Shogun - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Trivium stormed onto the metal scene in 2005 with their critically acclaimed debut album Ascendency and continued their dominance with the follow-up The Crusade. Now the band has unleashed their most cohesive and mature effort, Shogun. The band is poised to continue to knock the metal and hard rock community on its ass with what will definitely be hailed as the metal album of the year by critics and fans alike!

Album Description
There's no such thing as a band born to greatness. To succeed in the world of music there's a whole energy-sapping storm of hard work to plough through. Florida's Trivium has surely earned the major contender status that has been afforded them by the international media. Trivium's sophomore release (and Roadrunner debut) Ascendancy (now certified Gold in the U.K.) made them a hit with discerning music fans everywhere, The album garnered a large number of frothing, ultra-positive reviews throughout the music press around the world, including Metal Hammer, Rock Sound and Kerrang , who declared Ascendancy album of the year. Trivium soon graced the covers of a lot of these magazines and picked up a fistful of coveted awards, including 'Best International Newcomer' at the 2005 Kerrang! Awards ceremony and several Metal Hammer Golden God statuettes. 2006's follow-up, The Crusade was a faithful account of a great young band's swift and bewildering evolution, from up-and-comer to world-beating behemoth, and delivered their first UK Top 10 album. More touring followed - first on a gargantuan Arena tour with their Metal heroes Iron Maiden and then a sold-out UK headlining tour that culminated at London's infamous Hammersmith Apollo. 2008 sees Trivium change it up yet again on 'Shogun', choosing not to record in the familiar environs of their home state of Florida. Instead the band headed to Nashville, Tennessee to work with producer Nick Raskulinecz (Rush, Foo Fighters, Stone Sour). The result is a monolithic album that crystallizes the band's sound and showcases Trivium's finest elements. Vocalist/guitarist Matt Heafy is thrilled with the album, saying, "We made a cohesive, epic metal album that combines all of the ingredients of everything we feel we have ever done 'right' musically, while adding a new direction that the music called for. We had so much fun creating this album and hope our fans feel that energy when they listen." Even Slayer's Kerry King, an undisputed heavy metal god, expressed excitement about touring with the band this fall on the "Unholy Alliance: Chapter 3" European tour. He commented to the UK's Total Guitar magazine, "I'll be at the side of the stage watching them. Great players like that make us want to do better." Looks like the metal community is waiting with baited breath for Shogun.

Customer Reviews: Read 27 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

A Precision Instrument of Warfare October 7, 2008
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

First of all, this album should NOT be compared to The Crusade in such ways as saying its a step up or step down from it. Its really a hybrid album. Too many people are basing their opinions of Shogun by saying that its too intense compared to The Crusade and they miss the melody and singing on that album. Then still others are saying that The Crusade was a mistake of Trivium's and this is a return to original form that Ascendancy introduced us to. I say both sides are wrong. This album is Ascendancy and The Crusade all in one, but even more in your face. As I said, hybrid album.

With Shogun, Trivium has mixed the melodic singing, lightning fast guitar work, and blistering drumming of The Crusade with the screaming, up in your business, heavy metal of Ascendancy. The combination is undeniably brutal. You get the best of both. Fans of The Crusade, which I admit I loved, will easily cling to the parts of songs where Matt Heafy is melodically chanting over speedy drum work and machine gun guitar riffs, but then its over as fast as it started and the vocals turn up a notch and the music becomes chunky and heavy while Heafy takes on a demonic scream.

Highlights of the album:
--- Great lyrics! Check out the lyrics to "Into The Mouth Of Hell We March" (an AWESOME story about a shipwreck) and "Throes of Perdition", another great story with great music accompanying it.
--- The guitar solos are insane! Fast, original, and ear piercing.
--- The drumming is top-notch. Travis Smith is easily my favorite metal drummer right now. BLAZING fast double bass work, and masterfully built drum fills, he's really coming into his own. Catch him on his way up!
--- Long intricate songs. Most songs clock in at over 5 minutes, several are just shy of 5 minutes by mere seconds. The title track itself is nearly 12 mins long.
--- The production is excellent. Amazing clarity. If you have a good set of headphones, listen with those. Smith's tom fills seems to wrap around your head and the solo's seem to start on one side of your head and travel through your skull sonically bouncing around inside until connecting with the other ear. Its wicked.

As a side note, even if you don't like the album, you've got to at least admit the cover art is awesome. Ha Ha.

But seriously...SHOGUN HAS SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE:
1) If you're into speedy licks, its here.
2) If you're into in your face screaming, you're gonna get it.
3) If you loved the melody of The Crusade but wished the intensity had been turned up a few notches, Shogun won't disappoint.
4) If you're a guitar solo junky, welcome home, this album delivers.
5) Even a few "epic" storylines to get lost in. You can practically envision the events unfolding in your mind as you listen.

