When a show has a line that snakes to the back of the venue, down the other side of the road and around the corner, you know you’re going to be in for an incredible night. These sorts of crowds rarely appear in Brisbane, so when it does happen, especially with another international band playing across town, it must be something good.
Local support Eternal Rest opened the proceedings and performed really well to an already packed room. The death metallers were a good choice to open the night, with a sound that was stuck somewhere between Nile and Behemoth. Probably the biggest shame for the band was their short set length; just as fans seemed to be getting into the music, they had to pull the plug. However, given that there were two bands yet to come, there was still plenty of metal on the cards that night.
National support Orpheus Omega were obviously selected for this tour for a reason, and from the very minute they graced the stage with their presence, an eclectic air of excitement hit the venue. The band’s melodic death metal spoke for itself, but some of the antics of the band members were phenomenal. Within a minute of the opening song, the bassist was down in the photo-pit playing in the fans’ faces, and the key-tar player continually jumped off the risers. Orpheus Omega’s intense 30-minute set got the crowd nicely warmed up, and with the exception of a failing key-tar wireless pack for the final two songs, the set was absolutely flawless.
Next up were the night’s headliners, and there is little that needs to be said about Trivium, apart from the fact that if you haven’t seen them live, you definitely need to. For a show to be so packed on a night when Wednesday 13 was playing on the other side of town is really indicative of the pull of this great band.
Whoever came up with the idea of running Iron Maiden’s “Run to the Hills” prior to the band launching into “Snofall” certainly needs credit for having the crowd peaking in anticipation. The only time I have ever heard “Run to the Hills” that loud before is during Maiden’s own performance of it. What an incredible way to set up the show!
The crowd erupted the moment Trivium walked out on stage, setting the tone for the rest of the night. Delving straight into “Silence in the Snow” was a textbook move, but immediately following that up with “Into the Mouth of Hell We March”” was a welcome blind-side that instantly garnered a heightened response from the crowd. Where other bands wouldn’t be worried about the safety of their fans, Matt Heafy and his team took everything to the next level by not only telling fans to have a drink and a break if they felt tired or exhausted, but also giving water bottles out to the crowd at every intermission. This caring and endearing nature towards the fans enabled everyone to have an enjoyable night free from incident.
The night followed much of the same pattern of newer then older material, with a fairly even spread of track from each of the band’s seven albums. The result was a set-list that catered to every single fan present that night, and was just one very intrinsic way that Trivium shaped their show: by placing songs strategically to either speed things up or slow things down, and get the maximum crowd response on the night. Closing out with the now classic “In Waves” elicited the greatest crowd response and culminated a night that could only be described as perfection.
With every special band, there comes a moment when you as a fan realize exactly what is it that reverberates with millions of other fans worldwide. When you watch Trivium perform like they did tonight, with the passion and enamor they have for their fans, it becomes easy to see why there is such a fondness for this quartet. Trivium has oft been labelled as the ‘next big torchbearer for metal’, and honestly. if they keep performing like they did in Brisbane, they are certainly proving that to the world. If you ever have the chance to see Trivium live and you don’t take it, you need to ask yourselves some serious questions.
Check out our Photo Gallery of the event here!
