Just a year and a half removed from their most recent release, Trivium returns with In The Court Of The Dragon – a middling effort for those clamoring for more of the same.
You’ll get what you deserved.
After a “productive” pandemic for its band members, we’re already faced with long-time metal band Trivium‘s tenth studio album. Formed in 1999, the band has looked to founder Matt Heafy as frontman throughout its career. Accordingly, over the past two decades, they’ve managed to establish themselves as heavyweights in the melodic metalcore scene. In The Court Of The Dragon, releasing October 8th on Roadrunner Records, is the third in a series of like-minded records.
Meanwhile, like many of their peers, Trivium‘s sound is heavily reliant on huge, stadium-sized choruses to act as anchors for their long-running, moderately-unwieldy anthems. The title track here is no exception:
In spite of all the hate behind these eyes,
I’ve seen that only one of us survives.
I’m here to destroy you, I’m here to avenge,
In the court of the dragon I descend.
The guitar work is consistently quite competent, as evidenced by an impressive solo three-forths into this single. Heafy, as always, looms large as a commanding presence over these tracks, handling both clean and unclean vocals. As the album progresses, however, it becomes less clear what the band does to continue to be counted among modern metal’s top bands.
Sunlight falters
As we wait the world goes up in flames
I know we will be the ones
To fill up all these graves
Just the fourth track into the album, “Feast Of Fire” begins to draw questions. For example, why does each passing song sound more and more like a lazy Slipknot castoff (this track being the most notable offender)? Furthermore, do these tracks need to average as long as they do? Tracks like “The Shadow Of The Abattior” start off appreciatively differently, and actually manages to progress throughout its length. Unfortunately, this type of journey acts as a departure from the norm.
Even more damning is that something like “What the Dead Men Say“, title track from their previous album, could fit snugly among the ten songs packaged here. The days of hearing a song like “To Burn The Eye” and quickly identifying the album it came from have long passed. On a track-by-track basis, they translate as competent and confident, but that armor shatters on repeated listens. Additionally, Trivium comes across as far too focused on seeming epic, like their prog heros in Dream Theater and Nevermore before them. Instead, we’re left with a group of 30-somethings that take themselves far too seriously. The album art acts as a great objective correlative for the band – a lot going on, yet amounting to nothing interesting in particular.
We are the ones who led the way
This path to hell and misery
An endless war, a hollow cause
When we all die, we’ll see no gods
At this point, with the closer “The Phalanx”, the album has run for too long to maintain serious interest. While genuinely compelling moments appear here and there, finishing In The Court Of The Dragon feels like a chore. The flashes of excellence occur too inconsistently for me to recommend spending an hour of your time with Trivium in 2021. Instead, listen to one of the three singles here – you’ll essentially be hearing the whole album at once.
5/10