Jakob Nowell Shares Playful Jakobs Castle Single 'Supervillain'

Burgeoning artist Jakob Nowell expands the Jakobs Castle universe with his solo project's new single “Supervillain”. The song marks the final preview of the upcoming Jakobs Castle debut album, ENTER: THE CASTLE, set to release on April 12 via Epitaph Records. 

Co-written by Nowell and Tim Armstrong (Rancid, Op Ivy), “Supervillain” features a playful pop twist on a rocksteady, laid-back groove. Sonically, the new track references Nowell's appreciation for mixing 90s nostalgia and internet subcultures with futuristic hyperpop as he creates his own musical signature as an artist.

Nowell reveals of the inventive and playful lyrics, “There's lots of tongue-in-cheek references to pop culture and comic book imagery, all wrapped up in the theme of a crazy parasocial fanatic personified as a supervillain.”

As the only child of the late Bradley Nowell of Sublime, one of the most influential bands of the 90s, Jakob's life was anything but charmed. After losing his father as a baby and growing up in an unstable household, he felt mostly alone throughout his early life and faced struggles with addiction as a young adult.

He credits discovering escapism in art, aided by the exploration of the internet's bubbling subcultures, as tools to find his community.  He explains, “Jakobs Castle is my way of sending out my own weak single into the void. If even one person understands the references and feels a connection, my work is complete.”

Crafting songs that reflect the soundtrack of his lifetime, ENTER: THE CASTLE delivers music that is equal parts catchy and weird, accessible yet unique. Jakobs Castle has already garnered critical acclaim since Nowell began dropping singles like “Time Traveler” and “Catch Me” ahead of the album's 2024 release. In addition to mentions in AltPress, Rolling Stone, SPIN and others, Relix describes the music as a mix of “Sublime's loose, natural vibe, OutKast's genre-defying party energy and the experimental beats of Gorillaz.”

Alongside producer and co-collaborator Jon Joseph (Børns, Caroline Rose), Nowell approached the 14 songs on his solo debut as an experiment to mix California's past with the mysteries of underground internet culture. With ENTER: THE CASTLE he offers a modernized take on punk rock, boasting an amalgamation of influences ranging from emo-rap to ska-punk and hyperpop.  “The goal of the project is infiltration,” he reveals. “I want to infiltrate different scenes and make very weird music that is also palatable.”

In addition to his solo work with Jakobs Castle, news broke in January that original Sublime members Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh will reunite with Jakob Nowell as the frontman of Sublime at this year's Coachella Music Festival. Furthermore, now more than six years sober himself, Jakob Nowell is a board member of The Nowell Family Foundation, a nonprofit offering addiction recovery services to the music community with a residential recovery facility dubbed Bradley's House.

 Jakobs Castle is currently in the final leg of a 40-date tour with G. Love & Special Sauce, concluding in Boulder, CO on March 16 at the Fox Theatre.

For concert tickets and more information, visit jakobscastle.com.

Jakobs Castle 2024 Tour Dates

Mar. 13, 2024 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up Aspen *

Mar. 14, 2024 – Steamboat Springs, CO– Strings Music Pavilion *

Mar. 15, 2024 – Fort Collins, CO – Aggie Theatre *

Mar. 16, 2024 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre  *

*with G. Love and Special Sauce

Photo by Rowan Daly

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