Trivium's Matt Heafy reveals how Iron Maiden's Steve Harris recently compared his band to Metallica

Matt Heafy, Steve Harris and James Hetfield
(Image credit: Getty)

Trivium frontman Matt Heafy has revealed an interesting anecdote about a recent time none other than Iron Maiden founder, bassist and lead songwriter Steve Harris compared his band to Metallica.

Trivium supported Maiden on the latter's 2022 North American leg of their epic Legacy Of The Beast tour, and near the end of the run, he had a unique interaction with Harris that has stuck in the singer/guitarist's memory.

“It’s funny," he tells WRIF Radio's Meltdown show (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). "We did the Maiden run and Steve Harris came in at the end to thank us for being on the bill. We’ve toured with them before a lot. He looks around and he’s, like, ‘You guys play a lot, huh?’ I was, like, ‘Yeah, we just love to make sure we’re nice and warm.’ And he was, like, ‘The only other band I’ve seen do that is Metallica.’ So the fact that Steve Harris compared us to Metallica in a small way, it’s another one of those amazing, amazing little instances. I’ll never forget that.”

Trivium were famously compared to Metallica when they first broke internationally with 2005's Ascendancy album - something Heafy later admitted he himself played a part in.

"We really blew up in the UK first and we got our first cover feature when we were like 18," he said back in 2016. "The quote on the front was from me because I was a confident 18-year-old, and had been in the band for six years at that point. The quote was something along the lines of ‘Trivium: The next Metallica‘ and at that moment it really worked out for our band in the UK. But other bands started seeing that and saying ‘Who the hell is this young band calling themselves the next Metallica?’”

While comparing themselves directly to the biggest band in the history of heavy metal might have been a tall order, Heafy can at least rest knowing that when it comes to putting in the hard hours, the two bands are apparently a lot closer than some might think. According to Steve Harris, anyway - and who are we to argue with him?

Trivium and Iron Maiden both tour Europe next year.

Merlin Alderslade
Executive Editor, Louder

Merlin moved into his role as Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has previously written for the likes of Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He is also probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.