[2] The song "Dead to You" is described by Young as being "breakup music for tough guys", focusing on "a relationship that can't work no matter how hard you try".

[4][5] "Before the Mourning", the title track from the album, talks about "focus[ing] on the good times" had with someone that people have lost, "the double entendre within the band name".

The band made the decision to open the album with "The Deception", as the "happy sounding intro is a complete 180 from the rest of the track" which "drops into a heavy driving groove which doesn't let up".

The reviewer then talks about "Another Sleepless Night",[10] a track that discusses the end of one of Ryan's relationships and his self-medicating to cope,[42] then returning the listener to hard metal as the guitars fade and the drums kick.

Rhode concludes by stating that the band "is precise like a striking cobra with the elegance of a panther, musically and vocally" and that "each track is like Christmas; as they unfold, the beauty within is seen".

[42] BraveWords stated that the band "definitely understand[s] their roots", and that "Possessing a timeless grasp on melody, propensity for airtight riffs, and emotionally palpable vocals, they deliver technical, taught, and tough metal that's as memorable as it is magnetic".

"[43] Anthony Giles of The Pit: Sports & Entertainment and The Oakland Post describes the composition as "intricate, with enough punch to draw new faces into the scene" being a "hard-hitting mixture of chugging breakdowns, bass drops, loud and angry screams, and some heartfelt, mid-tone clean vocals".

[44][45] Bill Jolliemore of National Rock Review describes the work as bass and drums that "snake from simple to complex time signatures with a mix of straight forward and syncopated beats providing a solid foundation", with guitars "adding layers of chugging rhythm, and slow to shredding melodic leads".

[46] Bassist Paul McBride is an editor for Bass Musician Magazine[61] and also performs with American heavy metal band The Killing Hours from Miami, Florida.