Holcomb (far right) onstage with Periphery in Montreal
This past Summer, Periphery parted ways with guitarist Alex Bois. Since then, the djent metal group have been utilizing the services of guitarist Mark Holcomb, who is also Periphery guitarist Misha Mansoor’s collaborator in Haunted Shores. Today, though, Periphery announced that Holcomb has become a permanent member of the group.
Mansoor had the following to say about Periphery’s new guitarist (who actually won’t be able to join them during their opening stint during Dream Theater’s European tour):
“We are happy to announce that Mark Holcomb (Haunted Shores) will be joining the Periphery ranks as a full time guitarist! He toured with us [on] our headlining run of Australia, our Frak The Gods US headliner and our 2 shows opening for Dream Theater, and we feel that we have found a perfect fit for us both live and in the studio. We are extremely excited to have him on board, and cant wait to show you all the cool new music we have been working on together! Since we made arrangements for the tour before Mark was inducted, our good friend Nolly (Red Seas Fire) will be filling in on the European tour opening for Dream Theater. However that will be the last tour we do with a fill-in guitarist, as Mark will join on full time after that!”
Bassist Thomas Murphy added the following about their new band mate:
“The most important thing about a band is the chemistry between its members. We’ve all known Mark for years and are very proud to announce him as our newest member. Not only is he an amazing writer and guitarist, but also an amazing person. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for the band now that he has joined.”
Holcomb shares his band mates’ excitement, having the following to say about his new role in the band:
“I couldn’t be more excited as not only have these guys been great friends of mine for a long time, but I consider every last one of them musical siblings in a sense. Each of us brings something different to the table and I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish.”
Mansoor also confirmed via Facebook that Holcomb will also be featured on Periphery’s upcoming two new albums, both of which are due out in 2012.
[picture via JaeKwon Park]
