I don’t recall how I got into this band. But what I do know is that I have almost collected every single piece of vinyl they have put out. That being given I wanted to know more about this band. So I bought the first ‘Under Pressure’ DVD and learned some things about the band. I Also decided to share this with you while showing some records.
Betrayed started out in 2004 with the will of friends to play early 80’s Straight-Edge Hardcore alike music. To be more specific like the bands Minor Threat and Dag Nasty. The two leading figures of the band are Todd Jones (guitarist) and Aram Arslanian (vocals).
Todd Jones seems to be some kind of mastermind behind the band, he writes the music and reflects about the organization and concept of the band. Although the vocalist has also got a straight-forward opinion about things and straight-edge in particular they seemed to get along very well in the beginning and formed some kind of symbiosis.
The vocalist tell us about his youth where he grew up with the idea of needing alcohol and drugs to get a better life or to solve social problems. This was the mentality where he grew up in. He didn’t feel like there was a choice, alcohol and drugs were the only way to fit in. At an older age he realized that this is not the truth and felt betrayed. Hence the name of the band. The main message is that he wants people to realize that there is a choice…
Being a Straight-Edge band in the world of hardcore nowadays is not exactly easy. The kids say; “who needs another Straight-Edge band?” The band realizes this and tells us that Straight-Edge in the world is a huge minority. They want to send their message not only for hardcore but for the world in general. They have succeeded in bringing this message for the kids because there is no other band that kids like to mosh on as on Betrayed.
Their first record was a 6 song ep on Bridge Nine Records called “Addiction”.
This ep also exists on blue vinyl and to black versions from different pressings. There also was a pressing error. Very few (5 pieces) of the blue were green and Bridge Nine only noticed this on a later moment, so there could be some mailed out.
In my quest of collecting Betrayed records I discovered this highly sought after band Champion. Hearing this music on the Champion/Betrayed split 7″ is kinda a revelation. I can surely understand why the American kids like this so much.
I also learned that the Betrayed vocalist Aram plays in this band. So this is kinda his split. It seems to me also a very logical split.
What you see from left to right is the swirl vinyl, which is the Betrayed colour, This is the colour that Betrayed sold at shows. The splatter version is the pre-order version.And the clear is the most common version. Finally the clear one with the different sleeve is the last show edition. I’m only missing the Champion colour which is on split wax.
They recorded also an LP with help of notorious producer Kurt Ballou from Godcity Studio’s called ‘Substance’.
As you can see there are three colours pressed. The pink is the record release and the blue is the pre-order version. The white is in the first pressing as well as in the second pressing.
The band split up in 2006 because Todd had different views on the lyrical content of Aram. Aram still wanted it to be a Straight-Edge band, while Todd already had done this in his previous band CARRY ON. So the symbiosis wasn’t there any more. Also Aram had had his times in Champion. The motivation lessened and this project wilted.
As a side note I would like to point out that Rivalry Records has this confusing way of making second pressings. The colour of the most common version from the first pressing is often used for the second pressing also. What you get is (almost) identical copies. I say almost because there is a very small detail that differs the pressings. Namely a small ‘II’ insignia is found on the B-label of the second pressing.
Check the label owner’s WordPress blog “Seeking The Simple” for a complete overview:
They toured Europe earlier this year with No Turning Back, I'm unsure as to whether that means they are back together again or if that was a one-off thing. Saw em in Antwerp, where Aram's speeches were definitely one of that evening's highlights. As a band they don't do a whole lot for me tho.
I never had the luck to see the band live, but on the DVD Aram's speeches are definitely a highlight to. There are some who like Betrayed in Belgium (had some who bought Betrayed stuff from me) but it is certainly more the American kids who totally dig this (together with Champion and Carry On).To me it surely has some magic, but not always. Sometimes they just can't get my attention when I play their record. Depends on the mood I guess. The Addiction ep still is the best work they did in my opinion.As to why I'm posting this: I just wanted to tell that this music is what kids totally dig in the US. Also it is the kind of music that is played best in America, somehow I feel that this is the trademark music for them. Especially the constant search for playing the sound of the historical bands is definitely totally something US-like. And somehow I wanted to draw the differences between the different approaches of the Euro and the US bands.I agree that there are other bands in America to. Some that play a metallic sound for instance (Hatebreed, Reign Supreme, etc.) but this Dag Nasty and Minor Threat sounding bands is in my humble opinion what America does best. Get what I mean??