Nothington’s 2007 album, All In, was good and ended up taking the #12 spot on my best of list for that year, but I wasn’t expecting the band to mature and progress as much as they have here. Every single song on Nothington’s new album Roads, Bridges and Ruins is a goddamn sing-a-long anthem. Seriously, it’s almost unbelievable just how good this (and that’s a 100% hyperbole-free statement). It picks up right where All In left off and finds the band continuing to play the raw, melodic, unpretentious anthemic punk that made us all love ‘em in the first place. Hints of rootsy Southern rock sneak into the songs and just up the ante even more. It’s like chasing shots of whiskey with Social Distortion, Hot Water Music, and Sludgeworth. Guitarist Jay Northington’s vocals are as coarse as 24 grit sandpaper and his lyrics are biting but guitarist Chris Matulich also contributes lead vocals to a couple songs and (along with bassist Tony Texeira) serves up some killer backing vocals as well. The guitar leads are amazing, the songwriting is tight, and there is virtually zero filler anywhere to be found. This little band from the Bay Area that started off as ex-Tsnuami Bomb and ex-Enemy You has become something of a force to be reckoned with. Roads, Bridges And Ruins is a powerhouse of an album that hits like a punch to the gut but has melodic hooks to make you keep standing in round after round and is out now on BYO Records.

MP3:
Nothington - A Mistake
Nothington - The Ocean

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1. Review: Nothington – All In
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4. The Bomb – Speed Is Everything
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