobias’s droney synths and Saguiv Rosenstock’s jagged guitar, the band maneuvering a bridge of sorts that quickly segues back to a roil of staccato accents and Borzone’s predatory grunts and groans.
“Animal Death Already Breathing”, at a longish (for this album) 2:09, is one of the more conventional tracks on the album, Borzone’s savage vocal bringing to mind Chat Pile’s Raygun Busch. “Iron Feet” pounds and batters, straight-ahead drums juxtaposed with a quirky riff. The longest track on the project at a little over three minutes, “Tear Pusher” shows Borzone heaving, as he strives and fails to access his grief. A listener can feel the tension between his repressed trauma and his resistance to vulnerability; i.e., exposure (also reminiscent of Raygun Busch).
On “Blackout”, Pickard’s drums are trashy, rangy, Borzone’s vocals all lycanthropic tone, primal instinct, torqued belly. Tobias’s synths are alternately droney and frazzled, the track serving as an exercise in well-cogged interplays. On “Changer”, it’s as if Borzone is singing from inside a medieval iron maiden, while outside the world assaults him from all directions (in the form of merciless drums, startling synth attacks, and abrasive guitar sounds).
Comparisons to Model/Actriz are possible, though the Boston-born band essentially approach songcraft integratively, the band’s harsh soundscapes supporting and complementing Cole Haden’s tortured vocals. The members of Nailgun, on the other hand, are diligent when it comes to individuating – almost to the point of dissolution. Additionally, they obfuscate or eschew pop elements, including what might be considered hooks (and yet, their rebellious stance is, in itself, ironically, and paradoxically, hooky).
The abovementioned Gilla Band is a more apt comparison, both acts mining disunities, seeking to dismantle or short-circuit the impulse for resolution. Ultimately, however, the act of subterfuge is more unambiguously Nailgun’s raison d’etre, even as they (intentionally or inadvertently) corral anarchic elements into precise assemblages. This is to say, Gilla Band may be more multifaceted and/or multidimensional in their sound, though Nailgun are more singular in their counter-conventionalism.
Though 45 Pounds unabashedly evokes bleakness, Nailgun are too ambitious and talented to settle for generic nihilism. The band operate more like music majors who have absorbed punk, hardcore, and horrorcore, as well as classical and jazz elements, dropping out in their second or third year with diverse leanings and heightened aspirations re: revolutionizing the club scene. One wonders how the band would navigate longer, more involved compositions. For now, we can enjoy their succinct yet impressive debut, as they raise the hardcore bar, mixing fury and a penchant for well-informed experimentation.
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