Review Summary: If 'time is money' then both have been wasted.
You know some bands just don’t seem to get it. While bands like For the Fallen Dreams, Suffokate, and Recon continue to beat a dead horse, even Bury Your Dead know that the day of the single note, dropped A-flat, ‘chug-jun’ pattern of hardcore metal is not only old and stale, its unwelcome. Enter California ‘hardcore’ band
Betrayal (not to be confused with Washington based band Betrayed) and they come to the table playing exactly what has been heard ever since Cover Your Tracks was released in 2002. Ladies and gentlemen of Sputnikmusic I present to you the chug-fest that is
The People Fallacy.
Don’t get me wrong, these guys are not all that terrible. While their
self-titled track does little to help then get anywhere in the genre, the vocalist Brendan Foley definitely has potential to truly shine in future albums. The band itself has the capability to become the next The Ghost Inside if they just decided to drop the ‘tough-guy’ approach all together. From then incessant clapping felt on ‘
Time is Money’ to the unoriginal and flat-out boring chug patterns felt on ‘
Pull the Plug’ that intentionally take a huge bite off of For the Fallen Dreams (and why the hell would you want to bite off them anyways?) Betrayal suffer from a lack of originality and substance and try to make up for it in nearly 30 minutes of breakdown upon breakdown with your occasional filler for the hardcore dancers.
In conclusion, for any avid critic and individuals who can appreciate modern day hardcore, avoid this album. While The Peoples Fallacy definitely isn’t your next Elysia or (god willing) your next Emmure, Betrayal do nothing to advance themselves above their counterparts. Content to live in the shadows of greater bands like The Ghost Inside or even Suffokate, Betrayal have a glimmer of hope in their boring and subpar sound that can be capitalized on if they just drop the beef head attitude. While this is hopeful and wishful thinking, I do not see any good and bright future for this band. I heard Rise Records was looking for new bands…