Racetraitor

Last updated
Racetraitor
Origin Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres
Years active1996–1999, 2016–present
Labels
Members
  • Andy Hurley
  • Mani Mostofi
  • Brent Decker
  • Dan Binaei
  • Andrea Black
Past members
  • Karl Hlavinka
  • Eric Bartholomae
  • Pete Wentz
  • Rich Miles

Racetraitor is an American hardcore punk and metal band originally from Chicago, Illinois. The band attracted controversy in the late 1990s, before any releases, as a result of their radical take on racial politics, which focused on ideas like systemic racism and white privilege before they were widely discussed topics in popular or underground culture. [1] Racetraitor was also a key proto-metalcore act, one of the first few bands to incorporate extreme metal influences, such as death metal, grindcore, and doom metal, into hardcore.

Contents

In 1998, the band released their album Burn the Idol of the White Messiah. The album was followed by a split EP with Indianapolis band Burn It Down called Make Them Talk in 1999 before an initial breakup. The band has reformed as of 2016 and has since released four new EPs and two LPs, 2042 and "Creation and the Timeless Order of Things".

Early career

Racetraitor was formed in 1996 by drummer Karl Hlavinka, guitarist Daniel Binaei, bassist Brent Decker, and vocalist Mani Mostofi, playing powerviolence/grindcore music. Early songs were extremely short and heavily filled with noise. The songs were recorded in a demo that was not publicly released until 2016. [2]

In the early shows, Racetraitor took a more confrontational approach to spreading social justice ideas. The band became known for calling their own audience members "crackers", which the band explained as not a racial category but a term for people who perpetuate racism and exploitation in their day-to-day lives. [3] During a performance in Columbus, Ohio during this period, the band members criticized members of Anti-Racist Action for focusing on white nationalist groups like the Ku Klux Klan rather than systemic issues such as institutional racism, leading to a physical altercation between the groups. [4]

Burn the Idol and Make Them Talk

A year into the band, Andy Hurley joined as a drummer and Hlavinka began performing as a guitarist. The band noted that when Hurley joined the band, they changed sounds to match his technical ability, shifting from a noisy powerviolence band to a style closer to 1990s death metal. [5] Hlavinka soon quit, only to return to the band on and off over the years. In 1997, the band went into Sonic Iguana studios Lafayette Indiana to record their debut. In 1998, Uprising Records released Burn the Idol of the White Messiah. Decker soon left the group; a number of musicians played bass in the band temporarily, including Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz. [4]

Reunion and 2042

In 2016, Racetraitor announced via Facebook that a new remixed version of Burn the Idol would be re-released on vinyl. In October 2016, the band played its first show in 17 years with Detroit hardcore band Earthmover. In September 2016, the group released two new songs: "By the Time I Get to Pennsylvania" and "Damaged". [6] Hurley attributed the band's reformation to the current political situation. [7] “We had discussed playing a show or doing something else over the years, but nostalgia was never all that motivating, so the idea died,” Hurley explained. “But with everything happening in the past couple of years, from the way things heated up in Ferguson, Missouri, to the rise in xenophobia and bigotry reflected by the popularity of Donald Trump, making new music with Racetraitor felt important again.” [8]

In July 2017, British label Carry the Weight Records released a reissue of Burn the Idol of the White Messiah. The record was remixed by Dallas Thomas from Pelican. The same month, Organized Crime Records released the EP Invisible Battles Against Invisible Fortresses. The band supported the record with shows across the US, including the This is Hardcore festival, and a small European tour with Sect, which included a stop at Fluff Fest in the Czech Republic. [9]

