Review Summary: British hardcore's contribution to the metalcore madness
Guilt Trip are a metallic hardcore 5-peice from Manchester, UK, who have been gathering a fair amount of hype after tearing it up at festivals across Europe, and this is their biggest album yet.
The biggest differentiator for Guilt Trip among their peers is their clear influence and reverence for the nu-metal period. This is not inherently a bad thing, and does provide something to make them stand out among a sea of other young bands playing the same style of music, and this manifests in a few ways. Firstly, last year they signed to Roadrunner, who I did not even know were still around. That should signal what to expect in terms of production and overall presentation - heavy while still being very accessible. Secondly, frontman Jay Valentine's vocal delivery is closer to what you'd expect on a rap metal album than hardcore. There is a passion present in his vocals, but it is largely stuck at the same register and same cadence the entire length of this album, absent are the thrills of hardcore screams, growls or any real variety. Thirdly, they even rope in Sonny from POD for a guest spot on Resurrected, who to his credit sounds game.
Beyond this, Guilt Trip are a band concerned with one thing and one thing only - the pit. Armour For Angels is 11 tracks (plus an intermission) of mosh ragers designed to get bodies moving and heads banging, and on that front they are pretty successful. The energy level is high throughout and there are plenty of groovy, high tempo riffs, pinched squeals and breakdowns to be had. Your head will likely bop. Guitars are down-tuned without feeling entirely synthetic or djent-adjacent. Again, this very much operates at a level that is fun and 'heavy enough' while still being accessible to newcomers. Gateway band territory. Whether this is a good thing or not I leave to your taste.
This singular focus is ultimately the albums biggest weakness however. Every track is essentially the same with only the most minor of differences. Same speed, same energy, same performances. The only minor deviation comes with the more spacious, nu-metal influenced arrangements on 'Veins'. For the band to evolve, they could really do with adding more hooks, more catchy choruses, more diversity in their tracklist, more curveballs, more anything. They have the energy and will no doubt continue to be a fun live act, which is where it feels like their priorities lie.
If metallic hardcore is not your thing, keep on walking; but if you're looking for one more release to simply turn your brain off to and bang your head to or hit the gym, Guilt Trip have got another fun outing here that may get your blood pumping.
