NAILGUN – Paindustry

Almost any Metal band deals with a few themes over and over again that can be better defined as clichés. However, there is that belief that each and every artist has his own point of view on ther alleged clichés. Furthermore, those same concepts can go along as well with a band’s music. While snooping through the debut album, Paindustry, by Germany’s Nailgun, it’s evident they have been doing more than just the Americanized version of Heavy/Thrash Metal, meaning more or less Traditional Metal chained to the Bay Area method of Thrash. Paindustry seems to incorporate attributes taken from Gothic and even Doom Metal. It’s like serving up Metallica, Slayer, Paradise Lost, and Type O Negative all together on the same platter.

Their first direction takes you to the realms of Metallica and Slayer, more like a modernized version of their classic albums of the 80s. The general feeling is a kind of like dealing with an aggressive being — straightforward with no mercy. Besides the guitars, which are almost equal to the era mentioned, the vocals are low, yet raspy with an Araya vs. Hetfield kind of pattern that helps sink the Thrashy-like mood. Tracks such as “Act Under Constraint”, “Circus”, and “Don’t Treat On Me” make Nailgun quite a heavy act to be reckoned with.

The second path of Nailgun will take you into an entirely different world. Even without the vocals that make a tribute to the late Peter Steele and to Paradise Lost’s front man, Nick Holmes, the music gets harmonious and somewhat melodic to a weird level of being almost industrial. Those parallel harmonies, and even a few of the charming solos, give reminders of famous albums such as Icon, Draconian Times and Bloody Kisses. The production may be the source of the similarity. Tracks like “All Revolutions” and “Cold” surprise with their sense of uniqueness. These prove Nailgun did a lot more than just sound the same, as their original form was different in the first place.

Nailgun created something challenging that merges two worlds of Metal into a cool mash. “Fear” is the band’s greatest track on this album and it shows how their mix makes an impact. With a catchy chorus, great riffs and inspiring melodious moments, they really did. Unfortunately, it’s sad to find out that they didn’t come close on doing the same with most of their material. Even the other mentioned tunes are merely above average. To be frank, Nailgun aren’t that exciting on their debut. Moreover, when speaking of the production, it might suit their needs for their music, yet the guitar lines are poorly inserted into the mixing process, therefore making them sound equal to the bass line, which chokes them to death.

Paindustry accessed two sets of Metal orientations and made Nailgun sound a little more unique than others. When they find the right formula to make more of “Fear” type track for example, their next release will surely be amazing.

Tracklist

1. Intro
2. Circus
3. Ghost
4. All Revolutions
5. Dissident Enemies
6. Death Illusions
7. Fear
8. Don’t Treat on Me
9. Cold
10. Act Under Constraint

Lineup

Manuel Buhler – Vocals
Manuel Blesch – Backing Vocals
Daniel Morsch – Guitars
Florian Hahn – Guitars
Sven Rakowitz – Bass
Felix Hartwig – Drums