By Ola Mazzuca
Like a plunge into water off a steep cliff in the Balearics or traveling to a new country for the first time, a sense of release resonates throughout Dualism, the fourth studio work from Dutch prog innovators Textures, their instrumentation and structure providing an audibly serene sound amongst a coarse layer of distortion.
Daniel de Jongh has a vocal style that commands each track, his tone eager in its ascent on “Singularity” and “Stoic Resignation”, aiming for higher pitches atop crazy time signatures. Each band member shines on the beautiful, contrasting instrumental “Burning The Midnight Oil”, maintaining complexity at a more relaxed pace.
There is so much to be said about the level of intricacy and intense emotion on Dualism, yet the most golden track is “Consonant Hemispheres”, which intertwines all elements and aura conveyed by Textures with its expressive climactic technicality.
This is the kind of refreshment the metal scene needs every once in a while. Kind of like a retreat in a continent far from home, or giving your neck a break from the whiplash and moshpit to enjoy every bar note for note.
(Nuclear Blast)
