Canada's favourite strapping young lad, Devin Townsend, has several projects on the go at the moment, including The Moth, Casualties Of Cool, Powernerd and Axolotl. He has checked in with an update on Powernerd, found below.
Townsend: "The idea with the Powernerd record was... it's meant to be like an appetizer prior to The Moth. Powernerd is this very specific thing; it's simple and stripped back, and kind of rough around the edges. I spent this week not second-guessing the concept, just second-guessing the way it's presented. I took the demo tracks and I replaced them. I played all the guitars again very precisely, and when I listened back I realized it lost so much of what made it cool. If it's too precise it loses that energy, so that's the 'two steps forward, one step back' that this week has been."
Rocket 88 is launching a new Devin Townsend book. Titled Overexposed + Underdeveloped, it offers a full-on, illustrated trek through the many stages of the man’s life, from baby to international Canadian prog icon.
The previously unpublished personal photos and professionally taken studio and live shots in the book are captioned by Devin in his unique way. The results trace the development of his musical ventures from before Steve Vai, through Strapping Young Lad, Devin Townsend Band, Devin Townsend Project, Ziltoid and all points between, up to and including the present day.
If you’d like to see more and get all the news on the book, make sure you sign up at DevinTownsendBook.com for an exclusive discount when pre-order begins on the two exclusive editions, plus the chance to have a name printed in the book.
"When the idea for this photo book came across my desk, I admit that I didn’t think too much about it. I shrugged and said, “Sure… if there’s an interest in that sort of thing, I can get behind it. It should be easy enough…” Through this experience, I ended up in a place where I could say, “Man… what a life. This was you… this was the story of someone named ‘Devin Townsend’ who lived on a tiny little planet in the middle of nowhere,” and I enjoyed it tremendously." - Devin Townsend
The successor and companion to Only Half There, Devin’s collection of personal and professional photographs in Overexposed + Underdeveloped traces his journey from childhood in Canada through teen years in different bedrooms, on to his professional career and beyond parenthood. Captions written by Devin recall memories and details of people, places, haircuts, and strange happenings. The vast majority of the photos in overexposed + underdeveloped have never been published before.
See below for a sneak peek inside Overexposed + Underdeveloped: