5 piece New Zealand rock outfit Primacy have returned with a follow up to their debut EP release “Failure And Sacrifice” released last year, with a new 3 track mini-EP simply titled “III”.The combination of alternative and melodic rock with a heavy edge to it all results in something tangible and often catchy.
“III” continues where the first release left off in that these 3 tracks were previously released as singles through out the year with vocalist Jason McIver who has now stepped down as the frontman for the band. It’s obviously a new cycle for the band and this ultimately will be the last remnants of that lineup before they continue on for their next project.
As mentioned, it’s a continuation of their first EP release which was a solid piece featuring a collection of mostly alternative and melodic rock tunes that occasionally inject a heavier more metal aspect into it. The 3 songs on offer here, “Apricity“, “Dissent” and “Without Everything” are all fairly different from each other, at least enough to have the distinction of showing the various sides of the band.
The first track “Apricity” has a real nice bounce to it, grooves nicely with the drums and main riffs mixing together perfectly. It’s a mostly melodic rock song but hints at a meaner element without going overboard. “Dissent” however does push that boundary between metal and rock and while it sits mostly within an alternative rock spectrum, the more aggressive vocals thrown in does counteract a lot of the melodies that drive the song. Now with that being said, Primacy show yet another side of the band with “Without Everything“, a song with a bit of meat on its bones showing the more heavier side of things. The deeper vocals, more aggressive drumming and heavier riffs gives this song a more metal edge but enough melody to keep it within the rock realm. The song does incorporate a jammy section over the halfway mark but it doesn’t last long before the almost southern heavy rock sound kicks in again.
Overall a solid effort from the New Zealanders and from what we hear, a more lengthier release is in the works which is good to hear. But if they are serious about where things want to go, a full length needs to be in the cards and clearly the band have the chops for it if all things are being considered.
TRACKLIST
Apricity
Dissent
Without Everything
