NOFX’s new record Single Album is a triumphant return for veteran rockers

: by Joe Sharratt; in Reviews

Fans of NOFX might be a little bit confused by the opening notes of their fourteenth studio record Single Album. Not only did the edgy, palm muted guitar that opens the album take five years to arrive (for such a prolific band, the long wait since their last album First Ditch Effort dropped in 2016 seems cavernous) but yes, no matter how many times you listen to it, there’s no escaping the fact that that’s the riff from Bryan Adams’ Summer Of 69…

Fortunately (no offence to Bryan, we’re big fans) that’s where the SoCal punks deviate from the Canadian singer. Instead, opening track The Big Drag grows into a bitter, nihilistic, and brilliantly loud cry of despair (“Trying to make sense of this world is preposterous pathetic”) all delivered in Fat Mike’s distinctive drawl, and you sit back and think, ‘God it’s good to have NOFX back’.

But that’s not where the surprises end. In fact, Single Album has all sorts of tricks up its sleeves. Tracks like I Love You More Than I Hate Me and Fuck Euphemism are your quintessential NOFX tracks: big, punchy, melodic numbers with their tell-tale wit and sharp eye on show in the lyrics. Birmingham is a superb high octane journey through the debauchery of a UK tour (that pleasantly name checks this writer’s home town), and Fish In A Gun Barrel is a brilliant ska-infused swipe at gun control.

If that all makes sense for a NOFX record, I hear you. However, the beautifully strange public funeral of the band’s classic track Linoleum on Linwleum and the gentle balled Your Last Resort that closes out the album you might not see coming. The former is full of all sorts of in-jokes that fans will absolutely lap up, while the latter, predictably, does explode into life, but one of the triumphs here is that these little eccentricities on the record work really well.

So named because it was originally envisaged as a double album, before the horrors of 2020 derailed those plans, Single Album is an eclectic affair. There’s plenty of classic NOFX moments, and all the experimentation hits the mark, making this a fantastic return that was well worth waiting for.

Single Album tracklist: