No matter what happens in this world, metal will always find away to help us triumph over tragedy. Metal has always been able to resonate with people emotionally and sonically. If there is any band that is able to serenade us during times of turmoil and strengthen us to overcome this turmoil it is Trivium. With NYC stricken with the pandemic, unrest and with tropical storm Fay raining down on us, Trivium came to the rescue as he were forced to stay in our homes.

Trivium has always been able to have an intriguing presence live and this time, they took that same essence of what makes them so great and brought their signature sound to our computer screens. The production to capture this moment was truly remarkable. They captured the performance from every conceivable angle and we got to see great shots of Matt, Corey, Paolo and Alex. They also spared no expense with production as we got the flickering lights that created ten times more imagery than just a standard live stream performance. With the technical excellence of this group, amazing production and an atmosphere like no other, Trivium took this temporary new normal to another level. With their sound and production, it felt like we were at a real concert with our computer screens acting as the barrier. This gives us the virtual concert titled A Light or a Distant Mirror

Sylosis starts off as the opener of this online concert. By having an opening band, it made this concert seem way more authentic. With Sylosis releasing their first album in 5 years, The Cycle of Suffering, many metal heads were eagerly awaiting their performance as well. With their signature sound of melodic death metal, Sylosis was able to grace us with their presence again with their emotional and atmospheric music. They served as the ultimate opener, delivering the darkness and pain we have all been suffering through and giving us full blown intense sound that blistered through our screens. While we wish it was under better circumstances, it was great to welcome Sylosis back with open arms.

At last, we get Trivium. Opening up with a brand new song, What the Dead Men Say, they held nothing back right away and we finally got to hear how awesome their new material would sound in a live presence.  We were able to be induced with more strength as we heard the classic from Shogun, Down from the Sky as it rained all around us on the outside. The set continued to pack us with the amazing vocal abilities of Matt, and the intense instrumentals of Corey, Alex and Paolo. Diving deeper into their setlist with the classic track The Heart from your Hate, the lights shined beautifully around these four thrashers and continued to make this experience all the more immersive. We were able to hear every bit of aggression, melody and emotion that Trivium has always been able to demonstrate. Every note on the guitar soloing was felt, every lyric was heard, and every beat was hit, essentially making this the most organic and indulging live stream.

Matt paused to thank us all for “coming out” to this show. He even stated that even though we are not in this very room together, we are all connected. This was the most triumphant thing a musician can say during this uncertain time. We got into the powerful anthem of Until the World Goes Cold, which has a lot more context since first being released in 2015. They continued to follow up with some more  deep cuts off of Ascendancy with The End of Everything, Alex “apparently broke something” YES, technical difficulties, this goes to show that this was in fact live show. This made it all the more organic and interactive and of course, real.

After Matt was able to grace us with more great words of wisdom, they kicked in full force as we entered this raw track of insanity. The triumph over tragedy continues with their classic track Strife, that delivers strength to metal fans everywhere. After ending with their classic track In Waves, we were almost able to feel energy flow through us that would make us jump at any Trivium show! After matt said, “ Heres to another 20 years,” we ended this set with much optimism and relief.

It cannot be said enough, this is NOT the future of live music. Technology has come along way but it will never be able to replace the salvation and release one gets from a live show. That being said, with live shows not being able to happen at the moment, many bands have graced us with their presence in our homes. Seeing our friends check into this event on social media was very close to being at a real concert and seeing which of your people is out and about. When this is over, these live streamed shows will be part of musical history and many of us are going to say that we were there.