Trail of Lies - Only the Strong (White Vinyl)

Syracuse, NY hardcore band Trail of Lies initially formed in 2011 with a vision - “play hard and heavy music that evokes the most primal of feelings in its listeners”. Over time line-ups changed, commitments changed, but in 2024 they are back relentless as ever with their upcoming album Only The Strong set for release July 19th through Triple B Records. Marking Trail of Lies’ first new music since 2019’s Fearless single, the band has set out with with an intention of synthesizing the most potent and striking elements of its former lives. Today they share the substantially hard-hitting single and title track “Only The Strong.” The song, “centered on doing whatever you can to survive and succeed”, packs furious vocals with a chanting nature that is sure to incite some intense pile ons in a live setting. The guitars and drums feed into that primitive nature the band set out to create, pummeling the listener throughout.

On Only The Strong, Trail Of Lies collaborated with producer Andy Nelson of Bricktop Recording in Chicago, IL living and recording in the studio for a week before sending the completed album to Brad Boatright at Audiosiege for mastering. During the process, the band who shares members with Regulate, Candy, and Naysayer, had a number of friends feature on the record including Pat Flynn, Scott Vogel, Danny Diablo, Sebastian Paba, and Aldo Felix. The eleven songs are crushing and visceral, diving into a NYHC meets metallic sound that’s executed aggressive and tight.

Speaking on the album expansive themes and lyrics, vocalist Tom Damiano had this to say:

“Only the Strong is an album that is meant to be an exploration of what it means to be strong. In both our world and music, we are constantly bombarded with images and expectations of success that are pre-defined and pre-determined by institutions that don’t give a fuck about you or your well-being. Each member of the band, in their own unique way, have spent the last 5 years cultivating our respective ‘strongest’ selves, and I think that shines through on this record – it’s still us, just stronger. Being strong is so much more than the physical manifestation of someone’s body – real strength is a mindset that allows a person to constantly adapt and evolve into newer and better versions of yourself.

Each song on the record is a testament to different forms of strength. Some songs are about how being strong means not giving up despite everyone trying to tell you you can’t do something – while others are about how strength is an investment in rejecting institutions and people who profit off of the destruction of our earth and humanity. In any context, the record is ultimately about improvement, and that as a band, but more importantly human beings, we want to associate with people who feel and act the same.”