
Trivium “In Waves” Album + DVD Deluxe Version Review
2 By Jason Matthew
Trivium is a band that has seemed to divide the metal community since their inception. Metal purists have many times in the past mocked their more radio-friendly efforts, and singer Matt Heafy’s undeniably Hetfield
-inspired vocals. I’ve been an on and off fan; while I absolutely loved the majority of their debut Ember To Inferno
and their major label debut, Ascendancy
, I was extremely turned off by The Crusade
‘s overly rock-anthemish, trying-way-too-hard to be Metallica
vibe. After that came Shogun
, an album in which they tried to redeem themselves for The Crusade
, bringing back the screaming that was absent on the previous album, while adding heavier riffs and drumming. That was a great turnaround from the blandness of The Crusade
, but they went a little too far in the opposite, darker direction- I found myself missing the melody that was prevalent on Ascendancy
. Now in 2011, Trivium
claims to have “found their sound” and struck a balance, bringing the best of both worlds to the table.
I have to agree. This is their best album since Ascendancy.
“Capsizing The Sea” starts off the album, with a distorted piano followed by some drumming and riffing, building into a cool battle march theme. I immediately recognized the piano melody from “In Waves
“, the single that was being used to promote the album, which is the next track. I bought the album based on hearing this track alone; its staccato Fear Factory
-esque riffing and drumming behind alternating screams and melodic singing is undeniably catchy. It also features some blistering solos- Trivium
has always had a knack for striking the perfect balance between shredding and melody in guitar solos. Far from being showy afterthoughts, their solos are almost always memorable and hum-able.
“Inception of the End” is less Fear Factory
and more standard Trivium
. It has some fast riffing and hard hitting drums throughout, with a nicely harmonized chorus. It also has a strange-at-first vocal melody over blast beats near the end, but it kinda works. “Dusk Dismantled
” is next, and is mostly forgettable, with some Black metal-ish low spoken vocals peppered throughout that don’t mesh with the band’s style, but it does have a scorching solo.
“Watch the World Burn” sounds a bit like a Crusades B-side, with that rock-anthem vibe. It feels even more out of place being played right after the previous, Black Metal-esque track. “Black” fares better, sounding more like a track off of Shogun
.
“Built To Fall” is one of the standout tracks in my eyes. It is clean vocals-heavy, and that will turn off some, but I think it has some very solid riffing and the cleans are done tastefully- it isn’t overbearing like on “Watch The World Burn”.
“Caustic Are The Ties That Bind” is another standard Trivium offering, but a great one. It balances the heaviness and melody well, with a very catchy Bullet For My Valentine
-esque midsection. “A Grey So Dark
” is another very radio-friendly track, but quite possibly my favorite track on the album. The chorus and accompanying riffage is undeniably catchy, and Heafy does a great job with the vocals here.
The extended version with the DVD has a cover of Sepultura’s “Slave New World“, and it’s definitely still a kick ass track.
It should be noted that the DVD included in the extended edition is not just a throwaway disk, but rather has an 8 song, very well mixed “Live In the Studio” session. Very cool idea. It also has a pretty long documentary of the recording of every instrument, which is especially interesting for audiophiles like myself.
If you’ve ever been a fan of Trivium, I highly recommend you pick this album up.
[easyreview]
[easyreview title=”Trivium- In Waves” cat1title=”Music” cat1detail=”Trivium almost strike that perfect balance between melody and heaviness here, but there are a few bland tracks peppered throughout. However the good tracks really shine, and there is standout vocal,drum,bass and guitar work here, complimented by great production and mixing.” cat1rating=”4.0″ summary=”4/5 Solid”]
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About The Author
Editor-in-Chief and founder of Metal Arcade.
I’m also liking this album so far. I pretty much agree on all your points. I also think a grey so dark may be my favorite song off the album. When I first heard it I thought it was way too radio friendly, but after repeated listens it’s totally stuck in my head. The album does have a few miss-steps, so I’d probably give it a 3/5. It is much better then the past 2 albums and a return to form for these guys
I think a 3 would be a bit harsh, like I said in the review there are a couple bad songs, but the ones that are good are really pretty awesome.