NOFX Single Album

At the helm of NOFX, Fat Mike’s vocals have always been distinct, giving a playful edge to the sometimes gnarly sides delivered by punk.

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But with Single Album, what we’re getting from the frontman is a whole new purity, to the genre and to NOFX. It’s a transparency you’ll really enjoy, and one you’ll pick up on even before you even learn this is the first album the band have put out since Fat Mike entered sobriety.

A clean state of being seems to serve the singer well, his control over his dynamic range and exploration of textures really refined. Sure, his lyrics are deep, pensive, and sway more frequently toward themes of sociopolitical empowerment–as with opener The Big Drag, Fuck Euphemism and Fish in a Gun Barrel–but it’s still Fat Mike. He’s still giving off that loveable goof vibe in what is looking likely to be a release that will go down as his most honest, vulnerable, and creative performance in NOFX’s 38-year tenure.

Fat Mike’s evident enthusiasm for this collection–and newfound sobriety doesn’t mean sacrificing any of the band’s existing and beloved characteristics.

Couple those great vocal and lyrical qualities with the usual audio antics provided by the rest of NOFX–seemingly propelled by Fat Mike’s evident enthusiasm for this collection–and newfound sobriety doesn’t mean sacrificing any of the band’s existing and beloved characteristics. If anything, NOFX jack things up to 11 with sublime production, a simple but never dull execution of riffs, a decoration of some furious rhythms with cutting effects pedals, and that age-old NOFX hilarity now married to a newfound sense of clarity.

STANDOUT TRACKS: Fish in a Gun Barrel, Birmingham, Linewleum
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