Abandon All Life

Pitchfork 8.0/10 Abandon All Life is a bracing, cathartic, darkly anthemic collection, but those not used to this sort of thing will probably need to spend some time with so it can slow down some and make more sense.

The Needle Drop 7/10 On Nails' sophomore release, the band makes a series of slight improvements to their already extreme sound.

All Music 4/5 Boundaries are not just being pushed here, they're being utterly destroyed, and whether or not it has enough breakdowns for people to mosh to not only isn't a concern, it's a contemptible idea amidst the sort of chaotic devastation Nails bring to bear on their listeners.

Metal Injection 8/10 Not that they should abandon these shorter sings outright, but it would be nice if Nails could give us more…well, Nails. However, perhaps in this brevity lies Abandon All Life's greatest success: it leaves you battered, exhausted, and breathing out the only appropriate request, "Please sir may I have another?"

Angry Metal Guy 4.0/5 Abandon All Life continues to embody all the same things that made listeners excited about Nails when they first broke onto the scene, but with an elevated level of musicianship and a marked level of thoughtfulness.

Pop Matters 8/10 By taking the brutal traits of numerous metal sub-genres, Nails have created a violent record that leaves you begging for a reprise, only to press play and relive the assault all over again.

Metal Sucks 3.5/5 Abandon All Life is straight-forward, powerful, and genuinely angry. However, the band’s potential is just short of fully realized, and could be helped by some oddities and emotional variation.