Nicotine Dolls announce self-titled album

Today, NYC-bred rockers Nicotine Dolls announce their self-titled sophomore album, out October 23 via BMG. Co-produced by frontman Sam Cieri and renowned hitmaker Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne), Nicotine Dolls pairs blown-out guitars, pummeling rhythms, and electrifying vocals with fearless songwriting, capturing the explosive chemistry between Cieri, guitarist John Newsome and drummer Abel Tabares.

Out today is lead single “Enemy,” a galvanizing refusal to bear responsibility for someone else’s self-destruction, channeling a cathartic fury by way of its barrage of blistering riffs. “‘Enemy’ came from being blamed by one of my best friends for choices he made that blew up his own life,” says Cieri. “I’d never written a f*ck-you song before, but that’s exactly what it is. A lot of this record was about confronting things I’d allowed myself to become a victim to, and finally calling them out.”

The band will perform at Blue Stone Arts & Music Festival in Sandy Springs, GA on September 25 before embarking on a UK/EU tour this October:

2026 Tour Dates

• September 25 – Blue Stone Arts & Music Festival – Sandy Springs, GA
• September 28 – The Garage – Glasgow, UK
• September 30 – Manchester Academy – Manchester, UK
• October 1 – Electric Brixton – London, UK
• October 3-4 – The Workmans Club – Dublin, IE
• October 6 – Nouveau Casino – Paris, FR
• October 7 – Melkweg – Amsterdam, NL
• October 9 – Säälchen – Berlin, DE
• October 11 – Uebel & Gefährlich – Hamburg, DE
• October 13 – Hansa 39 – München, DE

Before forming Nicotine Dolls in 2018, Cieri made ends meet by busking in the New York City subway for nearly three years, eventually scoring the lead role in the Tony Award-winning musical Once. Over the years, he steadily built the band from the ground up (at one point working six jobs to fund their recording and tours), cultivating a devoted following.

Eventually, to become the band they always wanted to be, they had to blow up the old blueprint. The process included reconfiguring their lineup, scrapping a completed album and reconnecting with the reckless abandon that first made Cieri fall in love with rock & roll. Soon after recording an intended follow-up to their debut album “An Attempt at Romantic”, Nicotine Dolls hit the road for their first tour with Newsome in the lineup and quickly rediscovered the visceral thrill of rock music.

“We were having so much fun playing with John, and it reminded me of the way rock & roll made me feel as a teenager,” Cieri recalls. “I realized that for a long time I’d been making the music I thought other people wanted to hear, instead of making music that I truly love.”

Newly signed to BMG, the band decided to shelve their first attempt at a sophomore album and start over. “I’d always wanted to make a record like the one we ended up with, but never had the right band to pull it off,” says Cieri. “Somehow, everything came together and it felt like magic. That’s why it’s self-titled. To me, it’s the first real Nicotine Dolls record.”

Recorded in Nashville, “Nicotine Dolls” embodies a newfound audacity born from a revelation early in the writing process. While working with legendary songwriter and producer Desmond Child (Aerosmith, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts), Cieri shared a demo of a song he had written about longing to save a troubled relationship by running away to an idealized California. Along with changing the song’s title from “Waiting for California” to “Here to California,” Nicotine Dolls transformed the track into an exhilarating anthem about choosing forward motion over regret. 

Across its 12 songs, the “Nicotine Dolls” album brings the same moody bravado to an unfiltered exploration of desire, regret and survival. The band moves from the fuzzed-out swagger of “Gimme Sympathy” to the simmering defiance of “To the Wolves” and the groove-heavy frustration of “Little Games,” attacking each song with equal parts unbridled energy and emotional force. At one point, Newsome tore through a guitar solo with bleeding fingers. 

“When we finished the record, I cried. I’d never had that happen before,” says Cieri. “I believe in our band, and this is the closest I’ve ever come to making the record I always knew we could make.”

Visit https://nicotinedolls.com/ for updates on tour dates and more.