Hailed by Rolling Stone for conceptual genius, and having two albums in the top 20 of the Top 200 Billboard music charts in 2015, progressive metal band Periphery have set the stage for greatness when it comes to their new release, Periphery III: Select Difficulty. This metal band, hailing from Washington, D.C., consists of Misha Mansoor (guitars, programming), Jake Bowen (guitar, programming, backing vocals), Matt Halpern (drums), Spencer Sotelo (lead vocals), Mark Holcomb (guitars), and Adam “Nolly” Getgood (studio bass, guitars, programming).
That may seem like a lot of members and a lot of instruments, but to pull off the sound of metal these guys make, you kind of need all of that noise. If you’re not into metal that is heavy as the likes of Slipknot and Mudvayne, Periphery may not be the band for you.
However, these gentlemen put a lot of work into their music, writing what they feel. And, with each new album, their self-titled debut was released in 2010, they gray as a band and musicians, and allow that to reflect in their music.
Periphery III starts with an onslaught of heavy metal sounds and growling vocals that are still clear enough for you to understand what Sotelo is singing about. Their intros, according to Misha, are always long and they like it that way. It introduces the band with some insane drum work and an angry guitar riff that metal fans can appreciate. Opening track, The Price Is Wrong, definitely fits the bill.
The album doesn’t lighten up much following this intense introductory song though. While at some points you feel the music gets lighter, it doesn’t stay that way. Songs like Marigold, which starts with a nice classical sound, gets heavy and angry quickly. However, The Way The New News Goes do have more of a nu-metal sound than the rest of album, lending a little ease to the pallet from all the angry music and heavy riffs.
Remain Indoors continues the album on a mild note, and is definitely one of my favorite songs on the album. https://youtu.be/X6WvP_j-gzg Following, however, Periphery returns to the heavier side of things, with Habitual Line-Stepper, which has a bit of a Mudvayne feel to it.
This whole album is well put together, and offers metal for almost any metal fan’s taste. It’s a must own album, and will surely garner lots of attention and probably be on the charts like its predecessors. As someone that usually enjoys a more classic metal sound, I’d still definitely consider this a four-star album, at minimum.
