Review by Billy Geary
Photo by Stuart Blythe
The last time Periphery played in Melbourne, back in 2011, they sold out the Hi-Fi Bar weeks in advance, highlighting just how popular the band is in the land down under. It appeared a similar occurrence was on the cards for their Soundwave sideshow held at the famous Esplanade Hotel in St Kilda. Well before doors had even opened, the line of fans waiting to enter the venue had snaked through the front bar and outside along The Esplanade quite away. As such, the early indication was that Periphery’s love affair with Australia and the local fans was by no means over.
With the Gershwin Room already packed when support act Crossfaith walked on stage, crowd energy was already quite high. Initially, with the vast majority of punters being there for Periphery, it appeared Crossfaith were going to find it tough to win them over. However, this quickly changed with the sheer energy of the six Japan natives throwing themselves around the stage and encouraging the crowd to do the same at every opportunity. It was clear the band’s on stage antics (including releasing giant balloons into the crowd) and their electronic infused hardcore was made for stadiums rather than the meagre confines of the Espy’s Gershwin Room.
After a short change over, the six members of Periphery wandered on stage to an enormous cheer. Following a few quick waves to the crowd, the band launched straight into ‘Ragnarok,’ taken from their latest album Periphery II: This Time it’s Personal. Immediately, two things became very clear. Firstly, lead singer Spencer Sotelo has improved out of sight in terms of his vocals, sounding absolutely huge. Secondly, the tracks off the new album translate incredibly well live, something that was exhibited throughout the night with the set comprised mostly of the newer songs. For example, ‘Scarlet’ came across much heavier live than on record and was better for it, with the crowd belting out the chorus resulting in one of the best moments of the night.
Periphery fans generally fit into two distinct groups – those that attend just to watch Misha Mansoor and co.’s technical ability and those that want to jump around and mosh. On Monday night it appeared the split between the two groups was about 50-50, however all appeared to appreciate how much the band has improved between albums. Newer tracks ‘Make Total Destroy’ and ‘Facepalm Mute’ appeared to receive a larger response than the older ‘Buttersnips.’ Somewhat abruptly, after only seven songs, Sotelo announced that the next song would be their last as the familiar twang of the intro to ‘Icarus Lives!’ exploded out of the Gershwin’s PA. The old favourite sent punters up the front into a frenzy, leaving many visibly exhausted (including the band) at the tracks conclusion.
Returning for the encore, Sotelo asked the crowd which song they wanted to hear. In surprising unison, punters responded by roaring ‘Racecar!’ back to the band. The following fifteen minutes was an exercise in being complete masters of one’s instrument, with each member displaying their phenomenal technical ability. Of particular note was Matt Halpern’s incredible drumming ability through the track and indeed the entire set. Despite playing a criminally short set, Periphery yet again displayed why they are fast becoming a world-class metal act. Here’s hoping they make it back to Australia sooner rather than later.