Periphery – “Juggernaut: Omega” [Album Review]

OMeGa – Even better than Alpha, (be sure to read our album review here) which seems close to impossible whilst listening to Alpha. Copy and paste everything that I said about Alpha and add these 2 cents that are about to follow.

Omega comes across as the heavier of the two releases from Periph-guys. This means both, more aggressive riffs as well as more screamages, while still following many of the same vibes, which is why I now understand the reason for releasing this album along w/ Alpha. Easily one of the best albums I can think of to date, in terms of musical crafting, which is a funny way of saying song-writing because it incites an image of our Periphery friends working in Geppetto’s workshop with chisels and lathes, bandages on their hands due to the heaviness of the metalz which has led to multiple injuries despite their following all workshop safety protocols, furthering my point that regulation is far removed from reality. How does this relate to Omega, you might be ax(fx)in’? SuREPRISE, (first track’s name in case I’ve lost you) this is my impression of Tosh.0. Next slide, please.

“Reprises” and medleys, or just parts of music in general that reference other parts of songs within the same work or otherwise, are my favorite out of all things “of or relating to the ear or to the sense of hearing,” which is the definition of “aural” according to the guys over at Merriam-Webster. Omega starts w/ the most obvious one, “Reprise,” quoting lines from “A Black Minute,” the first track of Alpha, implying, “This piece of music you are about to hear is a continuation of a previous piece. If you haven’t listened to the previous piece, please return to the main menu and try again.” There’s also a jazz piano segue that begins at the end of “Hell Below,” which is a banger of a track – a definite highlight, that appears to quote a musical phrase, leaving you to hear the follow words in your head: “Now, I know my ABCs.” My favorite reference, however, is towards the end of the title track “Omega,” where Spencer quotes the hook from “Alpha,” the title track of Alpha. How clever is that? Very. Very clever!

These are the main points that I wanted to make. This band is a machine, the most emotional human-like machine imaginable, so basically not a machine at all. The only way I can summarize how I continue to feel about this band is this: Periphery – love that shit!

Track Listing:

01. Reprise
02. The Bad Thing
03. Priestess
04. Graveless
05. Hell Below
06. Omega
07. Stranger Things

Run Time: 40:33
Release Date: January 27, 2015

Check out the album ‘Omega’