Whether you take the band's credo 'Guns, God, and Straight Edge' seriously or not, New York's Blackout Rage is a serious band. Featuring members of Meltdown and Forfeit, the uncompromising and hardedge stance the band has taken harkens back to the days of Judge, and more recently to bands like Embrace Today. Each metallic, pummeling song is a line drawn, a gauntlet thrown, and the band seems ready to defend their lifestyle and beliefs against the current trends that have turned hardcore into a circus of Hot Topic-outfitted kids and image-driven bands wearing matching outfits while synchronizing guitar moves. Pick a side, they have.