The Dirty Nil

Last updated

The Dirty Nil
Dirty Nil at SXSW 2016.jpg
Guitarist-frontman Luke Bentham (front) and drummer Kyle Fisher (background)
Background information
Origin Dundas/Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Genres
Years active2006–present
Labels Dine Alone Records
MembersLuke Bentham
Kyle Fisher
Past membersDave Nardi
Ross Miller
Sam Tomlinson

The Dirty Nil is a Canadian rock band formed in Hamilton, Ontario in 2006, [1] who won the Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2017. [2] The band currently consists of singer and guitarist Luke Bentham and drummer Kyle Fisher.

Contents

History

Former bassist Ross Miller performing in Berkeley, California - October 2019 DirtyNil Berkeley2019.jpg
Former bassist Ross Miller performing in Berkeley, California - October 2019

The band members began playing together in high school, [3] and formed The Dirty Nil in 2006. They released their debut single "Fuckin' Up Young" in 2011, [1] and began touring North America, performing in clubs and at festivals. [4] [5] They followed with a series of further singles and EPs and released their full-length debut album Higher Power in 2016. [1] Following that album's success, they released Minimum R&B, a compilation of the early singles and EP tracks in 2017. [6] The Dirty Nil released their second studio album Master Volume on September 14, 2018 on Dine Alone Records, [7] and released the first single from the album, "Bathed in Light". [8] In August 2020, the band announced a new album titled Fuck Art, which was released on January 1, 2021. [9] [10]

In 2023, the band released its fourth full-length album: Free Rein to Passions, which Kerrang! reviewer Aliya Chaudhry said "strikes a balance between joking around and being vulnerable." [11]

On April 16, 2025, the band announced that their fifth studio album, The Lash, which was released on July 25, 2025, through Dine Alone Records. [12]

Musical style

Music critics commonly label the band under the punk rock genre. The band mixes the swaggering riffs of hard rock with the attitude and energy of punk. [13] Despite these classifications, the band said in a 2015 interview with Vice that they don't define themselves as a punk band but rather define themselves as just a rock band. [14] In a 2023 interview with New Noise Magazine, however, frontman Luke Bentham walked back those comments. "When I originally held that view, I think that the term punk was a very loaded word in our circle of bands where it was very frowned upon to call yourself a punk band because that had to be an accolade that others bestowed upon us. It was a medal that you earned to be punk, and you couldn't call yourself punk. I don't believe in any of that crap anymore. But when you're 24, and you really care about the opinions of the people in your scene..." [15]

Band members

Current

Former

Timeline

The Dirty Nil

Discography

Studio albums

Compilations

EPs

Singles

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Dirty Nil: Who's Next?". Exclaim! , March 21, 2016.
  2. "Diana Panton and Dirty Nil take home Juno Awards this weekend". CBC Hamilton, April 2, 2017.
  3. "Review: The Dirty Nil are totally committed to the power of rock on Master Volume". NOW Toronto,
  4. "ROCKINGHAM: How The Dirty Nil achieved Master Volume". Hamilton Spectator, Luke Ottenhof, September 14, 2018
  5. "SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE DIRTY NIL - HIGHER POWER". The Spill Magazine. February 26, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  6. "The Dirty Nil Revisit Early Work for 'Minimum R&B' Compilation". Exclaim! , February 9, 2017.
  7. "The Dirty Nil Master Volume". Exclaim! Adam Feibel, published September 7, 2018
  8. "The Dirty Nil announce new album, premiere raucous "Bathed In Light": Exclusive". Billboard.
  9. Gregory, Allie (August 17, 2020). "The Dirty Nil Announce New Album 'Fuck Art'". Exclaim! . Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  10. Gregory, Allie (September 15, 2020). "The Dirty Nil Plot Virtual North American Tour, Detail 'Fuck Art'". Exclaim! . Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  11. Chaudhry, Aliya (May 25, 2023). "Album review The Dirty Nil Free Rein To Passions". Kerrang . Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  12. LaPierre, Megan (April 17, 2025). "The Dirty Nil detail new album 'The Lash,' share 'Gallop of the Hounds'". Exclaim!. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
  13. " The Dirty Nil". AllMusic Biography by John D. Buchanan
  14. "The Dirty Nil Is Not a Punk Band". Noisey , November 17, 2015.
  15. "Interview: Luke Bentham of The Dirty Nil Talks 'Free Reign to Passions'". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  16. "Mainstream Rock Songs – Week of December 15, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  17. "Alternative Airplay - Week of February 20, 2021". Billboard. Retrieved February 18, 2021.