Portrayal Of Guilt

Though rooted in the screamo aesthetic that Converge and Pg. 99 helped define at the turn of the millennium, Portrayal of Guilt steer clear of rote imitation by weaving idiosyncratic production touches throughout a catalog that remains both fluid and unyielding. Evidence surfaces on cuts such as “Daymare,” “The One,” and “One Last Taste of Heaven,” alongside the full-lengths Let Pain Be Your Guide from 2018 and We Are Always Alone from 2021.

The Austin, Texas outfit coalesced from the remnants of the local hardcore band Illustrations. After wrapping a support run with Fall of Troy in 2016, frontman Matt King and drummer James Beveridge recruited Lyed bassist Blake Given and electronics specialist Rick Flores to launch the new project. Their self-titled 2017 EP quickly generated touring opportunities alongside Majority Rule and Street Sects—the latter collaboration yielding a split EP in 2018—while the lathe-cut 5” single “Chamber of Misery (Pt. I)” previewed Let Pain Be Your Guide, whose distinctive sonics and King’s commanding delivery drew widespread notice within post-hardcore and screamo circles.

By 2019 the lineup had tightened to a trio of King, Beveridge, and bassist Alex Stanfield. Emerging from the pandemic’s peak restrictions, the group delivered We Are Always Alone in 2021, which featured guest appearances by Majority Rule’s Matt Michel and Pg. 99’s Chris Taylor. Further activity that year included a split with Chat Pile and the release of their third album, Christfucker. In 2023 Devil Music arrived, sequencing five tracks first in distorted black-metal settings and then in string-laden chamber versions. Halloween 2024 brought Christfucker II, a set of remixes drawn from the 2021 record.