Over the past three years, Bethesda, Maryland’s Progressive Metal band Periphery has become one of the more spoken about acts in mainstream Rock. Formed back in 2005, their 2010 self-titled debut on Sumerian Records was a cavalcading snow ball that picked up more momentum as audiences caught on to their unique blend of Progressive, Jazz, Rock, Metal, and even some Pop elements. By the time they released 2012’s Periphery II: This Time It’s Personal, the band had built an even stronger following. While others lumped into Prog-Rock label often do not reach beyond fans of the style, Periphery crossed boundaries in 2014 with their Hard Rock hit “The Parade of Ashes,” proving there is a room for the genre among mainstream listeners. Led by Spencer Sotelo on lead vocals, Misha “Bulb” Mansoor on lead guitar, Mark Holcomb on rhythm guitar, Jake Bowen on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, Adam “Nolly” Getgood on bass, and Matt Halpern on drums, the band returns in 2015 with their highly anticipated new double album, Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega. Set for release on the same day, Periphery emphasize that their intent for these albums is for fans to listen to them consecutively. A daring concept to release two full-length records on the same day, it is also unique and refreshing to see a band discount the idea of marketing and record sales to concentrate on the overall vision they have for their music. Produced by the band themselves at Top Secret Audio, the wait is finally over and it is time to sit back and indulge in the music.
Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega are very deep and musically sophisticated albums, telling stories of birth and then rebirth as they go from song to song. Each track has many layers of its own and in order to really dive into it, the album must be replayed a few times to really feel the different elements of each song. The musical style itself differs throughout Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega as well. It is clear that Periphery had multiple stylistic influences when creating this album, as it features the aforementioned elements from start to finish on both albums.
The mood and progression of the double album varies from song to song. On the Alpha disc, “A Black Minute” starts off slowly with some soft, clean lyrics, and is followed up by “MK Ultra,” a much louder track with screaming vocals and ending with some smooth jazz towards the end of the song. The album kicks it up a notch with “Heavy Heart.” The up and down tempo and heavy waves continue on to the Omega disc as well. “Reprise” opens up the album in a slow and mellow tempo, while “The Bad Thing” picks things up again with a heavier, thicker sound. When the song “Omega” starts, it brings with it with some classic jazz bits, at times sounding like something heard while sitting on a dentist’s chair – a metalhead dentist that has an awesome taste in, that is!
Some songs, like “A Black Minute” on the Alpha disc and “Reprise” on the Omega disc, are the same lyrically, but instrumentally they are totally different. Meaning the ‘reoccurrence or resumption of an action,’ “Reprise” is aptly named. The band has three guitarists, including the mighty Mansoor, performing the smooth Jazz guitar work on each track, making the sound very rich and full, but the Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega would not be complete without Spencer Sotelo’s powerful vocals. Sotelo shines in each song, showing listeners that he is not just a one trick pony as he handles both the rough and clean vocals.
Periphery’s Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega are both beautifully put together pieces of musical art, flowing smoothly from one track to the next, with offerings like “Heavy Heart,” “Alpha,” and “The Scourge,” on Alpha, and “Graveless,” “Omega,” and “Stranger Things” on Omega. Although Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega are available through the pre-release date for streaming, it is highly encouraged for fans to purchase a physical copy of the album to truly grasp the beauty of the overall package. The album comes with a twelve page booklet featuring the amazing artwork of graphic novelist Justin Randall, including illustrations that add a visual element to the album’s story telling. It will also be interesting to see if Periphery will incorporate this art on stage in their upcoming tour. Along with the beautiful artwork, Periphery also included a trailer on the Juggernaut: Omega disc, titles “JuggerDoc – The Making Of Juggernaut.” This double release has a high replay value and will quench the thirst of their passionate fans. CrypticRock Periphery’s Juggernaut: Alpha and Juggernaut: Omega 4.5 out of 5 stars.
- Sumerian Records
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