Black metal horde Nailblack were originally active in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, releasing one demo before going silent in 2002. Now, the black metal horde is a duo, with a record coming out September 29 on Redefining Darkness Records. A mixture of various black metal influences including Mayhem, Satyricon, Impaled Nazarene and even Midnight, Envied is the first proper release from Nailblack. Stream the album below and read an interview with the band’s Rob Void.
Nailblack issued the American Evil demo in 2001. Why did you choose to release Envied now, 16 years after your only other output?
At the time of the American Evil demo, we were a full band with a regular practice schedule. After the release we only played one show. We kept writing material and had a good handful of songs that we were planning on recording. The band was very fun and we loved doing it, but we all had our main projects. Malum and I were very busy with our other band at that point and things were moving quickly. We had a record deal and were playing out constantly. It left very little time for Nailblack so we put everything on hold at that point. During our off period we talked a lot about finishing some of the songs and wrote a new tune now and then. In late 2015 we were feeling inspired and we decided it was time to do something again. We finished a couple of songs and put them on Bandcamp. Shortly after, Redefining Darkness Records contacted us because they liked the material. It took some time, but eventually we had enough material for a full length. We ended up using one song from our full lineup days and the rest of the material was all new.
Is the lineup the same as American Evil? Different?
We were a 5 piece at the time of the demo release. Now it is just Malum and I. We have always written all the music and our previous singer did the lyrics. The two of us did everything for the current album. Music, lyrics and all performances. We are now assembling a live lineup so we can get back to playing out and spreading our message.
What are your influences on Envied? Did you attempt to stay faithful to a certain sound, or were you attempting to create a different sound within black metal?
Our influences musically come from a wide range of styles. Of course we live the metal life. Black metal, death metal, thrash metal, but we don’t confine ourselves to just those genres. We like what we like and we make no excuses. When we write we don’t think of any certain sound. We just let it flow and what comes out, comes out. I think it shows on Envied. The songs don’t all sound the same and we love that. We like that there are different tempos and vibes throughout the album and we are very happy with the way everything turned out.
What do you want people to think or feel after they hear Envied?
We want people to feel inspired in one way or another. We also hope people feel our energy, and know this album came directly from the heart. Our message is simple. Follow your own path and don’t live your life following a set of rules from ancient texts. Black fucking metal!