Racetraitor announced their signing to Good Fight Music in October 2018, releasing their second full-length 2042 with lead single "BLK XMAS." [10] 2042 received strong critical acclaim, landing in Vice Magazine's list of 100 Best Albums of 2018. [11] Vice call the record "a barn-burning blast of metallic hardcore fury that screams by with guns blazing and fists held high." [12] The record's title "2042" referred to the year when the US census predicts that white Americans become less than 51 percent of the population. Mostofi explained that "their decision to nab this particular title as a nod to that particular brand of fragile white fear, and a thumbed nose at the inflammatory xenophobic, Islamophobic rhetoric fueling the right wing’s terror." [12]

In February 2020, the band joined Swedish post-hardcore legends Refused on the east coast leg of their US tour. [13]

Split records and Creation and the Timeless Order of Things

In April 2023, Racetraitor released a split EP with Neckbeard Deathcamp, Closet Witch, and Haggathorn. [14]

After the murder of George Floyd, Racetraitor organized the "Shut It Down" compilation which raised over 30,000 dollars for the Movement for Black Lives. [15] The compilation featured 48 well received tracks, including from prominent metal and hardcore acts such as Sunn O))), Primitive Man, Xibalba, Minority Threat, Thou, War on Women (band), Misery Signals, Burn, Amygdala, Terminal Nation, Modern Life is War, and more. [16]

Message and image

The band attracted controversy in the late 1990s as a result of their radical take on racial politics. [17] As a result of the attention and before releasing any music, Racetraitor was featured on the covers of Maximumrocknroll and HeartattaCk , two of the most influential punk and hardcore publications at the time. [17] Their political advocacy centered around anti-racism and anti-colonialism, discussing issues such as white privilege, class privilege, the war on drugs, biases in the US criminal justice system, economic globalization, and US foreign policy. The name of the band is a reappropriation of the pejorative term "race traitor" used by white American racists as a reference to using one's social and economic privilege to pursue social justice. The band's members were vegan and straight edge. After they developed a profile in the U.S. hardcore scene, Racetraitor's communication style became less confrontational. In 1999, Tacoma, Washington metalcore band Botch released the song "C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'" on their 1999 album We Are the Romans , a critique of Racetraitor's attitude to race politics. [4]

Members

Current members

Former members

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earth Crisis</span> American hardcore band

Earth Crisis is an American metallic hardcore band from Syracuse, New York, active from 1989 until 2001, reuniting in 2007. Since 1993 the band's longest serving members are vocalist Karl Buechner, lead guitarist Scott Crouse, bassist Ian Edwards and drummer Dennis Merrick. Their third and current rhythm guitarist Erick Edwards joined the band in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screamo</span> Aggressive subgenre of emo

Screamo is an aggressive subgenre of emo that emerged in the early 1990s and emphasizes "willfully experimental dissonance and dynamics". San Diego-based bands Heroin and Antioch Arrow pioneered the genre in the early 1990s, and it was developed in the late 1990s mainly by bands from the East Coast of the United States such as Pg. 99, Orchid, Saetia, and I Hate Myself. Screamo is strongly influenced by hardcore punk and characterized by the use of screamed vocals. Lyrical themes usually include emotional pain, death, romance, and human rights. The term "screamo" has frequently been mistaken as referring to any music with screaming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shai Hulud</span> American metalcore band

Shai Hulud is an American metalcore band formed in Pompano Beach, Florida, in 1995, and later based in Poughkeepsie, New York. The band is named after the giant sandworms in Frank Herbert's novel Dune.

Chicago developed a hardcore punk scene in the early 1980s. Chicago Hardcore is now characterized by fast, hardcore punk rock with familiar sounds to Boston, New York, and Los Angeles hardcore. Chicago Hardcore was, and still is, characterized by fast punk beats, angry protest lyrics, and melodic singing. In addition, the Chicago hardcore sound is considered one of the pioneering sounds in the creation of post-hardcore music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Hurley</span> American musician

Andrew John Hurley is an American musician. He is the drummer for the rock band Fall Out Boy. Prior to Fall Out Boy, Hurley played in several hardcore punk bands. He joined Fall Out Boy as the full-time drummer in 2003 and was in the band's lineup until its hiatus in 2009. Following that, he formed the heavy metal supergroup The Damned Things with Fall Out Boy guitarist Joe Trohman; the group went on hiatus after its debut album, Ironiclast (2010), due to band members focusing on their original bands' new album cycles. Hurley moved on to hardcore punk band Enabler which released a debut album and toured in 2012.

