Dutch musician Bram Bijlhout, best known for his years spent in the ranks of Officium Triste, with whom he recorded 2013s Mors Viri album, started his latest venture, Structure, in 2021. A self titled EP was released in 2022, with vocals being supplied by Officium Triste’s Pim Blankenstein – who has remained part of the Structure set up ever since – and a single, Disordered, followed in 2023, featuring the talents of drummer Dirk Bruinenberg (Elegy). Now, Bijlhout is ready to present the first full length album from Structure, recorded with the assistance of Blankenstein, Bruinenberg and additional vocalist Robert Soeterboek (Ayreon, Plan 9). An emotionally diverse and utterly enthralling example of atmospheric, melodic doom/death metal at its finest, Heritage is a quite outstanding piece of work.
Beginning with ‘Will I Deserve It’, Heritage takes the listener on a journey through the range of emotions that are woven into the tapestry of our everyday existence and the experiences which together form the fabric of our lives. There is grief, there is loss and there is despair, but there is also joy, beauty and hope. Even at its darkest, on songs like ‘What We Have Lost’ and ‘The Sadness Of Everyday Life’, Heritage paints in an array of shades and colours, taking us from the oppressive gloom of grief to wistful reflection. These songs deal in the richly textured reality of life, not in hyperbole and gothic melodrama. There is a huge amount to discover in a track such as ‘Long Before Me’, its different movements reflecting the scope of a song that looks back through time, following the threads of past ages that have lead to our moment in this grand tale. It is impossible to encapsulate the depths within songs like ‘Heritage’, the title track, in a few brief words – and as stunning as the individual elements that form them are – the glorious guitar solos, the measured rhythms, the colossal riffs and delicate counterpoints, the heart-wrenching vocals – it is only when they are brought together that the full magic of Structure is revealed. Heritage must be embraced and experienced.
Ardua Music will release Heritage on April 25th, adorned in thought provoking photographs taken from Bram Bijlhout’s personal family collection. The album has been beautifully mastered by Dool bassist J.B. Van Der Wal (Celestial Sanctuary, Entrapment etc), allowing every vital, subtle nuance of the songs to be heard, felt and appreciated. Albums like Heritage do not come along every day; works infused with such honesty and dignity, that suggest, question and captivate, prompting reflection and stirring the emotions. Do not let it pass you by…
Find out more about Structure here
Follow Structure on Bandcamp
Visit Ardua Music here
