Trivium supporting The Maiden at the M.E.N
I'm not the biggest Iron Maiden fan. Yup, there I said it. I texted the ex before coming to this gig and was told I was "allowed to enjoy Maiden but the jury was out on Trivium". Now that was harsh I thought. I was looking forward to Trivium the most - a chance to get battered and bruised in a large circle pit. However, my opinion suffered a total reversal.
Sitting rather high up in the M.E.N and looking down on the main floor, I had a birds-eye of the the carnage I was expecting to unfold. Trivium's performance at Download and similar gigs have always been adrenaline pumping. Sadly, this was not the case at all. As "Gunshot To The Head of Trepidation" came along, I could feel my pen tapping and my feet stomping. For a brief period I was disappointed I wasn't down at the front surfing over the barrier but then... no-one else was. Now, this is perhaps their biggest track and if hardly any pits are going, something is wrong. Looking down at the crowd I thought "I've started bigger pits in Academy 3"!
The reason? At first I thought the drumming or bass was off. The wholesome sound was missing. In the end it seemed both a combination of misplaced guitars and a decline in Heffy's vocals. The strength of Trivium has always been their counterpoint guitar and vocal style; heavy growling and clean lyrics. In this incursion, Heffy couldn't manage to keep the styles distinct. That, and the guitar work seemed mis-timed.
Things picked up with "Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr". Much more bouncing and a couple of circle pits, though the poor guy did have to ask for them. It's a pity that the whole gig lacked something, since it was dedicated to a small boy who had died from cancer two days earlier. Maybe, in fairness, a crowd mainly around to see Iron Maiden isn't going to enjoy Trivium to the same extent. Perhaps Trivium couldn't be arsed with playing a meagre 35-40 minute set. Whatever it was, the magic was missing from this performance. Maybe on a headline tour, they'll recapture what they have lost.
I'm off to sob quietly whist hugging my SG!