Burn It Down was an American metalcore band from Indianapolis, Indiana, whose album, Let the Dead Bury the Dead, was released in 2000 on Escape Artist Records. Produced by Ed Rose, the album garnered a 4 "K" review in Kerrang! and a 4/5 in Alternative Press. It followed two EPs and a split CD with Racetraitor. Burn It Down toured with Shadows Fall, In Flames, Dillinger Escape Plan and Zao before disbanding. They played their final show at the 2001 Hellfest and a reunion show in 2005.

Creation Is Crucifixion is a technical metalcore band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The group originally formed under the name Chapter in 1995, but changed the name to Creation Is Crucifixion in 1997. The band was known for its complicated sound, which varied from ambient noise to more complex pieces. Their lyrical themes often dealt with technology and various functions of society, such as politics and religion.

Arma Angelus was a metalcore band from Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1998 and disbanded in 2002. Members of the band were Pete Wentz, Tim McIlrath, Jay Jancetic, Daniel Binaei, Adam Bishop and Timothy Miller.

Project Rocket was an American pop punk band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2002. The band consisted of members Andy Hurley, T.J. Minich, Kyle Johnson, Noah Nickel and Seth Lingebrigtson. The members originally played in hardcore, political metalcore and punk rock bands such as Racetraitor, Spitalfield, 7 Angels 7 Plagues, Knockout, killtheslavemaster, The Kill Pill and Vegan Reich before forming Project Rocket to develop their own pop punk and emo sound.

Merauder is an American metalcore band from New York City, formed in 1990.

Crossover thrash is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and hardcore punk. Other genres on the same continuum, such as metalcore and grindcore, may overlap with crossover thrash.

Starkweather is an American heavy metal band from Philadelphia formed in 1989. They have a complex experimental metal sound often including use of dissonance, intricate tempo changes and avant-garde sensibilities. Starkweather helped pioneer the hardcore punk/heavy metal crossover sound that would later be known as "metalcore", as well as being a major influence on the mathcore subgenre. They have influenced many of today's top selling hardcore/metal bands such as Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Mastodon and Coalesce among many others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Fox (musician)</span> Musical artist

Matthew Ian Fox is an American musician, founding member and a current lead guitarist for the hardcore punk band Shai Hulud and his side project Zombie Apocalypse.

Kill Your Idols is an American hardcore punk band from New York, active from 1995 through 2007 and again from 2013 to the present. They were signed to SideOneDummy Records. Their releases on SideOne were Funeral for a Feeling (2001), a split with 7 Seconds in 2004, and From Companionship to Competition (2005). Other notable releases by the band were No Gimmicks Needed and This Is Just The Beginning... which were released on Blackout! Records. The band released several 7-inch EPs, splits with other bands, multiple compilation tracks, and two full-length LPs in their 11-year run. Most of their records were released on vinyl as well as compact disc. Some were released on different colors of vinyl, different sleeve covers, hand numbered tour presses, and picture discs, making their records a favorite among collectors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nails (band)</span> American hardcore punk band

Nails is an American hardcore punk band from Oxnard, California. The group was formed in 2009 by frontman Todd Jones, formerly the guitarist of Terror, along with bassist John Gianelli and drummer Taylor Young of Disgrace. They released their debut EP Obscene Humanity in 2009, followed by the studio albums Unsilent Death (2010), Abandon All Life (2013) and You Will Never Be One of Us (2016), and a split EP with Full of Hell. Nails have achieved widespread notoriety and critical acclaim for their savage and intense sound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lody Kong</span> American sludge metal band

