Wednesday, 24 March, 2010
As the years fly by at breath-stealing speed, the aim of every self-respecting metal band must surely be to stake a claim for immortality; to carve their name with pride into metal’s metaphorical Mount Rushmore. In the modern era, as countless new (and not so new) bands jostle for position at the front of the grid, it becomes ever harder to pick the wheat from the chaff, the weak from the strong. But amid such a swarm of mediocrity, the greatest bands always rise effortlessly to the top, building in confidence and momentum with each incremental step forward, learning from their mistakes, gaining nourishment and focus from their triumphs and growing, with gathering speed, into something that truly matters. It’s 2008 and Trivium fit that description perfectly. One listen to their jaw-dropping new album, the mighty Shogun, will be all the convincing you need that their time has arrived.
“We wrote this album exactly the way we all wanted to,” says frontman Matt Heafy. “We really did our own thing this time. When people check it out, they’ll realize that we’re not an exclusive band. We’re not doing this for one specific kind of person. If you want to come to a show and rock out, that’s what we’re here for. We’re just four normal guys who just happen to be able to play metal for lots of cool people around the world.”
The Trivium story began in earnest with the release of their Roadrunner debut, 2005’s Ascendancy album; the perfect way to introduce the band – Heafy, guitarist Corey Beaulieu, bassist Paolo Gregoletto and drummer Travis Smith - to a newly revitalized global metal scene. The album exhibited great depth and musicality, and immediately set the band apart from the pack, turning them into one of the most widely hailed bands the genre had produced in years.
In the US, Europe, Japan and Australia – and particularly in the UK, where Trivium shot from nowhere to conquering the annual Download Festival at Castle Donington and becoming a major headlining act - Heafy and co. were making major waves, touring relentlessly around the globe and building up a huge international fan base.