TRIVIUM Drummer Says Luck Didn't Play Part In His Band's Success

With a sound comparable to Cliff Burton-era Metallica and youth on their side, Trivium is on a crusade to become the world’s biggest metal band. Since forming in 1999, the four-piece from Florida have been touring relentlessly, and their persistence has paid off with huge supports (Metallica, Machine Head, Fear Factory, In Flames), headline slots at major festivals (Monsters of Rock, Download, Ozzfest), loads of press (especially in UK mags like Kerrang! and Metal Hammer) and signing with Roadrunner Records. Just before heading out on a dream tour with Iron Maiden and then onto Australia for the Big Day Out, drummer Travis Smith speaks from the lounge room of his family home – where it all began.

“The reason I started Trivium was that I wasn’t happy playing rock, it wasn’t heavy enough. At 16 or 17, I said ‘screw this; I want to play metal, that’s what’s going to make me happy.’ I’m glad I realised that early on – I mean look at us now. It’s a trip, it’s awesome, it’s a dream come true for all of us.”

Smith says he grew up on thrash metal, and now Lars Ulrich is one of Trivium’s biggest fans. So, how does it feel to share stages with his heroes? “It’s an honour to play with bands like Maiden and Metallica, but it’s not like a strike of good luck. It’s come from all the hard work we’ve put in, the last six years of busting our arse. They notice how hungry we are. I think they respect that, because we remind them of themselves when they were our age.”

Does Smith ever pinch himself? “Totally man, but when you’re in the middle of it, it does fly by. You do sit back sometimes, though, and I’m totally proud of what we’ve accomplished, but I want to keep getting better.”At 24, Travis Smith is the oldest. The rest of Trivium is guitarist Corey Beaulieu (23), bassist Paolo Gregoletto (21) and singer/guitarist Matthew K. Heafy who will celebrate his 21st on Australia Day. All members still live with their parents, which Smith says is smart considering they spend most of their life on the road anyway. “We’ve talked about getting our own houses, but we’d be blowing all our cash then coming home to a dirty house with a crazy overgrown yard.”

Due to the success they’ve had at a young age, Trivium get flack for being rich boys who’ve had it served up on a platter. “That’s people who don’t have a clue what’s going on,” Smith retorts. “Maybe they don’t understand how you can be 18, 19 or 20 and be so set on what you want in life. Maybe they weren’t as headstrong, so they don’t get it. Sure, we’re living our dream at a very young age, but we’ve worked very hard and we’re very focussed. It’s not our fault if they didn’t do the same or haven’t made it as far as we have. They chose their path, we chose ours.”

The other thing that gets Smith’s goat is genre labelling. “It’s a bit much at times. In one of our first features in a UK magazine, the headline was ‘Metalcore’, and we’ve been fighting it ever since. At first, I’d get really annoyed, but now I think people around the world understand what we’re all about. They want to throw you into a category, but we don’t want a part of it. So if you have to throw us into a category…don’t. We’re just Trivium.”

In medieval universities, Trivium was the latin name given to the three subjects taught first – grammar, logic and rhetoric. In addition, looking at the album names Ember To Inferno (2003), Ascendancy (2005) and their latest effort The Crusade (2006), you can see that Trivium is on a journey to learn, grow and ultimately conquer. “We had our goals worked out from the start and it hasn’t changed a bit; anything it takes to get to where we want to be. That won’t change until we’re satisfied.” When will that be? “When we conquer the world! Every show gets us one inch closer. That’s our forte in life, getting up there and kicking arse on any stage; giving all our energy to put on the best show possible.”

Smith proudly says that in the last two and a half years, they have only cancelled one show. After covering plenty of territory in the USA with bands like Children Of Bodom, Machine Head and Iced Earth, Trivium were thrilled to do their first headline tour late last year. “The platform was set (to do a headline tour), so it was very special to us. We’ve been waiting to do it. The tour from start to finish was absolutely amazing. Fans were totally pumped from Florida all the way to Canada and back home; there was not one bad show. It was a great feeling for all of us.”

After so long on the road, Trivium is taking a well-earned break. “Touring is loads of fun, but it’s also good to be able to catch a breath,” Smith says as the family dog barks in the background. “We’ve been taking it easy, enjoying our houses, our own beds and our girlfriends.”

After the Iron Maiden tour, it’s onto Japan and Australia. The crusade continues with a US tour with Lamb of God and Machine Head in February, a UK headline tour in April and a European tour with Annihilator in May. Smith says he's an outdoorsy guy so he can’t wait to discover Australia. “I like canoeing, hiking and all that kind of stuff. I’ve heard it’s hot as hell out there in January. I’m from Florida, so bring it.”

In between camping trips Trivium will be playing the Big Day Out and a number of sideshows. “It’s very exciting for us because we don’t know what to expect. It’s a fresh stage, a fresh audience. We can’t wait to get out on the stage and show people what Trivium is all about. We get a lot of contact from Aussie fans through the web, so we’re totally amped to get out there and give it hell.”

No stranger to huge festivals, what will Trivium bring to the BDO? “We’ll be bringing Trivium. We’ll be bringing the metal.”

Trivium play the Big Day Out at Princes Park, Carlton, on Sunday January 28. They do their own headlining side show at the Palace on Tuesday January 30. The Crusade is out now through Roadrunner Records.

Trivium play the Big Day Out at Princes Park, Carlton, on Sunday January 28. They do their own headlining side show at the Palace on Tuesday January 30. The Crusade is out now through Roadrunner Records.