The bell has tolled for Toward The Throne.
More than four years after their debut album, the band from eastern France, composed of Gauthier “Unna” Ressel (bass/vocals), Julien Boguet (drums), Jérémy Binsinger (guitar), and Fabrice Zuchowicz (guitar), are back with their second album, Midnight.
The Void: Road from Chaos starts with futuristic sounds, then finally melancholic violins and keyboards that call for mysterious vocals, and while the mix takes a while to catch fire, the saturation sounds like a real deliverance when it strikes for the first time, but especially the second time. The composition lays the groundwork for Midnight, the eponymous title track, to also give itself a long introduction before unleashing its imposing tones via rapid riffs, returning to the jerky approach when the vocals join in, creating rare moments of intensity when the harmonics also kick in. There is another moment of uncertainty with the introductory sample of 7HATE, but the track is at its best when it is heavy, combining palm mutes and dissonant touches, giving a theatrical dimension to this track that could almost be described as grandiose, but which still knows how to return to violence when necessary. The captivating atmosphere persists until A Poisonous Flower in the Desert offers us a moment of respite with its acoustic notes that become increasingly mysterious until an eruption captures our attention, reconnecting us with a majestic and sometimes even oppressive violence that nevertheless allows us to breathe. The same can be said for Caught Between Breaths, which begins by gently lulling us, but then explodes and swaps it for imposing sounds and even stranger robotic tones or a heady groove on which the solo flourishes before moving on to Malice in Veins, the most contrasting track, which doesn’t hesitate to call on devastating violence as well as much more refined passages. The sound gradually fades away to make way for Forge Ahead, which is the perfect compromise between rage and heightened symphonic tones, featuring intricate leads that lead us to the final unifying moment before Noir, a final sample that darkens by the second, then leaves us with this disturbing melody, bringing the album to a close.
While Toward The Throne made a strong impression on me with their previous opus, it’s fair to say that the band wasn’t afraid of change with Midnight. The violence remains in some of the tracks, but the experimentation is legion!
80/100
