ALBUM REVIEW: What The Dead Men Say – Trivium

There’s few bands that embody the principle of sonic evolution quite like TRIVIUM. With a thrashy metalcore foundation, the quartet, led by mainstay members Matt Heafy, Paulo Gregoletto and Corey Beaulieu, have managed to make almost every single album in their discography completely different from the last – though this hasn’t always worked to the band’s advantage. For every god-tier record like Ascendancy or Shogun, there’s a fall from grace like The Crusade or Vengeance Falls. But this constant sonic evolution has allowed the band to experiment, and find themselves. 2017’s The Sin & The Sentence was an incredible example of a band finally carving out their own identity, and its eagerly awaited follow-up, What The Dead Men Say, sees TRIVIUM double down on the incredible progress they’ve made.

There’s a lot of weight on TRIVIUM‘s shoulders. With a reputation for having such a varied discography, after the fantastic The Sin & The Sentence the pressure was on to deliver something equally impressive, and to build upon the progress they’ve made. The introductory IX immediately builds the atmosphere and leads seamlessly into What The Dead Men Say‘s title track. Colossal grooves lead into sombre melodies as Heafy‘s voice is sounding better than ever, and Alex Bent instantly makes his presence felt with air-tight abuse of his drum kit. There’s a lot of promise here that TRIVIUM are indeed going to continue the strength they showed on The Sin & The Sentence, but can they keep it up across the whole record?

They certainly can. Singles Catastrophist and Amongst The Shadows and The Stones are perfect examples of how strong TRIVIUM are at this stage in their career. Dancing between DECAPITATED-sized grooves Silence in the Snow-esque, arena levelling melodies, Catastrophist is an ear-worm if ever there was one. Blinding solo work drives the lead single into its closing third where the band ramp up the speed and aggression, bring some proggy touches to the riff work. Meanwhile, Amongst The Shadows and The Stones is a clear album highlight, ripped straight from the Shogun playbook. Carrying a far more prog-thrash sound than the preceding tracks, Amongst The Shadows and The Stones crashes in with an incredible intensity and a real Kirisute Gomen vibe, to wonderful results.

Gregoletto flexes his chops with Bleed Into Me, leading the track with a meaty bass-line while Heafy croons. A far more melody-driven number, Bleed Into Me is a nice change of pace after the furious opening barrage, while following The Defiant immediately recalls the glory of Acendancy with its early-2000s metalcore riffing and huge chorus work. Much of the proggier elements of TRIVIUM‘s current sound are absent, in favour of a more simplistic, IRON MAIDEN-embedded metalcore beast, but the more simplistic approach works wonders for the flow of What The Dead Men Say. Another clear stand-out and another example of Shogun‘s impact on TRIVIUM‘s modern sound, Sickness Unto You is a progressive thrash rager. Bent really outdoes himself here, going manic with double bass and blast beats to a level unheard of in TRIVIUM before, and Beaulieu delivers one of the most spellbinding solos of What The Dead Men Say with ease.

Coming into the final push of What The Dead Men Say, Scattering The Ashes is a melancholic, bittersweet fare, Gregoletto again shining with his prominent bass work and beautiful vocal harmonies with Heafy. Short, to-the-point and melody heavy, it offers a moment of ease before Bending The Arc to Fear roars into life. Here, we see flourishes of Heafy‘s love of black metal bleed into the riff work – an element that proved to be a highlight of The Sin & The Sentence, and a welcome addition here. This is one of the most crushing offerings on What The Dead Men Say, light on melody, heavy on the prog, melodic death metal and black metal influences in TRIVIUM‘s arsenal. The swing between Heafy‘s vocals and Beaulieu‘s lead-bursts feels almost reminiscent of RUSH‘s By-Tor and the Snow Dog, while the closing riffs are infectious in their brutality. The Ones We Leave Behind ends What The Dead Men Say on a high note, keeping the intensity high right to the last second, hook-heavy, breakneck in pace and unrelenting.

For the first time since Ascendancy, TRIVIUM have built upon the foundations of their previous album rather than taking a wild left turn, and the results speak for themselves. The Sin & The Sentence was a thunderous return to form for the band – What The Dead Men Say sees the quartet doubling down on the progress they have made, tightening their new-found style up considerably and executing it fantastically. What The Dead Men Say does lack the immediate appeal of The Sin & the Sentence, but devoting time to the record opens up new levels of brilliance with every listen. TRIVIUM are already one of the biggest names in heavy music – if they continue the path of excellence they have established with The Sin & The Sentence and What The Dead Men Say it would come as no surprise to see them reach heights not seen since the 1980s.

Rating: 9/10

What the Dead Men Say is set for release April 24th via Roadrunner Records. 

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