Textures

Drawing Circles

Written by: ASH on 21/04/2006 18:31:38

It's big, hyped and aggressive, just waiting to be unleashed at fans of math-metal at the end of April. Textures will soon release their second full lenght album since their debut album "Polars" in 2003, and now it's in my hands, ready to be given a quality branding. Watch out for "Drawing Circles", it's not just a tiring lecture about geometry.

Warning: This should not be fed to the ears of children, pregnants and/or nervous people. If the content of this album should accidentally find its way into your nervous system, quickly put a record by Chicago on your player. Texture will make your ears bleed.

Firstly, let us go into the details of this Dutch sixtet and its demon-flaming, shredding and explicit lyrics. After their debut in 2003, Textures has worked hard to release their second killer "Drawing Circles". Don't be mislead by the smooth title, you will end up surprised as Bart Hennephof and Jochem Jacobs blast through your speakers with their emminent guitar riffs. And by Textures' premier drummer Stef Broks, who delivers stomach aching jabs in the disguise of a serious drum fury, the scenery is set. And just as they turn down their music into a creepy, crawling melody coming closer towards you, the harsh roars and screaming lyrics of the band's lead vocalist Eric Kalsbeek take over and hurl you around once more. There you have it, the first track of the album: "Drive". A great introduction to a seemingly promising album.

But that detail is not the only one worth mentioning. When listening through "Drive" you will eventually think: "How can they keep on playing so intense? The fingers of their guitarists must be bleeding by now!?"

And as you think about it you realize, without you noticing it at all, that Textures has already played through both "Drive", "Regenesis" and "Denying Gravity" before you catch them playing the intro of the fourth track of the album. Textures has simply been able to trick their listeners into thinking that they can play for hours and still manage to keep up a steady creativity throughout the whole album.

As a reviewer it makes me feel paranoid when I have to look at my display every single time the band sounds like leading up to something new, possibly the next track. The band follows that pattern from like the fourth track "Illumination" through "Stream of Consciousness" and finally settling down in the sixth track "Upwards" where you, as the listener, get to have your sense of orientation back.

"Upwards" also shows Richard Rietdijks's abilities with synthing. But as the sixth track ends and the seventh one begins, it's like the string of interest just snaps. You end up at the place where you've "heard this so many times before" and craving for more of what you heard just a few minutes ago. In my opinion it's a good album, I like the way they tricked me and all, but I couldn't imagine myself as a fan of their music. To sum it up, the first part of the album amazed me, but the downwarding spiral of the last part of the album made me think otherwise. Nonetheless, Textures has proven to me that there is something to look forward to.

6

Download: Drive, Upwards
For the fans of: Meshuggah, Devin Townsend

Release date 17.04.2006
Listenable Records
Provided by Target ApS

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