Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Textures - Drawing Circles (2006)

Textures gained some fame early on with their debut Polars allowing them to win the "Most Promising Act" Essent Award. Though shortly after, ex-vocalist Pieter Verpaalen left. Their next vocalist Eric Kalsbeek stepped in for their second album, Drawing Circles!

What do progressive metal fans have in mind with what they refer to as progressive? It can be the wackiness of Dream Theater or the experimentation of Isis. Textures is never afraid to take things through unconventional ideas highly different from the mainstream. They don't repeat the same thing nor do they follow the mundane verse-chorus structure. There are so many twists that it's hard to count them all, and with Drawing Circles, you know that things only end when they want it to end.

We start off with a short driving buildup in "Drive" that introduces the vocal talent of Eric Kalsbeek. "Regenesis" blasts through with a bit of the progressive metalcore later shaped up by Northlane and the background ambience of Cult of Luna. "Denying Gravity" has killer shapeshifting between Fear Factory and Meshuggah.

"Illumination" takes a break from the Becoming the Archetype-esque extreme progressiveness to cool down in illuminating ether. Then thrashing around is "Stream of Consciousness". Then we have more ambient textures (ha ha) in "Upwards". And "Circular" has more of the Dream Theater circles.

"Millstone" is a little more, but the band's innovative skills never cease. "Touching the Absolute" has pretty much touched so many different places. Whether they're going as dramatic as Trail of Tears at that time, or as hardcore as Architects and Gaza (the band), they don't stray from what they are, and that's what makes Textures unique. "Surreal State of Enlightenment" is a beautiful outro to end this offering, far better than the long ambient track closing their debut.

When it comes to progressiveness, forget the rules! You just gotta appreciate what you can do and not stick to what's so popular nowadays. Wild experimentation is an essential thing for Textures, and Drawing Circles, like many of their albums, shall not be taken for granted!

Favorites: "Regenesis", "Denying Gravity", "Stream of Consciousness", "Upwards", "Touching the Absolute"