Trivium has been leading the metalcore scene for almost 30 years, and the US band continue to breakthrough their limits and achieve stardom.
During 2025, the American quartet will be, once again, performing in Portugal and the drummer, Alex Bent, shared a few insights of what they have in mind during the “The Poisoned Ascendancy Tour”, as well as a bit of reflections of how Trivium took the world in full force.
Bolder, heavier with a more mature sound, Trivium, alongside with Mastodon, Lamb of God, Machine Head and much more metal bands are a powerhouse to be reckoned with, due to their unique collaborations and stage performances that are unforgettable.
M.I. - Hi! How’re you doing lately?
I’m doing good! I’ve been having a lot of fun during this tour. Actually, I’m feeling better, because I’ve been sick for the last couple of days. Things are just starting to turn around.
M.I. - The last time you were in Europe was with Heaven Shall Burn. Can you tell us how the experience was touring around European countries?
It was a great time. Those guys are super nice, and it was amazing to be around them. The fans, especially in Germany, were crazy; it was a wild time, but the tour was, overall, amazing. Of course we had our bumps in the road; Paolo, our bass player, had a hernia situation at the very beginning of our tour. We had to call Josh, from Malevolence (UK), to fill his place for a few shows.
A few stuffs did happen, and it was bit crazy, but all in all the tour went great. I couldn’t be happier.
M.I. - The song “Implore the Darken Sky” came out as a manifesto of that experience. Should we expect a new upcoming album this year?
That I cannot speak right now. But, yes, during that tour we came up with that song. We just decided to cover it. I’m also glad the new stuff is doing pretty well too.
M.I. - You’re going to be quite busy with the “The Poisoned Ascendancy Tour”, and Portugal is once again in your radar. Any fond and great memories of our country you’d like to share?
Yes! Performing with Toy was such a great time that we even talk about it today. It was definitely a person we will remember.
I’ll never forget that he showed up at one of our shows, and he was a super cool guy. I didn’t know any of his songs, but he basically hummed it to me to get me into the beat. Then, we kind of improvised what we did with him on stage, but it felt so good, and we decided to end up recording that version. We saw all kinds of people, such as metal fans with Trivium shirts, non-metal fans, and everybody knew the song and started to shout it from their lungs. It’s a memory that I will never forget.
M.I. - Should we expect also another live album with Bullet of My Valentine and other guests that are going to participate in this 2025 tour?
To be honest with you, I’m not 100% sure. I really don’t know, but hopefully yes, since it’s not the first time we have done a live album.
M.I. - Trivium leads the heavy metal scene with 26 years of career experience. Looking backwards, would you ever believe that you would achieve current stardom?
Yes and no. Basically, as a young person, you have a dream. I think all of us had this mindset that we will not stop until it happens. I think we believed it was about to happen, but in a humble way.
We didn’t want to sound arrogant. You’re so caught up in putting your hard work and then you have those moments where you look back and say, “we really come a long way”, and then it becomes surreal. You turn around and keep moving forward.
When you are young, you do feel invincible. You feel like taking over the whole world, but you’re going blindly in full force. Then, you reach into a state of your life when you reflect on what you already overcame and, humbly, continue moving forward. It is a little bit naïve, because I remember when I was young telling people what I wanted to do with my life, and they asked me what I was my backup plan. I didn’t want to have a backup plan, I just wanted to do what I loved to do.
M.I. - Sound wise speaking, how would you compare Trivium’s music today with Ember to Inferno (2003) and Ascendancy (2005)?
I think it really matured or came to full circle, especially if you listen to those records. All of the records have their special flavor, but now the band is at a point where we can have perception of those things, coming again to full circle, and analyzing what we once were.
For example, we have Corey, Matt or Paolo start to play a riff and you do this kind of groove like we did in In The Court of the Dragon (2021), but in Ascendancy (2005) we were able to do something different.
It is definitely a more mature sound nowadays, without losing our own essence and DNA, if this makes some sense.
M.I. - Any special plans or releases when you turn three decades?
We don’t have anything planned so far. We are still working on a few things, and it’s going to be something very special.
M.I. - A band with this repertoire and reputation must have its challenging moments as well. What’s the secret ingredient that makes the band run?
Just staying inspired and very humble. Be willing to look at other bands, either old or new, in order to listen and learn from them. I guess staying inspired is the main thing that keeps us going.
Once you start to get bored, you believe that you know it all, just because of how long you’ve been playing, it’s definitely the beginning of the end. For Trivium, our secret ingredients are inspiration, being humble and hungry!
M.I. - If you weren’t a musician, what did you have in mind for your professional career?
If I wasn’t going to be a musician, I think I would like to do something related to a physical job.
I didn’t want to be in an office or type in a computer. Something in the military or a firefighter, I have to be moving or doing something outdoors, not necessarily construction or heavy work. It has to be something running around or even sports related.
M.I. - Thank you very much for this opportunity! Would you like to share any last messages with our readers?
I just wanted to say thank you very much for listening ad we can’t wait to play in Portugal. I believe the Portuguese fans will be very happy, because we have something up in our sleeves to show to you.
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Listen to Trivium, on Spotify
Questions by André Neves
