Artist: Trivium, Chimaira, Whitechapel & Rise To Remain

Venue: 02 Academy, Newcastle  

Date: 10 March 2010  

Arriving at the O2 for another night of metal slightly later than I had planned, I managed to catch the last couple of songs of a decent set by rising, Metal Hammer-endorsed stars Rise To Remain, who were openers tonight.
 
Austin Dickinson will know all about being a decent frontman, as his dad is none other than Iron Maiden legend and all round entertainer Bruce Dickinson.  You could tell from this short set that he has learnt some tricks of the trade, as the band started off the first circle pits of the night.  The band have an array of impressive tunes in their arsenal and seemed to be giving their all and really enjoying themselves despite the fact that their set was only 20 minutes long.  A band who I'm sure we'll see again headlining in the not-too-distant future.
 
Next up were Whitechapel, hailing from Knoxville, Tennessee.  A blend of black metal, grindcore and hardcore, and possibly the heaviest band on the bill tonight, Whitechapel blasted away the cobwebs with a scintillating set that set off more circle pits.  The inclusion of 3 guitarists augmented their sound, and when reaching the heaviest track of all, 'Darkest Day of Man', the crowd were bouncing.  This type of band are not usually my cup of tea but I was impressed with the punch of the songs and the unique blend of styles that they had. 

Chimaira followed, and were as impressive now as they were when they first hit our shores almost a decade ago.  The band rattled through a selection of old and new cuts, most notably the crushing 'Severed' from the early 'Pass Out Of Existence' album, and the mosh-pit pleasers 'Power Trip' and 'Pure Hatred' from 2005's breakthrough album, 'The Impossibility of Reason'.

Frontman Mark Hunter has some of the most powerful screaming pipes in the business and an instantly recognisable and unique vocal style, which was complemented on one track by keyboard player Chris Spiccuzza assisting with singing duties.  

No doubt a lot of fans here tonight would have turned up to see this band, and they certainly delivered in spades.  Hopefully back soon for a headlining set!

Headliners Trivium, surely one of the most hard working metal bands of the last decade, were playing Newcastle for the first time since the release of their latest (and best) album Shogun almost 18 months ago.
 
Beginning with the track 'Rain' from their breakthrough release 'Ascendancy', the band (Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu on guitars and vocals, and Paulo Gregoleeto on bass) looked more confident than ever and new drummer Nick Augusto seems to be settling in nicely after the recent departure of Travis Smith.
 
It's hard to believe the band are just into their 20's as they showed as much class and guitar chops as their older peers, and their Iron Maiden/Metallica influenced grooves had the crowd bouncing, not least by the third track, the rip-roaring screamer 'Like Light To Flies', surely one of the bands heaviest tracks.  The first track to be played from Shogun was a personal favourite of mine, 'Throes of Perdition', which was followed swiftly by another classic of the future 'Down From the Sky'.

Zipping between tracks old and new (including the pounding punch of 'Pillars of Serpents' from debut album 'Ember to Inferno', to the almost pop like chorus of 'Anthem') the band debuted new track 'Shattering The Skies Above', which seemed to plod a bit, in all honesty, but was followed up by an electric cover of Sepultura's classic 'Slave New World'.
 
'Dying In Your Arms' was dedicated to all the ladies in the room and served as a breather before the final double knockout blow of two of the bands heavier tracks, the Maiden influenced 'Gunshot To The Head of Trepidation' and 'Pull Harder on The Strings of Your Martyr', which let loose one of the biggest mosh pits ever seen at this venue!

A superb night of metal, and it's great to see the headliners going from strength to strength.
 
Trivium setlist: The End of Everything (intro), Rain, Drowned And Torn Asunder, Like Light To Flies, Throes of Perdition, Down From The Sky, Ascendancy, Pillars of Serpents, Insurrection, 

Anthem, Shattering The Skies Above, Slave New World, Dying In Your Arms, A Gunshot To The Head of Trepidation, Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr.

Review by: Dan

 

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