LISTEN: Cody Jinks’ “Dying Trying”

Cody Jinks’ new song, “Dying Trying,” is debuted today. Listen here. The song is the second unveiled from Jinks’ new metal album, None The Wiser, which he created with his band Caned By Nod and will be released November 12. In conjunction with None The Wiser, Jinks will also release a new solo country record, Mercy, the same day, both via his independent label, Late August Records. Both produced and engineered by Edward Spear (with co-production on Mercy by Jinks’ longtime bandmate Joshua Thompson) and recorded simultaneously at Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, Texas, the two records represent Jinks’ uniqueness as an artist, demonstrating his rare ability to successfully create across genres. Although varying sonically and thematically, Mercy and None The Wiser are tied together through Jinks’ signature songwriting, which takes yet another step forward with even more perception and grit displayed on both albums. Ahead of the releases, Jinks recently unveiled two additional songs, one from each record: “All It Cost Me Was Everything” from Mercy and “Middle Finger” from None The Wiser.

With Mercy, Jinks continues to put forth his unique eclectic country sound, incorporating a hybrid of soulful elements, including rock, blues, classic country, metal and more. Written entirely during quarantine, Jinks used his time at home to further develop his already accomplished songwriting skills. Working with both longtime friends and heroes, Mercy features collaborations with artists such as Chris Shiflett, Kendell Marvel, Adam Hood, TN Jet, David Matsler, Josh Morningstar, Greg C. Jones and Ward Davis, as well as Jinks’ wife, Rebecca.

Meanwhile, None The Wiser takes its cues from arena-caliber classic rock, thrash metal and psychedelic-tinged grungeand marks a full circle moment for Jinks, who performed in a metal band two decades ago before making the shift to country music. The ten tracks on None The Wiser, all of which he wrote with his past bandmate Ben Heffley, are a mix of old and new, some written as recently as this year, while others date back to the early 2000s.
Reflecting on the two projects, Jinks shares, “It was very different recording them at the same time. Literally, it was being in one studio and walking next door and going from this beautiful country song that we’re doing to just this really angry metal song, flipping a switch,” and continues, “The actual art of writing was the only thing I really had to focus on to keep myself sane…the song comes first. If I’m not writing a great song, then I’m dead in the water. I really, really focused on being a better wordsmith.”