Rough and yet smooth
Textures are a Dutch hardcore metal band that get an early slot on the 2nd stage at Hard Rock Hell and as most bands seem to be doing so far this weekend they draw a decent size crowd.
I confess to knowing absolutely nothing about them before their set but they go about changing that fairly rapidly. Their impact is immediate with a plundering rhythm section and gravel vocals interspersed with melodic but menacing breaks. They are both intense and impressive early on and whilst the crowd isn’t the biggest they are very receptive. The musicianship is tight, there’s plenty of energy and the addition of keyboards works well. Singer Eric Kalsbeek constantly plays to the crowd and they seem to get better the longer they play.
If there’s criticism to be had it’s that you can’t possibly tell what any of the songs are called (another band falling into the “this song’s called uuraawgh!” category) but that aside it’s a good showing that you would hope has opened them up to a new audience.