As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to prevent bands from touring and putting on shows, artists have become more creative with alternative methods allowing them to do what they love and share their music with fans. Trivium has always been a band that cares deeply about their fans and always looking for innovative avenues to further their career. It was no surprise when they announced their Global Livestream Concert: A Light or A Distant Mirror. Frontman Matthew Heafy has been an advocate for live-streaming as he continues to grow his popular Twitch channel, where he would often Livestream the band’s shows while on the road. The group also plans on giving a portion of the proceeds to the music therapy program at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children.
This event was unique in the aspect that it was not your typical Zoom-style Livestream. Trivium brought their A-game and had a full production with an arena-style visual show. The only thing missing were the fans, as the band played to an empty venue. As weird as it may have been for them, it didn’t take anything away from the experience while fans watched from home.
The group played a killer headline set that clocked in over an hour featuring live debut singles from the band’s latest release, What The Dead Men Say. Every Trivium song translates well live, but the new tracks were by far the best of the night. Perhaps these Florida metal masters practiced these songs more due to their live debut. Regardless, the intensity and technical proficiency drummer Alex Bent brings behind the kit was incredible and showed when playing the newer material compared to their earlier work. While watching Bent play songs from Ascendancy or Silence in The Snow, he seemed more relaxed than when performing songs from The Sin and The Sentence or What The Dead Men Say.
The production was done very well with multiple camera angles that kept you engaged during the entire performance. The mix was perfect, and every member was able to be heard without becoming too muddy. The band did have one mishap when Alex broke something on his kit, but luckily Matt was able to fill the void and speak to the audience.
Overall, this was a great experience. The band was able to sell over 12,000 tickets, making it evident that this is something the fans want. Having Sylosis open the show with their performance in the United Kingdom was an added bonus and creates a lot of potential for bands looking to do this in the future. Hopefully, more groups can make events like this happen in the future. Luckily, when asked about releasing the performance during his Twitch stream, bassist Paolo Greggoleto said the band has plans on releasing the show in the near future.
Grab Trivium’s What The Dead Men Say here!
Setlist:
01) IX (live debut)
02) What the Dead Men Say (live debut)
03) Down From the Sky
04) Catastrophist (live debut)
05) The Heart From Your Hate
06) Forsake Not the Dream
07) The Defiant (live debut)
08) Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr
09) Until the World Goes Cold
10) Beyond Oblivion
-The End of Everything
11) Rain
12) Amongst the Shadows & the Stones (live debut)
13) Sickness Unto You (live debut)
14) Strife
15) Bleed Into Me (live debut)
16) Throes of Perdition
17) The Sin and the Sentence
-Capsizing the Sea
18) In Waves
