Trivium – Gig Review 15th April @ Max Watts, Brisbane

Posted on April 16, 2016 by Paul 'Browny' Brown

Trivium
Max Watts, Brisbane
April 15th, 2016
Supported by Orpheus Omega & Eternal Rest

You know what the world needs? More metal! That was the general vibe last night as Brisbane metal fans packed into the ever so crowded venue Max Watts to witness one of the world’s best metal acts rip up the stage and please our desire for headbanging greatness. The last time Trivium graced us with their presence was back in 2014 when they co-headlined with In Flames following their appearance at Soundwave that same year, but last night it seemed as if no time had passed as metal fans were once again reunited with these lords of the genre.

The evening started fairly late (I mistimed my arrival and missed the opening act Eternal Rest) but managed to get inside the venue just as Orpheus Omega took to the stage. These guys went hard from the minute the music started all the way until their set had ended. Their luscious locks of hair thrashed harder than they did and drummer Matt Themelco at times looked like he was barely even smashing his kit, however the sound he was putting out was mesmerising but it was Keswick Gallagher‘s keytar which stole the show. Great set by a band to keep an eye on in future years.

Trivium – April 15th @ Max Watts, Brisbane

As the night kicked on the background variety of music got progressively better as we were waiting for Trivium to hit the stage but it wasn’t until Iron Maiden‘s “Run To The Hills” started playing that the whole crowd got involved singing and suddenly became ready for what was about to be unleashed on us. As the lights dimmed and Maiden finished the backing tape for “Snøfall” began and we knew shit was about to go down. The curtains opened to a mass of bellowing screams and metal horns as Trivium hit the stage and went straight into new track “Silence in the Snow” evoking a mass sing-a-long of epic proportions. Even though the crowd seemed so into it, there was barely anyone moving around at this point which only last a few minutes as “Into the Mouth of Hell we March” kick-started any suppressed energy hidden by the audience. The room then got 100% more into it and instantaneously the venue suddenly got 1000 x hotter in the process. Standing in front of the soundboard seem like we were standing in a sauna and you couldn’t escape the heat (but why would you?), up next “Strife” allowed us to catch our breath momentarily before the mosh pit opened up and it looked like everyone was belting into each other.

“Rain” followed with Paul Wandtke‘s double kicking brutally assaulting our senses and “Blind Leading the Blind” made the crowd clap along more furiously, not to mention head-bang into oblivion. The crowd favourite “Anthem (We Are The Fire)” sent everyone nuts with metal rage and there were bodies flying all over the joint and bashing into each other, all in good fun. As the Trivium chants grew louder from the whole venue, front-man Matt Heafy takes a moment to address the crowd and the thank yous begin for all the fans who have supported the band over the years, Matt also discusses our country’s fucked up political situation which segues perfectly into the track “Built to Fall” but it was the Ascendancy single “Like Like to the Flies” which heavily brought the place down, lucky for us we were only at the halfway mark by this point so there was plenty more to keep us entertained. “Watch the World Burn” and “Requiem” followed suit next before the epic sounding “Dead and Gone” showcased what the band were capable of in front of a live audience, they were feeding off how much we all were loving it and vice versa.

Trivium – April 15th @ Max Watts, Brisbane

“Kirisute Gomen” and “Down from the Sky” flowed flawlessly from one song to another making way for the heavy head-banging favourite “Until the World Goes Cold” complete with a guitar battle between Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu and audience singing that could send a young child deaf. Following this the mosh-pit grows in size to almost take up their entire section in front of the stage as an appreciation circle pit is formed for “Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr“, at this point no one is safe from the revolving mass of humans pulling in more and more people in with each rotation. By this point you can tell everyone is starting to get tired from going way too hard for the past hour so we were allowed to catch our breath and watch in awe as Paul Wandtke smashed his kit with one of the best drum solos I’ve laid eyes on. Not one person was distracted by his performance and when he finished he deserved his standing ovation of applause from us all.

Trivium – April 15th @ Max Watts, Brisbane

But just when we thought the night was ending, as of us knew there was something missing that only Trivium at this point could fix, that thing was the song “In Waves” which quickly filled everyone inside Max Watts with enough energy to mosh, bash into each other and sing louder than hey ever had before. Words can’t explain how not only the punters were enjoying this moment, but the band could tell they had pleased a massive amount of the metal community enough to last until the next band comes to town. Trivium are certainly at the top of their game and so very much deserve their place in the metal genre. We all talk about bands back in the day who are still amazing after all these years and these boys will be spoken about for years and years to come. If you missed this tour, well you are certainly failing hard at life. Sydney, you’re up tonight!

Setlist

Snøfall (backing tape)
Silence in the Snow
Into the Mouth of Hell We March
Strife
Rain
Blind Leading the Blind
Anthem (We Are the Fire)
Built to Fall
Like Light to the Flies
Watch the World Burn
Requiem
Dead and Gone
Kirisute Gomen
Down from the Sky
Until the World Goes Cold
Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr
Drum Solo
Encore:
Capsizing the Sea (backing tape)
In Waves