NASTY: Belgian-German Aggro Punk Bomb-Drops Heartbreak Criminals

Belgian-German aggro punk outfit Nasty (stylized as NASTY) is dropping their new album, Heartbreak Criminals, via Century Media. The quartet—featuring Nash (drums), Paddy (guitars), Berry (bass), and Matthi (vocals)—returns with even more anger and even more love in their hearts following Menace (2020).

What to Expect on Heartbreak Criminals

Tracks like “Resurrection” and “Don’t Play with Fire” showcase Nasty’s growth as artists while keeping the banner of “f*cked-up music for a f*cked-up world” held high. The album also reconnects the dots to the band’s origins by re-recording old-school, fan-favorite tracks “Declaring War” and “Chaos,” both off 2006’s Declaring War.

Heartbreak Criminals is described as a sonic life lesson of fist-fights lost and battles hard won—proof that Nasty is perseverance.

Band and Style

Formed in 2004 in Kelmis, Belgium on the Belgian-German border, Nasty quickly established themselves as a band of action, not words. Across seven full-lengths—starting with the bloody knuckles of Declaring War through the creative mosh of Menace—their blend of hardcore, thrash, hip-hop, and other rabblerousing genres has proven to be a game changer.

Backed by live staples like “Fire on the People,” “Slaves to the Rich,” and “Chaos,” they’ve toured Europe, the United States, Russia, Brazil, Japan, China, and South Korea, sharing stages with high-profile acts like Suicidal Tendencies, Terror, Strife, Madball, and more.

Performances at Wacken Open Air, Hellfest, Graspop Metal Meeting, With Full Force, and Resurrection Fest helped solidify Nasty as more than a small-venue act—one with the swagger to decimate audiences on the biggest festival platforms. Their recent winter foray across Europe with Cabal, Frozen Soul, and Dying Fetus was a resounding success, exposing Nasty’s broken-bottle anthems to new audiences.

Written Ad Hoc, Built for the Fight

Heartbreak Criminals was written ad hoc throughout 2021 and 2022. The group met at various times to cut through the post-pandemic haze, hashing out stormers like “Roses,” “Reality Check,” and “Total Domination” with a ready-to-kill attitude.

Videos for “Resurrection” and “Declaring War” have already introduced the firestorm that is Heartbreak Criminals. To underpin Nasty’s visceral heft, Matthi (vocals) explored the depths of heartbreak, the rawness of betrayal, and what he calls “real talk.” There are no lyrical holds barred in “911,” “Nobody Cares,” and the title track.

Where most bands are about the monolog, Nasty only cares about delivering results on Heartbreak Criminals.

Studio Work and Final Touches

Nasty recruited Andy Posdziech (Caliban, Any Given Day) yet again to manage Heartbreak Criminals’ controls. The Gelsenkirchen native holed up with Nasty at Bestes Studio for over nine months, with the goal of making Nasty “harder.” Posdziech helped grind out 13 devastating tracks.

The powerful effect of “Resurrection,” “Don’t Play with Fire,” and “Kiss from a Rose” was enhanced by mix/master maven Marvin Kinkel (Beginning, I Am the Poison). The capper to Heartbreak Criminals is vivid cover art by illustrator/tattoo artist Marcel Kristensen.

Where Heartbreak Criminals takes Nasty isn’t up to fate—they’re not about pie-in-the-sky concepts. Instead, they hit the streets and put in the work. Just as the group powered through sour times before, with Heartbreak Criminals Nasty are gonna come out on top.

Meet the Quartet

• Nash — Drums
• Paddy — Guitars
• Berry — Bass
• Matthi — Vocals