Growing up, you always have those albums that you discover and hold close to your heart. You play them over and over again until they almost become the soundtrack to your life. Two of those albums for me were Bullet for My Valentine’s The Poison and Scream Aim Fire. Discovering these albums in high school felt like opening a door to a whole new world of music, shaping what I continue to listen to today. Somehow, even though I cherished these albums beyond belief, I never managed to see Bullet for My Valentine live. I finally corrected that mistake when Bullet for My Valentine and Trivium announced their co-headlining The Poisoned Ascendancy Tour. With this tour, both bands would be playing their seminal albums, The Poison and Ascendancy respectively, in their entirety. The YouTube Theatre in Los Angeles, CA, was packed with fans of both albums, ready to relive two records that meant just as much to them as they did to me.

Opening the night was fellow metalcore favorites August Burns Red. The band wanted to get the crowd singing along right from the start, and there was no better way to do that than with a cover of System of a Down’s “Chop Suey!” The auditorium resonated with a choir of voices singing along with the band. Vocalist Jake Luhrs’ rendition of the song sounded perfect, but it was when the band moved into their original music that Luhrs truly got to show off his screaming chops. Lead guitarist JB Brubaker crafted driving guitar lines that enhanced Luhrs’ vocal talents without overshadowing him. When Brubaker stepped up for a solo, he didn’t hold back, letting his fingers dance across the fretboard. Rhythm guitarist Brent Rambler kept the melody flowing, allowing Brubaker to go wild with the lead lines. Bassist Dustin Davidson locked in with drummer Matt Greiner, whose flurry of double kicks got the mosh pit moving right at the start of the night.

August Burns Red made the most of their set with songs like “Paramount,” “Composure,” “Defender,” “Bloodletter,” “Vengeance,” “Exhumed,” “Marianas Trench,” and “White Washed.” They weren’t just the opener—they came across as a third co-headliner, as the fans gave them just as much energy, passion, and love as they would the next two bands.

It was then time for the band I was most excited for: Bullet for My Valentine. They kicked off their set with the very first song from The Poison, “Her Voice Resides.” As soon as my ears heard the song, I was instantly transported back to high school, listening to Bullet in my headphones instead of paying attention in class. Hearing Matt Tuck’s vocals live sounded just like the album. The energy and passion in the lyrics he wrote over two decades ago still resonate with everyone in the crowd.

Bullet is also a guitar-heavy band, and I could look around the entire venue and see so many fans air-guitaring their favorite solos along with Tuck and fellow guitarist Michael Paget. As the band performed The Poison front to back, the crowd went unhinged when they played the emo staple “Tears Don’t Fall” as the third song in the set. Bullet gave a heartfelt speech about how this song means so much to them, as it truly helped their careers take off. The fans reciprocated that love by moshing the hardest for this song and sending bodies flying over the barricade.

You’d think this would be the climax of the set, only three songs in, but we diehard Bullet fans didn’t let the energy die for the remainder of their performance. After finishing The Poison, Bullet for My Valentine returned for a two-song encore of fan favorites: “Knives” and, finally, “Waking the Demon.” After listening to Bullet for two decades, I was worried I might have put them on a pedestal and that their live show could fall short. I’m happy to say they smashed those worries and delivered one of my favorite sets of the year.

All that was left was our final co-headliner, Trivium. They are always in top form, but it felt like they brought a special energy this time, playing Ascendancy for the fans. Vocalist and guitarist Matt Heafy was a Jekyll and Hyde on stage. When he screamed, you could see the intensity in his eyes and the ferocity of a man who wanted to see carnage erupt in the pit. But when he stepped out from behind the mic to solo, he became a complete goofball—sticking his tongue out at the crowd and headbanging like a playful cat chasing a toy. The crowd loved both sides of him.

Fellow guitarist Corey Beaulieu couldn’t be held back from headbanging throughout the set, yet he never lost his place among the onslaught of guitar solos that Trivium unleashed. Bassist Paolo Gregoletto held down the low end with drummer Alex Bent, whose double kicks created a mini whirlwind behind the kit. Trivium elevated their show with a giant 20-foot inflatable fallen angel looming over the stage—the creature from the Ascendancy album artwork. As it swayed from side to side, it added grandeur to their performance.

Like Bullet, Trivium played their album front to back, which built excitement as fans knew exactly which song was coming next. They closed the night with a single-song encore of “In Waves.” Heafy commanded the crowd, saying, “If you don’t lose your voice after this song, did you really give us everything you had?” This caused the thousands of fans to shake the YouTube Theatre as we communally screamed the lyrics with Heafy to end the night.

The Poison by Bullet for My Valentine and Ascendancy by Trivium hold a special place in the hearts of many fans. Sometimes, with these full-album tours, the deep cuts don’t hit as hard decades later. But not this night. Every song from these two albums hit the heart and soul perfectly. For a few hours, I was a teenager again, rocking out in my room to some of the best music I had ever found.

What makes concerts even better is knowing you’re surrounded by thousands of people getting lost in the same mindset as you. We were all happy and in a state of pure bliss, wishing we could hold on to that feeling just a little longer.