Foretoken is a duo from America, consisting of Steve Redmond (guitars) and Dan Cooley (vocals). The two musicians probably got tired of the inactivity of Cyaegha in which they coexist and have only released one record in 2008 and decided to do something different together. “Triumphs” is their second full-length album and is the successor to “Ruin” which was released in 2020.
Foretoken’s style is melodic death metal with symphonic elements, curated by Redmond. Behind the drum kit we find the experienced German Hannes Grossmann (Triptykon, ex-Necrophagist, ex-Obscura, ex-Hate Eternal, etc.), a job he had also taken on in the band’s debut. Their music reminded me at times of the mighty Wintersun, with fast tempos and sharp riffs as the main feature. Occasionally, black and folk touches find their way into the record as well as classic heavy influences rhythms and guitar solos. A great example is the excellent “Demon Queller”.
The symphonic elements fortunately (at least for me) have a complementary character and are heard in the background, since the protagonists are the guitars, drums and death growls. Even if they were missing, I don’t think there would be a huge difference in the result. The overall sound that comes out of “Triumphs” is flawless and how could it not be, when the mixing and mastering has been handled by Jacob Hansen, one of the most renowned sound engineers in the metal scene, which he also did on their debut.
In general, “Triumphs” is one of those releases that I probably wouldn’t have heard if it didn’t come to our webzine for review and yet it is predicted to stay in my speakers for quite some time because it is a very good work. The songs held my interest from start to finish, featuring variety in rhythms and compositional patterns. One or two of them could have been shorter in duration but this is a detail since the result is more than positive. Also, excellent cover on a song by the amazing Naglfar that closes the record.
