TRIVIUM
w/ Jinjer, Heriot
11/15/25 – Eagles Ballroom – Milwaukee, WI
©Justin Nuoffer/NuofferMedia.com
On a bright and sunny Milwaukee day, The Rave/Eagles Ballroom was without a doubt the busiest place in the entire state. With all four rooms of the venue hosting shows, the parking lots and streets were packed with people waiting in lines. However, the only line we cared about started building quickly and early on. Fans came decked out in their finest metal t-shirts and gothic wear. The chatter was filled with talk about which songs would be performed and future shows coming to town. The festive feeling only grew as the evening progressed.
Entering the historic venue, you are escorted through a side door and down a ramp into a security check in front of The Rave 2 hall. From there, everyone heads up the stairs into the foyer and box office area. Once past the ticket check, another set of stairs awaits, and there is the merch area. The lines were long and packed all evening as all three bands were jammed onto one side. At the opposite end, another set of stairs leads up into the Eagles Ballroom. The massive space filled up quickly as the bars on both ends served drinks at a feverish pace. Above was the VIP area with a private bar and opera booths that wrapped completely around the oval-shaped room. The beautiful hardwood floors have seen generations of events, and as the evening shaped up, there was another historic night to add to the list.
Heriot, all the way from Swindon, England, hit the Eagles Ballroom stage first. The band is hard to fit into one subgenre, but one thing is for sure: they were heavy as hell. Guitarist and lead vocalist Debbie Gough is a relentless force. She rocks back and forth, walks around the stage, and leans back as she shreds. Her vocals are rough and full. For those who were new to them, they caught on quickly. Opening with “Foul Void” and “Siege Lord,” the lyrical themes surrounding medieval imagery filled the ballroom. After all, the band name Heriot is an Old English term.
Anchored to each side of Gough are guitarist Arhen Alman, who rips through material while stomping and headbanging his way around the left side with a spotlight dropped on him, and on the right side, bassist and vocalist Jake Packer, who dishes out supporting vocals and the low end. Behind them, drummer Julian Gage smashed his kit and often screamed at the crowd.
Check out the Heriot concert photo gallery below:
They are a force of nature as a unit and were not afraid to include a couple of standalone singles, “Demure” and “Commander of Pain.” Rounding out their thirty-five-minute set, they went back into tracks “Mourn” and “At The Fortress Gate” from Devoured By The Mouth of Hell, their 2024 Century Media release. The roaring from the crowd was a clear sign that they made an impact and were the perfect opener for this bill.
Ukrainian metalcore giants Jinjer are no strangers to The Rave, but this was their first time performing upstairs in the massive ballroom, and they did not disappoint. Taking the stage and launching into the ground-shaking “Duel,” the title track from their recent album, the circle pit kicked up instantly as they transitioned to the slower and more melodic “Green Serpent,” with vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk dancing and gliding across the stage. Her vocals were on point and are known as some of the wildest out there. She crushed the material with ease and strength. The moment it became obvious she was in peak performance mode was early on with the fast and frantic “Fast Draw.”
Perhaps the largest driving force of the early portion of the set was the drumming of Vladi Ulasevich. His timing was integral to their entire performance. Every cymbal smash and skin slap boomed from the stage. The crowd was out of control and screaming along with the lyrics. Surfers flew over the barricade as the band progressed through “Hedonist.” To this point in the set, all the tracks were from Duel, which was released in February, and it was clear they were crafted with the live show in mind.
On the right side of the stage, guitarist Roman Ibramkhalilov punched into the air and, with a single down stroke, strummed a distorted and chunky riff that launched into the popular “Teacher, Teacher.” The unusual vocal structure grips listeners and lets the body move freely, but that was not even the tip of the iceberg. Jinjer also tore into “Perennial,” a staple of their live shows.
With the crowd’s familiarity and the destructive nature of the songs, the room exploded with each breakdown. Bassist Eugene Abdukhanov is one of the most proficient players in the genre. His bass is anchored high on his body, and he finger-plays as his hair whips around. His aggressiveness makes “Rogue” the highlight it is. You feel the bass vibrations, but as a complete unit, Jinjer is one of metal’s most unique and individually talented groups.
