PERIPHERY Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre | Weekly Heavy Metal Album Review

Released by 3DOT Recordings on March 10th, 2023

Quick Background

Periphery is an American progressive metal band formed in Washington, D.C., in 2005. Their musical style has been described as progressive metal, djent, and progressive metalcore. They are considered one of the pioneers of the djent movement within progressive metal. Their self-titled debut was released in 2010 and the single "Icarus Lives!" was my gateway into the band. The Periphery II: This Time It's Personal released in 2012 was one of my top 3 albums of that year. Following years they released the double album Juggernaut: Alpha and Omega (2015), Periphery III: Select Difficulty (2016), Periphery IV: Hail Stan (2019). Now Periphery V: Djent Is Not a Genre is their seventh studio.

Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre

The album was self-produced by the band and the band's former bassist Adam "Nolly" Getgood. It features 9 songs in 71 minutes. Periphery always delivers long albums, but this time they have also kept the number of songs limited to 9 so obviously they are quite long. 6 are above seven minutes and two of the them (the last two) are 12 and 11 minutes long respectively. Now, we will see that often the length of those songs is driven by long outro sections. The single "Wildfire" opens the album and The song sets the tone for the album: heavy and yet catchy and melodic, full of jazzy or electronic long interludes, powerful vocal delivery and awesome guitar work. It's indeed my favorite song out of Periphery V. It's really heavy and a punch in the face. I love the vocals and the guitar work. Specially the guitar solo that sounds so Meshugga! The chorus is catchy and that jazzy interlude is a welcomed curved ball. A short symphonic outro take us to "Atropos" which despite the heavy opening riffs features a poppier feel to it due to the softer singing. But nothing to worry, it is one of the longest song of the albums, so after 2:30 minutes, things get very heavy again. It's a nice song. And here we another outro section, this time not too short and very cinematic. I dig it. It's a nice transition to the clean intro riff of "Wax Wings" which follows similar direction. This takes us to the second third of the album where we have the shortest songs on the album, 3 songs at about the 5min mark: "Everything is Fine!", "Silhouette" and "Dying Star". The first being a heavy modern song, with hints of Code Orange but without loosing a Periphery trademark stamp. The other two are to me the lowest points on the album. While I appreciate the change of pace, I just don't like the songs for being too mellow and pop oriented. 

This all leads us to the last third of the album featuring 3 long songs. The single "Zagreus" and its 8+ minutes is the first one. It's a return to what we heard with the first 3 songs. But here the vocal approach is even heavier going into brutal death metal for a few moments. We have again a cool atmospheric interlude feature a super melodic guitar solo and soft clean singing. This leads the song to proceed in an alt rock fashion, and close with another cinematic ending. "Dracul Gras" the longest song on the album and one of the highlights comes next. An adventures song with all the Periphery hallmarks packed in 12 minutes including an electronic music inspired outro. I wish this was the last song, the album would've been shorter with 8 songs and the last song doesn't add much to it. 

V showcases the band's technical proficiency and versatility as musicians, as they seamlessly blend elements of progressive metal, djent, and atmospheric and pop rock. Guitarists Misha Mansoor, Jake Bowen, and Mark Holcomb are the driving force behind Periphery's sound. They are renowned for their complex and intricate guitar riffs. But in this album I also positively surprised by super melodic and cleaner guitar solos. Drummer Matt Halpern often employs intricate rhythms, odd time signatures, and dynamic shifts to create a dynamic and engaging rhythm section. Finally, lead vocalist Spencer Sotelo again displays his powerful and versatile voice. He seamlessly transitions between clean and harsh vocals, often using a wide range of vocal techniques. I think he sounds even better than in previous albums. Finally love the album title and couldn't  agree more with their own statement!

The Picky Guy

As I mentioned a couple of songs did not work well for me. Moreover, the album's length can be overwhelming, particularly for casual listeners and this time around even more challenging as most of the 9 songs are quite long. The album's overall sound can feel overly polished or sterile at times for some metalheads.

Wrap Up Opinion 

Periphery's latest album, Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre, is a progressive metal musicianship journey. With complex and intricate guitar riffs, precise and dynamic rhythms, and powerful vocals, the band showcases their technical proficiency and versatility throughout the album. The band experiments with different time signatures and textures, keeping listeners engaged and interested. The album's impressive production quality and innovative songwriting make it a must-listen for fans of the genre.

SCORE: 81/100

Genre: Progressive Metal

Released by 3DOT Recordings on March 10th, 2023

Rating System

99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

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