With so much influence in the heavy music scene that Trivium and Beartooth have had over the last few years, it’s surprising that a co-headline tour like this hasn’t happened sooner. Both bands have put out a significant amount of solid music over the last six years and are consistent features at festivals around the world as well as being favorites of SiriusXM stations, so both bands have had prominent placement to massive audiences. The audience at The National last night saw firsthand that the live performances from each group is a definitive reason to support both Trivium and Beartooth respectively.
Trivium had the best stage setup I’ve seen the group work with over the years I’ve been following the Florida metal act. It has been great to watch and listen to Trivium evolve over the years by getting deeper into music writing and expanding the group’s stage presence. The detailed stage design based around Trivium’s latest album In The Court Of The Dragon gave color and life to the concert. Hearing the Richmond crowd sing along to “Strife” early in the set gave volume and life to a crowd wanting to be the best on Trivium’s tour. The staple of Matt Heafy riling the crowd up by stating a previous tour had the best audience up to that point is always a great moment as it causes a burst of one-upping from the current venue crowd.
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Beartooth recently released the song “Sunshine” which has become a significant hit and a different style for the group. While Caleb Shomo said at the end of last year that he wasn’t sure how people would react to new Beartooth music, it was pretty clear that the crowd last night knew just about every lyric from every song played. It was to the point where Caleb Shomo was able to command the crowd into singing segments of songs for him. This was my first time seeing Beartooth in a club setting (I had only seen Beartooth at festivals before). I understand the appeal more seeing Beartooth in a full playlist live venue setting. Beartooth on tour is more of an experience than a performance. I was impressed with how well the group was able to connect with the audience.
This was a fun show to see. That expression sounds simple and has been described for a thousand tours before, but seeing Trivium and Beartooth live last night was a great time that felt like one complete show. I want to see more tours like this where singers are able to engage with the crowd. More shows like last night where each band is able to perform well while enjoying themselves on stage. More crowds that are willing to sing along together and just enjoy the night. Last night had all of that and last night proved heavy music still has an audience.
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Trivium is an American heavy metal band from Orlando, Florida, formed in 1999. The band comprises vocalist and guitarist Matt Heafy, guitarist Corey Beaulieu, bassist Paolo Gregoletto, and drummer Alex Bent.
Beartooth is an American hardcore punk band formed by Caleb Shomo in Columbus, Ohio, in 2012. They have been signed to Red Bull Records since 2013.
