Thịnh Hoàng

Exceeded every bit of my expectations. The heavy yet groovy riffs paired with a diverse and versatile mixture of harsh and clean vocals cemented Trivium's position as one of the leading bands in the metalcore scene. I can even feel certain influences of djent on tracks such as ''Feast Of Fire'', while others are chockful of catchy choruses and melodic solos in a number of tracks, namely the title track and "Like A Sword Of Damocles''. A blend of djent, progressive metal and metalcore is prevalent throught out this record, with chunky riffs, soaring and lightning-fast guitar work and breakdowns. The overall feel when listening to this album embodies the title: A powerful, epic experience as if you are ''In The Court Of The Dragon''. There are some faults here and there, for example the track ''No Way Back Just Through'' can be rather repetitive or some tracks may be a bit underwhelming. However, Trivium managed to unfailingly stay true to their roots: good ol' metalcore, but slight touches of other metal subgenres, making this album a pleasure to listen to. This record undeniably has been their most adventurous and diverse work since ''Shogun'' and I dare say this might be a favorite among Trivium's discography, together with Ascendancy and Shogun. Personal score: 8/10.

Arguably the best rock album of the year. Every song is a treasure, especially Teardrops which reminds me of Linkin Park and made me have my own teardrops because of nostalgia. The collaboration with BABYMETAL and a few other artists really made the album stand out. I absolutely LOVE how the starting song and the rest of the album are so strong and energetic yet the last song is melancholic and slower, as well as the fact that this album is a direct reference to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Overall, I believe a lot of effort has been put into the album, and it undeniably paid off. 100% worth a try, even if you are a newcomer or an old fan. My personal favourites would be Parasite Eve, Ludens and Teardrops. And for non-native English speakers like me, Oliver delivered an extremely clear performance, so it is very easy to hear the lyrics.