Pick this album up, its hella cool.

5 out of 5 stars

Ascendancy II? The Crusade II? Try...Shogun!!! October 3, 2008
7 out of 10 found this review helpful

I remember when I first heard Trivium when Ember To Inferno came out. I didn't care for the sound that much, but then a couple of years later came Ascendancy, and what I heard was a well-crafted metal record that breathed old-school thrash. These guys were no doubt for the new school that had no clue about Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, Testament, Exodus. etc. Then came The Crusade: the album where they let their influences out. Many however felt that to be a bad thing for a couple of reasons: lead vocalist Matt opted for less screaming and more singing and shouting. There were also claims of them ripping off Metallica. Say whatever you want, but I don't hear it. Besides, why should anybody be concerned as long as it sounds good? Well, on 2008's new album Shogun, I find no reason to draw comparisons or rip-off claims, and you'd be crazy to try. This sounds like nothing they've done before. Back to Matt's vocals, remember that his vocals hadn't fully developed because he was so young, he was better at screaming. He couldn't pull off a lot of the vocal harmonies live like on such songs as Pull Harder On The Strings of Your Martyr, and A Gunshot To The Head of Trepidation. After vocal training, he could do both equally well, but for The Crusade, he opted to sing more due to too many bands doing the screaming thing at the time....until now. The guys figured out that the new songs didn't work without the screaming, and trust me, there's plenty on each song. While Shogun may not change the hater's minds, it will please those that loved their previous albums, even if they didn't like The Crusade.

5 out of 5 stars

No Stopping The Mighty Trivium! SHOGUN Flat Out ROCKS! September 30, 2008
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

Unbelievable! That is the only word that comes to mind when I hear this cd. Trivium have combined the best of their previous cd's (Ember To Inferno, Ascendancy,and The Crusade)and have delivered BIG TIME the best elements of those three into Shogun. Guitars solos soar in and out with harmonic unison while the drums provide a steady, pummeling beat that locks the songs into place - sometimes I cannot believe just how young these guys are yet sound so professional and seasoned. My current favorite songs are "Down From The Sky" and "Into The Mouth Of Hell We March".

5 out of 5 stars

This IS Trivium... October 1, 2008
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

Trivium's Shogun is one hell of a cd. Anyone who says otherwise are just fooling themselves. I'll agree with another reviewer. You take the progression of "The Crusade", the power of "Ascendancy" and the rawness of "Ember To Inferno" and you have the very awesome "Shogun". Not overly produced, great riffs, wicked drums, varying vocals and well written tracks. I cannot fault this album, very highly recommended to any metal fan (all genres within)who has any idea what this kind of music is all about.

5 out of 5 stars

He Who Spawned The Furies September 30, 2008
5 out of 8 found this review helpful

Trivium have been out long enough now for one to realize, they aren't just a phase one goes through or a musical fad. In fact their sound has been heavily evolving since their debut "Ember to Inferno" burned upon us.

With the release of Shogun, Trivium have drawn upon a mythical Chinese realm a rather enticing one at that. Agreeing to enable both screaming and clean vocals this time around will hopefully allow both "Crusade" fans and "Ascendancy" fans to reunite with their beloved band. Opting Nick Raskilinecz over Jason Suecof in terms of production was a personal choice for the band to grow and develop. Nick has worked with bands like Velvet Revolver, Foo Fighters, and Stone Sour. He doesn't let us down here.

The songs featured here are a bit on the longer less commercial side. One can draw Trivium's inspiration from a myriad of metal gods. Hints of Maiden, Metallica, and even Pantera are here. "Kirisute Gomen" is the opening track which has been released online for quite sometime. Acoustic opening, panning drums, and a powerfully smooth electric guitar cut the intro into a nice welcoming mat. "Torn Between Scylla and Charybdis" bulks upon trilling guitars and a bumbling bass line. The album really kicks ones face in, and oddly enough it's what YOU want. Admitting "The Crusade" was a lighter album, the band wanted a return to power sound. Heavy, loud, thick, and captivating the album delivers.

The songs hit upon a progressive nature, while less catchy then previous efforts the album has a higher replay value. Ascendancy track "Declaration" lightly tapped into what Shogun would appear to be. The production quality is pretty good, one is probably use to the giant gaps in production quality for Trivium have had 'make overs' every album. Ember was slugish and muddy with the underground feeling laced in, Ascendancy was very tight powerfully crisp drums and treble spiked guitars, Crusade went for a more thrashy small sound, Shogun has the guitars turned a tad bit down but releases a collage of sound. The metalcore sound still obviously lingers, as presented with "Insurrection".

Trivium have succeeded, even with Shogun released so close to Metallica's long awaited "Death Magnetic". The songs this time around are truly epics. Great album, couldn't believe they'd become so powerful again.

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