Beartooth and Trivium Brought Incredible Co-Headlining Tour Through Riverworks
Beartooth's Caleb Shomo at Buffalo Riverworks
This spring, two acts that most wouldn't put in the same conversation took to the road for a monster co-headling tour through North America. While Trivium has been going strong for close to twenty years now, it may surprise some to know that Caleb Shomo's Beartooth has been grinding away for over a decade as well.
Beartooth was a big breakout band just prior to COVID, and I was lucky enough to see them at a hometown show in Columbus' Sonic Temple Festival back in 2019. However, they're currently on the road in support of their fourth full-lengh album, 2021's 'Below.'
Buffalo Riverworks has become one of my favorite venues for concerts locally. On top of the open general admission floor plan, the venue features a wrap-around balcony on top. This provides an variety of different view options for the show, as you'll see from the galleries below.
From the first time I saw Trivum, back in 2013, they quickly became one of my favorite live bands. The sheer energy and precision instrumentation is a staple of a Trivium show. This evening's show was no exception. Like so many bands with a lengthy career, the biggest challenge is curating a setlist for each tour. Their dozen song set was a great selection of career-spanning tracks dating back to their second album, 2005's 'Ascendancy' right up through their latest release, 2021's 'In the Court of the Dragon.'
Trivium's Matt Heafy at Buffalo Riverworks
The stage was adorned with a spiral dragon on either side, with drummer Alex Bent's drum kit raised at the rear of the stage. Some of the sets highlights included "Strife," "Down From the Sky" and "In Waves." Throughout the show, vocalist/guitarist Matt Heafy, bassist Paolo Gregoletto and guitarist Corey Beaulieau pulled the crowd in for first pumps, cheers and screams from song to song.
Easily, the most fun part of every Trivium show is the slow build during the recording of "Capsizing the Sea," leading directly into a reliably crowd-erupting rendition of "In Waves." This show was no exception, as the masses all got down low, only to explode to their feet when the song began!
Throughout Trivium's set, Beartooth's Caleb Shomo could be seen up in the balcony taking in the show and appreciating the crowd. I've heard great things about this co-headlining tour in advance of this evening's show, but one of the most tell-tale signs of how things are going, is when bands watch each other's sets. Certainly, that probably doesn't happen every night for any number or reasons, but as a fan of music, it does a lot for me to see moments like this.
Beartooth are grabbing some air in Buffalo
This night was Beartooth's turn to close out the set. As the band took the stage, I was immediately reminded of what I loved about this band from the last (also first) time I saw them back in 2019. Their amount of pure energy and intensity is just so impressive. When a band is co-headlining, you almost have to assume that half the crowd is there to see the other band every night. You could never convince me that this was the case during Beartooth's set.
Just as with Trivium, Beartooth's primary source of material came from early in their catalog, drawing four songs from their 2014 debut album, 'Disgusting.' The kicked things off with "Devastation," from 2021's 'Below,' followed by "Disease" and "Body Bag." What was really impressive to me was what their legion of fans already knew, this band simply did not let up from the moment their set began until the moment they left the stage.
A few personal highlights included "Sunshine!," "Riptide" and "Hated." Lastly, who can pass up the awesome sing-along during "In Between?" They closed out the show with "The Last Riff," from 'Below' before existing the stage for the final time. There's no doubt the fans in attendance got their money's worth. Not only did Beartooth and Trivium deliver a true co-headlining juggernaut of a performance, but the show also featured openers Architypes Collide and Malevolence to open the night.
I was fortunate to see both of these acts a few weeks later in a festival setting back at Sonic Temple, where Beartooth made their triumphant return to the hometown festival stage, just where I saw them for the first time four years ago. Sure, the festival featured the addition of stage pyro (lots of it), but it only further proved that these bands pack a stadium mainstage-worthy performance into a club setting. The show is all the more electric for it!
