Introduction
There is something powerful about a band returning to a song that clearly never left them. Swedish band NERVED have revisited “Takin' Its Toll”, a track that first appeared on their 2008 album Finally Nerved, and the result now stands on their album Kompromat. For this new version, the band brought in two very different guests: Sabaton and Civil War guitarist Thobbe Englund and Russian rapper MAD-A. The outcome is a striking collision of alternative metal, melodic heaviness and rap — and a story that reaches far deeper than the music itself.
Artist background
“Takin' Its Toll” was originally written by Marcus Hanser and NERVED's then-vocalist Johan Ekelund, and it carries a personal weight that has followed the band ever since. The lyrics were inspired by Johan's encounter with a friend who was, in many ways, willingly trapped in heroin addiction. As the band put it, that strength came at a price — it was takin' its toll. The collaboration with Thobbe Englund is personal as well as musical: he is a close friend of Marcus Hanser, and both live in Falun, Sweden, the very city where Sabaton was formed. For listeners exploring the overlap between industrial metal, melodic heaviness and rap, NERVED's sound offers familiar territory for fans of Rammstein, Clawfinger and Within Temptation.
Review of the song
The new version of “Takin' Its Toll” brings two distinct collaborators into the band's alternative metal framework, and each of them changes the song in their own way. Thobbe Englund, who also plays in Civil War, delivers a wildly unrestrained yet melodic shred solo that takes the song to another level. MAD-A, meanwhile, brings another dimension to the track — and, above all, to its lyrics. Her Russian-language verses add another perspective, leaving listeners room to interpret their connection to the original lyrics. The Russian lyrics are included in the lyric video on NERVED's YouTube channel, and the band openly invite listeners to read between the lines: do you hear double meanings?
Musical analysis
Musically, the track balances the heaviness and melody that define NERVED's alternative metal sound, and the two guests pull it in opposite but complementary directions. Englund's solo is the kind that never stays polite — unrestrained in its attack yet firmly melodic at its core — and it lifts the arrangement precisely where the song needs it most. MAD-A's contribution, as the band themselves note, follows a very Russian art of saying more than you appear to. Her contribution is remarkably bold: rather than simply repeating the song's theme, her verses open a second layer of meaning that the listener is free to connect with the original lyrics — or not. The contrast between singing, metal riffing and rap gives the song a tension that keeps it alive from start to finish.
Why listeners should pay attention
“Takin' Its Toll” is more than a remake. It is a song about addiction and its price, reshaped through a collaboration that adds a genuinely new voice to the story. The fact that the band admit they are no longer able to reach MAD-A only deepens the air of mystery surrounding her part — her words now stand in the song as something whose full meaning may never be fully explained. For listeners who appreciate metal that dares to mix styles and languages, and that trusts its audience to listen carefully, this is a release worth spending real time with.
Conclusion
With this new version of “Takin' Its Toll”, NERVED have honoured their own history while giving the song a fresh and fearless life. Thobbe Englund's unrestrained solo, MAD-A's boldly layered Russian verses and the band's melodic heavy metal core come together into something that is both a tribute to 2008 and a statement for today. A song about a strength that came at a price has found exactly the voices it needed.
Recommended for fans of
Rammstein, Clawfinger and Within Temptation — and anyone drawn to metal where industrial weight, melodic heaviness and rap meet without compromise.
Follow the artist
Official lyric video: https://youtu.be/QpGuMQnr41c
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nerved_official
Contact: band@nerved.com
Source: Press information provided by NERVED.
© Tomi Perrakoski / Metal Madness Weekly
