by Olivia McGuin
On November 15, Canandian rock band Nickelback released their 12th studio album, Live From Nashville. The album release was a fun surprise for many fans as this would be the band’s first studio release in two years.
The album contains a mixture of both classic Nickelback hits and fresh cuts, starting off strong with their hit single “San Quentin.” This track was first released in 2022 on their album Get Rollin’. Other songs on the album include live renditions of “Animals,” “Photograph,” and “How You Remind Me.”
While Nickelback did an amazing job playing many of their greatest hits for their fans, they wanted to incorporate some unique features for their live recording in Music City. This Live From Nashville album also features various country music stars including Brantley Gilbert, Bailey Zimmerman, HARDY, and ERNEST. The band played a mixture of both their original songs and country music hits, featuring their respective artists.
This isn’t first time the rock band dipped into the country music scene. In March, Nickelback joined HARDY in a CMT Crossroads episode to perform duets. I watched the episode live and enjoyed seeing a mixture of music styles being incorporated into the tracks. I especially enjoyed Nickelback’s feature on HARDY’s single “TRUCK BED.” Lead singer Chad Kroger has incredible vocals that often go unrecognized. Hearing the band sing in a style that’s typically out of their element truly allows listeners to appreciate their skill range.
Nickelback had more country music involvement this past July when they headlined Wisconsin’s Country Thunder music festival. While many fans were excited about the big headliner, this actually sparked some controversy. Many people didn’t like that a non-country music artist was headlining the festival. Personally, as someone who’s both a Nickelback and country music fan, I loved this. However, I understand the desire to keep the festival true to its name. Despite the pushback, they performed an amazing set that proved many doubters wrong.
Between the feature on Country Music Television, headlining at Country Thunder in Wisconsin, and the new Live From Nashville album, it’s safe to say Nickelback is no stranger to the country music genre. While I still consider them to be a rock band, I don’t doubt that this label could change in the future. As the band is reaching veteran status, they could just be dipping into different genres as a way to experiment and have fun. However, there’s a chance the band may want to reinvent themselves. Could this new album be a preview for potential original country songs from Nickelback? I guess we’ll have to sit back and watch what the band has in store.
