Nails is an American

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...

band from

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

. The group was formed in 2009 by frontman Todd Jones, formerly the guitarist of Terror, along with bassist John Gianelli and drummer Taylor Young of Disgrace. They released their debut EP '' Obscene Humanity'' in 2009, followed by the studio albums '' Unsilent Death'' (2010), '' Abandon All Life'' (2013) and '' You Will Never Be One of Us'' (2016), and a split EP with Full of Hell. Nails have achieved widespread notoriety and critical acclaim for their savage and intense sound.

History

The band formed in 2009. They have since released three full-length albums and two EPs. As of June 2014, the band is signed to

Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...

. They released their third album, '' You Will Never Be One of Us'', on June 17, 2016. On July 25, 2016, the band abruptly canceled a European tour, with promoters claiming the band were on a hiatus and "had no plans to play live or record again." This also led to canceling their appearance at Ozzfest Meets Knotfest. Todd Jones later stated that the band had never taken a hiatus. In December 2016, the band returned by playing at The Power of the Riff festival and releasing a split 7-inch with Full of Hell. On November 30, 2020, following the announcement of the 10th anniversary reissue of ''Unsilent Death'', Young announced that he quit the band in early Spring. The day later, John Gianelli also confirmed his departure from the band. From this point, Todd Jones is the only member of the band.

Musical style

In a review of '' Abandon All Life'', ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' wrote that "Nails cram their brief but constantly shifting tracks with a chaotic, complex blend of

D-beat D-beat (also known as Discore, kängpunk, Discrust, and crust-beat) is a style of hardcore punk, developed in the early 1980s by imitators of Discharge, after whom the genre is named, as well as a drum beat characteristic of this subgenre. D-be ...

grindcore Grindcore is an extreme fusion genre of heavy metal and hardcore punk that originated in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from abrasive-sounding musical styles, such as thrashcore, crust punk, hardcore punk, extreme metal, and industrial. G ...

powerviolence Powerviolence (sometimes written as power violence) is an extremely dissonant and fast subgenre of hardcore punk which is closely related to thrashcore and grindcore. In contrast with grindcore, which is a "crossover" idiom containing musical ...

, and

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

." In a 2013 interview for

Invisible Oranges ''Invisible Oranges'' is an American online music magazine dedicated to heavy metal news, band interviews and album reviews. It was founded by Cosmo Lee in September 2006 shortly after emigrating from San Francisco, California, United States t ...

, Todd Jones named

crust punk Crust punk (also known as crust or stenchcore) is a form of music influenced by English punk rock and extreme metal. The style, which evolved in the early 1980s in England, often has songs with dark and pessimistic lyrics that linger on politic ...

, death metal, and

Japanese hardcore Japanese hardcore is the hardcore punk scene in Japan, which originated to protest the social and economic changes sweeping the country in the 1980s. The band SS is regarded as the first, forming in 1977. Bands such as The Stalin and GISM soon fo ...

as the band's foremost musical influences. Rushonrock cited Nails, alongside

Trap Them Trap Them was an American hardcore punk band formed in Salem, New Hampshire in 2001. They released five studio albums and five EPs, including a split EP with Extreme Noise Terror. History Trap Them began in 2001 as a side-project for Ryan McKe ...

, as key players of the contemporary American crust scene.

Members

;Current *Todd Jones – vocals, guitar (2009–present) ;Former *John Gianelli – bass (2009–2020) *Taylor Young – drums (2009–2020) *Tom Hogan – drums (2009) *Andrew Saba – guitar (2012–2015) *

Leon del Muerte Leon del Muerte (born 1977) is a musician living in Portland, Oregon, USA. He is a founding member, guitarist and vocalist of the band Murder Construct. He is a guitarist in Terrorizer LA and Lightbreaker, vocalist in Impaled, and was previously i ...

– guitar (2016–2019) ;Touring musicians *Jon Westbrook – bass (2009) *

Phil Sgrosso Phil Sgrosso (born September 16, 1985) is an American heavy metal musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist of the American metalcore band As I Lay Dying, the former rhythm guitarist of the band Wovenwar and the touring lead guitarist for Sa ...

– guitar (2016)

Discography

Studio albums

*'' Unsilent Death'' (2010) *'' Abandon All Life'' (2013) *'' You Will Never Be One of Us'' (2016)

EPs

*'' Obscene Humanity'' 12-inch (2009) *'' Obscene Humanity'' 7-inch (2012) *''Nails/Skin Like Iron'' Split 7-inch (2012) *'' Nails / Full of Hell'' Split 7-inch (2016) *''I Don't Want to Know You'' 7-inch (2019)

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control American grindcore musical groups Powerviolence groups Death metal musical groups from California American crust and d-beat groups Hardcore punk groups from California Musicians from Oxnard, California Musical groups established in 2009 2009 establishments in California Southern Lord Records artists Musical groups from Ventura County, California