PowerNerd

About the album's title, Devin Townsend commented "I would say that a powernerd would be somebody that has a tendency that society has deemed weak or not valuable, whether that's empathy or being an insular person or an introvert, and turns that into a type of personal power." Townsend reportedly gave himself only 11 days to write the entire album, and 1 day to rehearse it. According to Townsend, of all the albums he's ever made, PowerNerd was "[the] most fraught with unexpected sidelines": Additionally, Townsend was hoping to outsource mixing the album, but that fell through due to scheduling issues as well. == Musical style ==

The album has been described as progressive metal. Some critics noted that the album had a simpler, more accessible sound compared to Townsend's previous albums. == Reception ==

PowerNerd received positive reviews from music critics upon release. Jordan Blum, writing for Metal Injection, gave the album a score of 9/10 and wrote "Without a doubt, Townsend still gets tons of mileage out of the uniquely philosophical and musical worlds he's crafted, making PowerNerd another superbly entertaining and intellectually, emotionally fulfilling addition to his catalog." == Track listing ==

Musicians • Devin Townsend – vocals, guitars, synthesizers, bass, computer • Darby Todd – drums • Diego Tejeida – keyboards, synthesizers • Mike Keneally – additional keyboards • Mark Cimino – acoustic guitar • Aman Khosa – background vocals • Jean Savoie – additional bass on "Ruby Quaker" • Tanya Ghosh – additional vocals on "Falling Apart" • Jamey Jasta – additional vocals on "PowerNerd" Technical • Devin Townsend – production, mixing, engineering • Lynn Glessner – mastering • Troy Glessner – mastering • Jakob Herrmann – engineering • Sheldon Zaharko – engineering • Ben Searles – engineering • Kyle – engineering • Jon – engineering • Benji Ryen Smith – guitar re-amp recording • John Bertche – acoustic guitars recording • Mark Cimino – acoustic guitars recording • Paul Silveira – engineering assistance • Jess Schmidt – engineering assistance • Tricia Maier – engineering assistance • Theo Caseley – engineering assistance • Jasper Schuurmans – project coordination • Jean Savoie – bass technician Visuals • Travis Smith – artwork, packaging design • Tanya Ghosh – photography == Charts ==