Lody Kong is an American sludge metal band from Phoenix, Arizona, formed in 2011. The band is known for being led by brothers Igor and Zyon Cavalera, both sons of former Sepultura and current Soulfly frontman Max Cavalera. The band has been inactive since 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The White Noise</span> American punk rock band

The White Noise was an American punk rock band from Dallas, Texas, later based in Los Angeles, California. Formed in 2010 under the name Set the Sun by guitarist and vocalist David Southern and drummer Alex Summers, the band released two EPs and a series of singles while still based in Dallas. By 2013, Southern was left the sole founding member and recruited vocalist Shawn Walker and guitarist Josh "KJ" Strock. This lineup would relocate to Los Angeles and change their name to the White Noise. In total, the band released three EPs, in addition to one studio album, 2017's AM/PM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capitalist Casualties</span> American musical band

Capitalist Casualties were an American powerviolence / hardcore band. They formed in Rohnert Park, CA around 1986 and had their first concert in 1987 in Santa Rosa, California They have released multiple records, including many splits with other powerviolence / hardcore bands, and have toured nationally and internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jesus Piece (band)</span> American metalcore band

Jesus Piece is an American metalcore band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed in 2015. The band signed to Southern Lord Records in 2018 with the release of their debut Only Self. They have since toured with acts such as Code Orange, Knocked Loose, and Ghostemane. Their second studio album, ...So Unknown, was released in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zulu (band)</span> American hardcore punk band

Zulu is an American hardcore punk band formed in Los Angeles in 2019. Beginning as a solo project by multi–instrumentalist and principal vocalist Anaiah Lei, the band grew to also include Dez Yusuf (guitar), Braxton Marcellous (guitar) and Satchel Brown (bass). Zulu has released two EPs in addition to their 2023 debut album A New Tomorrow. In a 2023 article, Metal Hammer described them as the year's "most vital hardcore band".

References

  1. ↑ "Hardcore Legends Racetraitor Are on a Mission to Defeat White Supremacy".
  2. ↑ "Demo 1996, by RACETRAITOR".
  3. ↑ "Part 2.2: When Acting as a Particle: First-Wave Metalcore (1995 - 2000)".
  4. 1 2 3 Welch, Ben. Fall Out Boy - Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name of This Book So We Wouldn't Get Sued.
  5. ↑ "RACETRAITOR announce new LP; comment on classic debut "Burn the Idol of the White Messiah"". 7 September 2018.
  6. ↑ Adams, Gregory (September 27, 2016). "Fall Out Boy Drummer Andy Hurley's Racetraitor Return with Comeback Single". Exclaim! . Archived from the original on September 29, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Racetraitor release new music, announce reunion show". Lambgoat . September 27, 2016. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  8. ↑ "The Return of Racetraitor". 15 March 2019.
  9. ↑ "Fluff Fest 2017 details". 24 April 2017.
  10. ↑ "Hear Hardcore Vets Racetraitor Skewer Racist America with New Song "BLK XMAS"". 5 September 2018.
  11. ↑ "The 100 Best Albums of 2018".
  12. 1 2 "Hardcore Legends Racetraitor Are on a Mission to Defeat White Supremacy".
  13. ↑ "Refused, Youth Code & Racetraitor @ Brooklyn Steel (Pics)".
  14. ↑ "As Mad as Hell: A Review of the new 4-Way Split by Racetraitor, Closet Witch, Neckbeard Deathcamp, and Haggathorn - CVLT Nation". 30 April 2020.
  15. ↑ "Shut it Down: Benefit for the Movement for Black Lives, by Shut It Down Comp".
  16. ↑ "Hear New 'Shut It Down' Compilation Featuring Sunn O))), Thou, Rwake, Xibalba and More". 4 September 2020.
  17. 1 2 Kamiński, Karol (7 September 2018). "RACETRAITOR announce new LP; comment on classic debut LP" . Retrieved 6 April 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.