Textures

The Arc of Textures

The pivots — what forced Textures to reinvent.

1. 01

   The Polars Blueprint

   When they dropped Polars in 2004, the band was essentially a self-contained unit operating out of their own studio space. Jochem Jacobs handled the production himself, resulting in a raw, abrasive sound that leaned heavily into ambient noise and math-core aggression. This was the era of pure experimentation where the track lengths were bloated and the structure was secondary to the sheer force of the polyrhythms. You can hear the hunger in those early sessions before they figured out how to write a proper chorus.

2. 02

   The Kalsbeek Peak

   Drawing Circles and Silhouettes saw the band tightening the screws on their songwriting as Eric Kalsbeek’s vocal range became their primary weapon. They moved away from the sprawling ambient drifts of the debut to embrace a more condensed, aggressive form of progressive metal. This was the period where they became a touring juggernaut, proving that a band from Tilburg could stand toe-to-toe with the big American metalcore exports. The production got cleaner, the hooks got bigger, and the syncopation became their undisputed calling card.

3. 03

   The Dualism Transition

   After Kalsbeek left for a career in graphic design, the band recruited Daniël de Jongh and immediately hit the studio to track Dualism. The record leaned harder into the contrast between heavy, crushing grooves and almost pop-centric clean passages. Jochem Jacobs was still at the helm, but the atmosphere shifted toward a more atmospheric, expansive sound that would eventually lead to the ambitious 'Phenotype' and 'Genotype' concept project. It was a calculated risk that traded some of their early jagged edges for a more cohesive, grander vision.

Influences

• Meshuggah — The band has cited Destroyer 666 and Meshuggah as early catalysts, but the rhythmic DNA of Destroy Erase Improve is all over the Polars record. You hear it in the mechanical, staccato delivery of the riffs and the non-linear drumming of Stef Broks. It's the foundation they built their house on.
• Devin Townsend — Jochem Jacobs has specifically pointed to Townsend's 'Ocean Machine' and 'City' as huge influences on his production style and the use of 'wall of sound' layers. The atmospheric synth pads that sit beneath the heavy guitars in Silhouettes are a direct nod to Devin’s spatial depth. It keeps the math-metal from sounding too dry.
• Cynic — The band's penchant for weaving fusion elements and clean, jazz-inflected guitar breaks traces back to Focus. You can hear that lineage in the way Textures allows the bass to breathe and move independently during the quieter passages. They took the technical death metal template and added the same intellectual Curiosity Paul Masvidal brought to the table.
• Metallica — Bart Hennephof credited Metallica as his primary gateway into metal in several interviews, specifically noting their structural complexity in the 80s. The thrash energy in the faster Textures sections isn't accidental; it’s the core discipline that keeps their prog-metal from drifting into aimless noodling. It provides the 'metal' half of the progressive metal equation.
• Faith No More — The vocal dynamics between Kalsbeek and later De Jongh often mirror Mike Patton’s ability to flip from a soulful croon to a guttural scream. The band has praised Angel Dust for its unapologetic genre-mashing and disregard for traditional metal boundaries. That lack of fear is why Textures felt comfortable putting a synth-heavy ambient track next to a technical banger.