Overview
Hello, I’m back! Today we will be reviewing Trivium’s album “Vengeance Falls” released October 15, 2013 by Roadrunner Records. This album features their singles “Brave the Storm”, “Strife”, “Through Blood and Dirt and Bone”, and also “Villainy Thrives”. This felt like a really emotional album, the lyrics felt very personal.
Song Analysis
The album starts off with the really gnarly riffs of the track “Brave This Storm” that catch your attention and make you feel pumped to listen. Following is the title track “Vengeance Falls” which has really catchy opening riffs that hook the listener. This song has some intense shredding toward the end with pounding drums switching up the rhythms.
The song “Strife” is a pretty emotional song to me lyrically. The words are deep and filled with a ton of emotion:
Guilt buries me alive
In a coffin criticized
I shouldered the blame and dug this hole for me to lay inI reach for calm
I starve for a balance unknown
This burden tortures me deep in my soulI’ve found that strife won’t make the bleeding stop
Nor will it take away the pain
I feel like this search is all in vain
And I struggle to find my way
For me, I find these words dramatically relatable and painful. I have lived my life with a severe illness that kept me disabled for years and the guilt I have felt from that was way too much for me to bear. It felt terrible needing help for basic daily things and also seeing the hassle it would bring to the people helping me. It was mentally torturing for me and I blamed myself for my sickness and everything else. I had so much anger with myself and the world, but harboring such strong negative feelings definitely was not positive for me. These lyrics really bring up these feelings for me, I feel it deeply. To enhance the emotion even further, there is some really nice guitar solos toward the end to finish off this piece.
“Through Blood and Dirt and Bone” has interesting drum rhythms. It is really catchy when he sings “I fear I won’t make / Make it out, out in time”, I feel like these words might get stuck in my head a bit. This song gets a bit heavier at the end with catchy breakdowns and also some really nice solos toward the end.
Pulling you in with a super catchy intro is “Villainy Thrives”. I love those riffs. I enjoy the transitions and the rhythm changes too. I like the lyrics “Innocence dies while villainy thrives”, it definitely seems like darkness can take over a major portion of life. And of course there are nice solos near the end!
“Incineration: The Broken World” has really catchy opening riffs and a lot of rhythm changes. The lyrics sound pretty personal, “Coerced habitation with those / I cannot stand to be near / Ironically scathing / This life that I work so hard for / Keeps me from what I need”, who is this referring to?! Rad solos halfway through. I love this song!
The beginning of “Wake (The End Is Night)” sounds so beautiful, the intro guitar has a very melancholic feel, and then the lyrics get very dark, very quickly: “With my hands around your throat / That’s the way I like you most.” Then everything gets very heavy too, all of the instruments and vocals. It’s exciting to listen to! Then there are pounding drums and guitars. Of course this song ends with guitar solos. Pretty sick track!
The lyrics of “As I Am Exploding” are pretty painful. “Every single day that I have to live with you / Is a struggle I can not longer get through” I wonder if these lyrics are referring to the same person or “thing” mentioned in “Incineration: The Broken World” when he says the words “Coerced habitation with those / I cannot stand to be near”. “Life can’t keep going on this way / I feel I’m lost inside my hate (my hate) / My thoughts overtake me / They’re killing me faster with each passing day”; these lyrics are pretty intense. There are nice guitar solos half way through with speedy drums.
I love how Trivium usually includes a cover song at the end of every special edition album and I was pretty entertained to see “Skulls/We are 138”, which covers the two Misfits songs, “Skulls” and “We are 138”. The Misfits seem like a unique artist for them to choose to cover. Oh gosh, the lyrics in this song are ridiculous hahaha. “Hack the heads off little girls and put ’em on my wall” What the heck is this!!!
Final Thoughts
This is a pretty good album from Trivium. Every member of this band does a fantastic job with their different roles. How did you like this album? What is your favorite part? I am looking forward to hearing the next album!