Oxnard, California extreme metal band NAILS have signed with Closed Casket Activities and marked the new partnership with Fear Based Life, a two-song 7” available digitally now and arriving on vinyl October 9.
Listen to Fear Based Life:
Featuring the tracks “Dollar Bin Generation” and “Fear Based Life,” the release serves as both a statement of intent for the band’s latest chapter and a bridge toward their fifth full-length album, currently expected in summer 2027.
The signing formalizes a relationship between NAILS and Closed Casket Activities that stretches back more than a decade. The band explains:
“NAILS has been very fortunate to work with great labels. All throughout the band’s existence, there’s not a bad label that the band have worked with. In fact, they’ve all been great. A look into the backend of NAILS, I’ve been working with Justin Louden of Closed Casket Activities since 2011. All NAILS decisions regarding tour decisions, business decisions, all of the behind the scenes stuff…. we conferred with him to help with perspective and insight regarding how we made our moves and executed the vision for NAILS.
“There hasn’t been a more instrumental asset to NAILS than Closed Casket Activities in the past 15 years. Signing a record deal with Closed Casket Activities is the best move for NAILS and we know this is going to serve NAILS the best for the band’s needs. We hope you enjoy our new 2 song ‘Fear Based Life’ release, and we will have our fifth LP out Summer 2027. Thank you for supporting NAILS.”
NAILS wrote the two new songs in November and December 2025 as a collaborative effort between the band’s three members. The tracks were recorded by Andrew Solis and mastered by Nick Townsend.
Fear Based Life features cover artwork by Jef Whitehead (WREST), with additional artwork by Cavan Hoover. Photography was shot in Berlin by Duran Levinson, while Martin Stuart handled the layout and text.
Speaking about the creation of the release, NAILS add:
“NAILS put these 2 songs together November/December 2025. Writing them was a true collaborative effort between the three of us. We decided to release them as we thought they complimented each other well together. Jef Whitehead aka WREST did an incredible job with the front cover artwork as well as Cavan Hoover with the inner artwork. The photography was done in Berlin, Germany by Duran Levinson. The layout and text was completed by our friend Martin Stuart. It was a great experience putting this release together and working with everyone who collaborated on it including Closed Casket Activities. We hope you enjoy it.”
Fear Based Life tracklist:
- Dollar Bin Generation
- Fear Based Life
The 7” arrives on vinyl October 9 via Closed Casket Activities. Pre-order
NAILS will also head to the UK and Europe this October alongside Rotten Sound and Invunche, with Wolfbrigade joining select dates.