From the system-jolting opener “Daymare” to the final disquieting jangly chords of “Until We’re Dust,” Let Pain Be Your Guide — the debut full-length from Austin’s Portrayal of Guilt — is hands down one of the most diverse, brutal, and consistently affecting heavy music releases of this fast-fading year, boasting a sound and attack that calls to mind everything from Tragedy, Napalm Death, and Anaal Nathrakh to Fugazi, Hot Water Music, and Minor Threat.
Which is to say, this thing is a straight up motherfucker of an album — adventurous and progressive yet never at the expense of channeling pure primal rage and retribution-worthy hurt.
Let Pain Be Your Guide drops courtesy Gilead Media (U.S.)/Holy Roar (Europe) on November 16, but we’ve got an exclusive stream of the track “Among Friends” below to give you an idea of the unique badassery en route.
“There are many contributions to the sadness I’ve felt for as long as I can remember and witnessing ‘friends’ come and go for reasons I’ll never understand has helped me numb myself to this pain and understand that this is reality,” guitarist/vocalist Matt King tells Decibel. “It’s hard to believe in someone else after being let down endlessly.”
Live show dates:
NOV 6 – Austin, TX, The Lost Well
NOV 7 – Dallas, TX, Wits End
NOV 8 – Oklahoma City, OK, 89th Street – OKC
NOV 9 – Albuquerque, NM, Sister Bar
NOV 10 – Scottsdale, AZ, The Rogue
NOV 11 – Los Angeles, CA, The Lexington
NOV 12 – Oakland, CA, Elbo Room Jack London
NOV 13 – Sacramento, CA, Blue Lamp
NOV 15 – Seattle, WA, The Funhouse
NOV 16 – Portland, OR, High Water Mark
NOV 17 – Salt Lake City, UT, Diabolical Records
NOV 18 – Denver, CO, Mutiny
NOV 19 – Wichita Falls, TX, Iron Horse Pub
Album art: Chris Taylor (Pg.99, Pygmy Lush)
