Shogun, Trivium

Taking their thrash sound to a new level Trivium uses some cool riffs and heavy melodies to make the latest CD Shogun sound pretty unique. Vocalist Matt Heafy is usually going back and forth between singing and screaming in the verses and choruses. Unlike some bands his screams don't become overpowering allowing everyone in the band to have a place in the sound. Heafys singing isn't all that bad either causing me to wonder why he wouldn't sing more in the songs. A majority of the album references Japanese and Greek mythology about pain and suffering. The lyrics tend to get a bit gruesome with lines like "I pull my ribs open now/Bled my heart upon the grounds/Drink of the blood and take me in/My flesh is ripped at daily/It's the cross I bear", it's hard not to notice. 9/10

-Brian