'A Labour Of Love': Nerdlinger On Their Long-Awaited New Album 'Growing Up Is Getting Old'

Sydney melodic punk rockers Nerdlinger are back with a new, highly relatable album that’s arrived after seven years in the making: Growing Up Is Getting Old.

Following a string of impressive single releases, such as Quicksand, Hard Questions, Smashing Kebabs, and Moonshine / Bootlegs, Nerdlinger kicked off their new era with style, playing in Sydney, their first Melbourne show in six years, and at this year’s Dansonfest alongside Bodyjar and Press Club.

Now, it’s finally time to unveil a new record, and to celebrate, Nerdlinger have taken The Music behind the scenes, sharing a track-by-track rundown of Growing Up Is Getting Old.

Nerdlinger – Growing Up Is Getting Old

Overview

Growing Up Is Getting Old is a labour of love; not the “day in the yard landscaping” kind, but the “soul-tearing scream echoing through the maternity ward” kind.

Seven years in the making, this record came with more baggage than a UPS redeye; around 25 B-sides were tossed before the right ones stuck.

The title came to Tim in a sigh at the doctor’s office while on sick leave, poetic timing.

Track by Track

WWMCD

The first thing people want to know about this track is What does ‘WWMCD’ mean? That is something that has remained a secret until this very day. Antix still believes there is a C missing in that title, but hey… here we are.

"This isn't where it ends" is a fitting opening line for a record that took 7 years to get together.

Face Down at Five Dogs

A love song to the toxic relationship of touring; from minute one of day one to the final sweaty hug two weeks later. It looks back on the chaos with kindness.

It’s also literal; on tour in Queensland, The Decline dragged us to “the world’s most amazing hot dog stand.” At 2 a.m., surrounded by zombies in Fortitude Valley, Smiley Joe spots a bloke face-down outside Five Dogs; touchdown pose, dead to the world.

We did what any decent people would do; took selfies, left some hot dogs and loose change, and tucked him in with our Trendsetter EP. Ray Ray might’ve grabbed him a bottle of water.

Cognac Arrest

Following the story from FD@5D, this one’s about doing what you love, even if it’s killing you a bit; push through the heart attack.

Age brings wisdom, and a body falling apart like the hedges outside Five Dogs. It’s also a subtle nod to Pathetic, the call-and-response opener from Dude Ranch.

Smashing Kebabs

This sick puppy stretches a weird little “what if” thread into something darker. It ponders how far the ugly side of Australian nightlife might be if we had taken one more step toward the kind of gun-soaked culture you see in the States. Imagine if the Port Arthur reforms never happened. Imagine drunks with assault rifles instead of sloppy punches and kebabs hitting the pavement.

It’s about that tipping point where a fun night out goes postal and becomes something you can’t laugh off the next day, much worse than a splash of garlic sauce on your favourite black tee.

Moonshine / Bootlegs

Meet Larry; probably Irish, looks like a road-worn chimney sweep, swings a mean right hook, works 109 hours a week at the docks for a lump of coal. Back then, people were built tough. Fall off a bridge? Next man up. No flowers for the widow; labour’s cheap. But Larry fights on.

This track’s about life kicking you square in the face; dusting off, and grinning through the next round. If you’ve still got the grin, you win.

Hard Questions

Smiley Joe (yes, the drummer) wrote the guitars; so Scotty wrote lyrics in the voice of Brad Coley from Raised as Wolves. Brad’s a master of word-twisting; synonyms on synonyms until the meaning reappears in disguise.

So Scotty wrote about quitting your shitty job, channelling Coley. Ironically, he soon quit his own job and moved to Batemans Bay.

Battlegrounds (Hold Your Fire)

Originally called Iron Tim, a nod to Iron Chic’s influence. Tim wrote the riff, melody, and fragments of lyrics, but got stuck. Scotty, driving from Sydney to Batemans, finished the rest on the road.

Six weeks into a new job, living in the Moruya Motel, with a pregnant partner back home, it was a battle that couldn’t be lost, only let go.

Quicksand

We’re not a “message” band, but this one’s as close as it gets.

Growing up hiking the Royal National Park, we’d collect any litter we found. In the 2000s, it fit in one hand. By 2023, Scotty’s walk on Cronulla Beach filled three pockets and two fists.

Then came the rant: plastic straws are banned, yet drinks still come in plastic bottles. “Re-use me” thick bags replace single-use ones; just more plastic with a smiley globe. It’s bullshit. Don’t settle for token bans; just stop making plastic. Cans and glass worked fine. Rant over.

Something

An honest letter to a friend, admitting the end while wishing them well.

Auxiliary

If you haven’t heard Back to Wannyl Road by The Great Awake, do it. They wrote a love song about the house Antix and Scotty used to share.

Auxiliary was scribbled at 3:20 a.m.; Scotty half-cut, describing whatever was in the room. It meant nothing then, but now it’s a nostalgic look at that chapter; a fond reflection on fading memories. Side note, this was the first music Antix wrote for the band back in 2014. It was left off Happy Place, but it has finally found a home.

Condemned

This was written in the wake of losing a family member. It reflects the conflict between my own beliefs and the religious faith held by them and their family. While I don’t share the same conviction about an afterlife, I found myself hoping, if only for their peace, that there is something beyond this life.

Bike Jumps and the Youth of Today

Kids these days can be little shits. Scotty’s out weeding the lawn, feeling wholesome, watching kids with shovels build jumps at the park.

Two weeks later, trees are gone, signs tagged, and the park looks bombed. Song written.

Then he actually talked to them: “Hey guys, bit of rubbish here?”

 “It’s not ours, sir, but we’ll pick it up; can we use your bin?”

 Turns out they were legends. He even lent them shovels. Too bad the song was already done.

All For You

This is about writing a song for your best friend and finding the words you know they’re deserving of, getting to the end and saying, “No, this isn’t good enough, start again”.

The melody’s been with me since day one. The words, though, took time. People have a way with words, where as I have, not, way.

To my best friend, my partner, my wife (to be), this one’s for you.

Calypso

By this point, most of GUIGO was written, but we needed a closer.

The world was on fire: Gaza, Occupy Wall Street flashbacks, influencers at the beach. Calypso captures 2023’s mix of chaos and apathy: corporate greed, private jets, and collapsing humanity.

It’s dark lyrics wrapped in sunny rhythms; a long listen that doesn’t feel it. The outro nods to older Nerdlinger songs; a reminder to stay true to yourself, even when the world’s burning.

Buzzkill

The last song written for GUIGO: a letter from Scotty to himself.

It’s about breaking up with the part of you that’s poisoning you. When something’s been your life for so long, letting go feels impossible, but some things are better left under the streetlights.

Growing Up Is Getting Old is out now.