Band : Trivium
Album Title : Shogun
Label : Roadrunner Records
Distribution : CNR – Concreteweb Promotion Office.
Release date : October 2008
Review : CD

“Shogun” is the fourth studio album of the thrash metal band Trivium.
The band was formed in 2000 in Orlando, Florida and earned success with the albums “Ascendancy” (2005) and “The Crusade” (2006).
On these albums, Trivium demonstrated their undeniable talents and technical qualities, but some critics considered them as a Metallica rip-of.
I didn’t agree and gave a raving review of Trivium’s “The Crusade”.
And now there is the follow-up, “Shogun”, an album that needs multiple listening sessions, because it is not easy to see through, the album has to grow on you.
Of course, the typical Trivium ingredients like for instance the catchy riffs, the recognizable melodic refrains, the thrilling twin guitar passages are omnipresent, but the big difference with the previous album is in the way of singing. There is less melodic singing like on “The Crusade” and instead we have the return of Matt Heafy’s raw screaming vocals.
Maybe this change of course came as a reaction to the criticism, but I think Trivium have managed well to find a balance between melodic singing and screaming.
Other difference is the production, this time done by Nick Raskulinecz (for instance Foo Fighters, Stone Sour, Rush, Velvet Revolver, Shadows Fall, Marilyn Manson, Death Angel, Coheed & Cambria) and not by Jason Suecof who did the previous two Trivium albums.
“Shogun” contains 14 songs, has a playing time of 80 minutes and the inspiration for (most of) the lyrics was found in the Japanese and Greek mythology..
Highlights are the opening track "Kirisute Gomen", the first single “Down From The Sky”, "Into The Mouth Of Hell We March", “Throes Of Perdition”, “The Calamity”, "Like Callisto To A Star In Heaven" and the title track “Shogun”, an epic song that takes 12 minutes.
As bonus tracks, “Poison, The Knife or The Noose”, “Upon The Shores” and a magnificent version of Iron Maiden’s “Iron Maiden” are featured.
And the bonus DVD includes “The Making Of Shogun”, as well as the instructional videos for guitar and bass.
Trivium will be part of the Unholy Alliance part III with Slayer, Mastodon and Amon Amarth with dates in Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam (the Netherlands) on November 7th 2008 and in Lotto Arena, Antwerpen (Belgium) on November 12th 2008.

80/100

Erik.