Metal Bulletin Zine: Confessions of a Traitor

Confessions of a Traitor

This Pain Will Serve You

Facedown Records

16 May 2025

01 - Starve 2:14

02 - Fatal Frame 3:19

03 - Doomsayer 3:45

04 - Midnight Sun 3:28

05 - Still Haunted 3:26

06 - Love You Left Behind 3:28

07 - Noble Bloom 3:34

08 - Hail Mary 4:00

09 - Let It Consume Me 3:30

10 - The Sins I'm Yet To Answer For 3:06

11 - Half Life 2:33

The sound on this new album depends on a grooving, rhythmic heaviness, with chugging as a central pillar of the songs. This midpaced chugging encourages, I would say, audiences into motion, to move around in some way. It is tons of fun. It should, I would think, put a listener in a better mood. One person might mosh with joy, or another might simply rock back and forth matching the heavy grooves. There is also an abundance of melodies happening. The robust heavy grooves, with the melancholic guitar melodies, and with the addition of background sounds of melodic synths/keys (or something similar) makes the album such a treat.

The vocals are quite a contrast to the ears. On one hand, the extreme vocals can go low and guttural in some spots, and then go into higher, screeching registers. Whichever way we look at it, it is rather harsh growling, and depending on the listeners' tastes, the extreme vocals may be a favorite element, or it might just as well be that some listeners will need a certain amount of time of adjustment to the extreme vocals. There is, in fact, quite a bit of screaming going on, of course, and these vocals run the gamut of subgenres with screaming and growling, like metalcore, hardcore, deathcore and death metal. In general, the band sound is categorized as metalcore.

There are also melodic vocals. Some of the singing is pleasant and gentle, while other parts of the singing are sung with considerable lung strength. Some of the melodic vocals sound a bit like a choir, with multiple voices or layers to be heard. Sometimes the melodic vocals are separate segments appearing at a different time from the extreme vocals, but at other times they both are present simultaneously: extreme and melodic both at once, which may delight some listeners or overwhelm others with a feeling of too much stimulation. Perhaps give the album a few listens before rushing to form an opinion. What seems like too much on a first listen may end up sounding good by the fourth listen.

Formed in 2013 in London, England, the band seems to have the following discography before the 2025 album, according to Wikipedia.

2014 Seasons (EP)

2017 Illuminate (EP)

2019 Guided

2021 Press Start to Play (EP)

2022 Punishing Myself Before God Does

I do not believe that I have heard the 2014 recording, but I have heard all the other ones on that list above. This new album is a smoother listening experience than the earlier, younger more hardcore/metal material, but the new songs are also heavier and more melodic. I would not say that the melancholic elements are as present on the older material as on this new album. The melancholic elements have added another angle for their songwriting. Overall, I like the new material as much as the older music. At this point in their career, they are moving towards a new phase in their sound, I would say. It's a cool transition towards a more expansive range that repurposes what some people consider metalcore in 2025.

Lyrically, the band itself explains, “This record is a heartfelt tribute to those who have experienced profound loss to those who continue to grieve the ones they love. It stands as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, inviting listeners to find comfort and solidarity in faith, hope, and the shared experience of grief. We grow from trauma. We let it serve us.” Despite the heaviness and the screamed vocals, the music is meant to be a positive experience, to have listeners come away in a better state of mind than when they first heard the album. Mission accomplished.

CONFESSIONS OF A TRAITOR "Noble Bloom" Official Music Video