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Trivium's Matt Heafy Told Us His Favourite Albums Of The Year

Matt Heafy knows a thing or two about heavy music, so if he's put together a list of recommendations from the past year of album releases, you know it's gonna be worth checking out.

"Anyone claiming there was any record heavier or more innovative is wrong. THIS is the heaviest, most inspiring, encouraging, and fantastic piece of heavy music to come out this year. FFAA deliver technically where it needs to be; simplicity in its heaviest of forms when called for. I haven’t felt this feeling from a heavy record since ‘Far Beyond Driven’."
"DWEF’s latest effort feels as much like a classical musical opus as it does a revolutionary black metal record. While black metal is many things, it can sometimes be hard for the genre to convey emotion straight away; with ‘Finisterre’ however, you can feel the raw emotion behind music and voice. This album feels new like Deathspell Omega, while feeling classic like Emperor. Best black metal album of the year."
"I have never heard the stylistic combinations displayed on Zeal & Ardor’s full length. Combining black metal and [African-American slave music]. Devil is truly a masterful work; somehow these two completely opposite worlds fuse so well together, painting some of the most unique worlds unheard of before in extreme metal."
"Ever since I first heard Creeper, I've been in love with their sound. Eternity finds some of the best songs Creeper has created; displaying their impeccable brand of melodic, catchy, epic punk rock."
"Animus is a frighteningly heavy, astonishingly visceral release by Venom Prison. Frontwoman Larissa has established such a uniquely identifiable voice in VP, and you truly believe everything she has to say on this record. I can’t wait to see Venom Prison live."
"WSS are carrying the flag for modern metal and metalcore alike. Over the years, WSS had been developing a sound entirely their own, and with their latest effort, Sleeps has delivered one of the records of the year. WSS is one of our favourite bands in Trivium - and to know that at one point Trivium inspired Sleeps - is really heart-warming to see that cycle of inspiration flowing in modern music."
"Something is obviously brewing in the UK right now when it comes to heavy bands doing heavy better than everywhere else. ETS have unleashed a bone-crushingly heavy album that is sure to draw in extreme metal, hardcore, and metal fans alike."
"Abhorrent Decimation’s latest record is blackened death metal at its finest. The songs feel epic and massive, brutally heavy, and technical right when it’s called for. Another UK band bringing some incredible heavy music this year."
"Imagine if Cro Mags, Leeway, Slayer, and classic Sepultura were cooked into a Christmas pie. That’s Power Trip. Power Trip has been growing a reputation for having some of the most exciting live shows around, and I - like the rest of the music world - can’t wait to be a part of it."
"Anticipation and excitement for Code Orange is at an all-time high worldwide amongst the press and band communities alike. I look forward to seeing how CO bring it in their live shows and future releases!!"

We had a minute or two with Trivium's Matt Heafy and we asked him about his year and what his favourite 2017 albums are because, as we said the other day, that’s what you do around Christmas time when you work at a music magazine. It's the law.

It turns out Matt's pretty stoked on life right now. "This year was the year all the Trivium fans finally had an album they all agreed on!" he told us. "Our career has been filled with countless fans all claiming different favourite albums of our discography - and while this is an incredible thing we all encourage and love - to see our diverse fans all unifying over The Sin and the Sentence has been a wonderful thing." 

He was psyched on new music in 2017 too: "I tried to make a top ten albums list; I ended up with a top 50. That says a ton about this year for music. Across all genres, and especially heavy music, life is good."

We got him to snip down his top 50 to a top 10 because we know you're busy people. Check out what he said about each release in the gallery above and subscribe to the playlist below!

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