They closed out their forty-five-minute set with their two most notable songs. The words and emotion of Shmayluk’s surreal “Someone’s Daughter” resonated deeply. If ever there were a time when the women in the crowd sang louder than the men, this was it and rightfully so.
Check out the Jinjer concert photo gallery below:
After a quick break to thank the fans for supporting them on their journey, they launched into the song that put them on the map and bent the genre, “Pisces,” from their King of Nothing album. The track routinely blows people away when they witness Shmayluk’s range and ability to move between screaming and singing. The depth of her growls and the natural beauty of her cleans are beyond passionate, and hearing them in person is an experience worth the price of admission.
The evening, however, was only getting started. The almighty Trivium, who hail from Orlando, Florida, brought a career-spanning setlist with them. The intro “Capsizing The Sea” pumped through the speakers as the band took the stage. With a ferocious roar from vocalist and guitarist Matt Heafy, the room shook as they launched into an assault with “In Waves” and “Like Light To Flies.” Their impact was immediate, and they were building the foundation for the rest of the night. Whether the fans were lifelong followers or somewhere along the journey, Trivium packed everything in.
The more radio-friendly “Strife” had people singing the chorus as the band shredded their way through the material. The duo of Heafy and Cory Beaulieu is the definition of perfection on guitar. Their movements in unison and their ability to dance their fingers across frets and strings with ease are well documented, but seeing them live puts their talent into another stratosphere.
They only amplified their mastery by diving into the more technical and heavy tracks from Shogun: “Into The Mouth of Hell We March” and “Throes of Perdition.” The songs had people going wild as the pit spun out of control and crowd surfers poured over the barrier. In the balcony, the silhouettes danced and moved with every strum. As they slowed down the tempo, “Until The World Goes Cold” allowed the Eagles Ballroom to fill with voices singing along.
Trivium were only heating up, but they took a moment to address the crowd and mentioned several things, primarily that it had been eight years to the day since they last played The Rave/Eagles Ballroom. This led them to talk about their new three-song EP Struck Dead. The two tracks they performed from it also put their new drummer, Alex Rudinger, into the spotlight. A new chapter of Trivium started with “Bury Me With My Screams” and “Struck Dead,” with the legendary “A Gunshot To The Head of Trepidation” smashed in between.
Rudinger, sitting high on a riser, looked like he had been with the band for years. To assist him, he had a tablet mounted above his snares showing the song structure. His performance was top-notch and did not go unnoticed. Below him, Paulo Gregoletto grooved and rattled the Milwaukee faithful with his dynamic basslines. He moved around the stage and engaged with the maniacs along the barrier as often as possible.
Providing the chest-pounding low end for the two tracks off Ascendancy, “Dying In Your Arms” and “Pull Harder On The Strings of Your Martyr,” Paulo smoothly dropped notes with consistent precision as Heafy and Beaulieu laid out solo after solo. The songs have been staples of every Trivium show for the last twenty years, and they still hit like they are brand new. As additional visuals beyond the impeccable lighting, a giant inflatable figure from the cover of Ascendancy loomed overhead and behind Rudinger.
As the final three anthems approached, the atmosphere was breathtaking. The heart and love being shared between the band and their disciples was undeniable. This was the church of Trivium, and they were dishing out scripture after scripture. What remained were two songs from the book of Vengeance and Shogun. The lyrics get real and tug the heartstrings with “The Heart From Your Hate,” but the face-punching and body-bruising blasts of “Down From The Sky” proved their might and their ability to create timeless memories. Closing with “The Sin and The Sentence” is not something one would expect, and that is what makes shows like this so much fun. You get one more chance to let loose on the floor and sing along at the same time. Everything about Trivium checks every critical box for a live performance.
Check out the Trivium concert photo gallery below:
Trivium looks like a band that has just revived itself, and the wild part is they have never slacked or fallen short. They have always been at the peak of performance. The idea seems insane, but there was something different and more lively. For an hour and a half the band kept the pit pushing, shoving, and throwing bodies around. The VIP deck had people dancing, headbanging, and losing their minds. There are not many guarantees in life, but Trivium being at the forefront of modern metal is without a doubt one of them. The fans heading down the stairs and out into the cold and crisp Milwaukee air agreed. The energy and spirit of the evening did not fade. It simply seeped into the historic walls waiting for its next chance to awaken.
