DC-based prog metal band Periphery are set to tour Australia to promote their new EP, ‘Clear’.
“The melodic theme that takes place [in ‘Clear’] is in the intro track called ‘Overture’,” says guitarist Jake Bowman, “and you can hear that theme, and interpret it in a much different way in each song. As far as lyrical themes and music style, it's all over the place.”
A tour encounter with fellow alt metallers Deftones was invaluable in the EP’s conception. "We were planning on doing an EP for a while, we didn't really know what was going to be on it, if there was going to be any sort of concept or anything. Then we went on tour with Deftones in the US. We became really good friends with those guys, and the guitar player, Stef [Carpenter], had a bunch of ideas that he ran by us that he wanted us to try. So we took some of his ideas and we applied them to our band and we came up with each member doing a track based on one of the same motifs from the opening track ... Everybody in the band pretty much plays guitar, with the exception of Matt, our drummer, so it was relatively easy."
Contrary to what one might think, this musical approach did not make it more difficult for the album to sound like a cohesive whole. “That's kind of how we write anyway. We'll usually bring an idea to Misha, and then that person and Misha [Mansoor] will flesh it out and record it, it's usually just collaboration between two people and then Spencer [Sotelo] will do the vocals on top.”
Jake acknowledges that the outfit’s “progressive” label allows them greater musical dexterity. “I'm happy that we're getting that label because, in my eyes and the eyes of the members of this band, having the term progressive in the genre that you play just enables you to do crazy things and people hear something that they wouldn't necessarily hear in a metal song, and it's okay because we're in a progressive band, so I kind of like the freedom that comes with that.”
Written by Justin Smereglia
Periphery 2014 Australian Tour
Jan 31- The Hi-Fi, BrisbaneFeb 01- The Metro (ALL AGES) Sydney
Feb 02 - 170 Russell (Formerly Billboard) Melbourne
