Racetraitor is an American metalcore band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1996. The band's radical take on racial politics made them one of the most controversial groups in the 1990s music scene and gained them recognition from magazines such as Maximumrocknroll and HeartattaCk prior to having any official releases. They released their debut, Burn The Idol of the White Messiah, through Uprising Records in 1998, followed by a split EP, Make Them Talk, on Trustkill with Indianapolis band Burn It Down in 1999 before an initial breakup. Early Racetraitor music could be characterized as powerviolence and grindcore, featuring an abundance of noise and blast beats. Songs often timed less than a minute, which gave their early shows the quality of containing more spoken word than music. Eventually, their 1990s hardcore, extreme metal, especially death metal, and metalcore influences came to the foreground and Racetraitor's songs became longer and more defined. Along with bands like Abnegation and Day of Suffering, Racetraitor because one of the forerunners of the vegan metal sound and an early pioneer of metalcore. The band has reformed as of 2016, releasing two EPs featuring new music on Organized Crime Records. Their second full length 2042 was released by Good Fight Music in October 2018. Members are vegan and straight edge. Lyrical content revolves around anti-racism and anti-colonialism, influenced by ideologies such as black nationalism and Islam. The band has released recordings on Uprising Records, Trustkill, Organized Crime, Contraband, and Good Fight Music. Racetraitor (at one time or another) has shared members with Fall Out Boy, Vegan Reich, Rise Against, Killtheslavemaster, Project Rocket, The Kill Pill, Arma Angelus. Current members: Mani Mostofi – lead vocals Andrea Black – guitar Daniel Binaei – guitar Brent Decker – bass Andrew Hurley – drums Former members: Eric Bartholomae – guitar Karl Hlavinka – guitar, bass, drums (initially) Pete Wentz – bass Rich Miles – bass