Mark Holcomb - Periphery / Haunted Shores: GuitarMessenger.com Masterclass 1 of 2

www.guitarmesse... Log on to find full tabs, audio, video, and text for Part 1 of 2 of Guitar Messenger's Masterclass with Mark Holcomb of Haunted Shores
Zach Jopling - Director of Photography/Editor
Habib Awan - Assistant Camera
Alex Hura - Sound

[@cawrhy]

So cool, I had no idea that the riff from "Scarlett" was originally a Haunted Shores song. Dig.

[@DomZone123]

yeah some of their songs in their album are all from their sub band haunted shores

[@codzilla7699]

It's so nice to how far mark has come since then.

[@TheBladeSephara]

That tone makes me very, very happy.

[@mylesmackey2430]

I neeeeeed to know what his rig is at that point in time. That tone satisfies me to no end.

[@M4NA5]

Is now endorsed by leading brands in recording gear, has his own signature guitar and pickups (and good ones too if I may add). Still humble af, an inspiration to me and I'm sure many others.

[@RichardGarcia93]

i mean he really messed up with the Yvette young thing

[@spoonerluv]

@@RichardGarcia93 Seems nobody cares, he's still living life and posting images with his wife.

[@mylesmackey2430]

Absolutely incredible how much Mark has changed since this video was filmed. He's so much more comfortable and relaxed infront of a camera, his voice has changed, his picking style has changed. I always find it fascinating to see people develop as they age. Keep being awesome, Mark!

[@SiaManOnDeath]

And 5 years later he is in one of the greatest bands ever , periphery :)

[@Jn1spion]

and is also one of the greatest guitarists!

[@louciferLGS]

that's a weird way to spell limp bizkit

[@emadeathmetal1264]

@@louciferLGS stop

[@seonethree]

Fuck periphery. You don't need fucking three guitarists.

[@firmans12]

@@seonethree ok boomer

[@KFieLdGaming]

When I first heard that opening verse riff to Immaterial, my entire world of guitar playing changed forever. Still one of my favorite riffs to this day. Not entirely complicated but the progression is absolutely epic.

[@jwcorcoran9838]

Fifty0ne Totally man, completely changed my writing style too

[@bluesboy18]

Knowing theory dosent have to diminish creativity , knowing how chords work is useful in experimenting and creating new sounds if you know. Rules you can break them . But still not musicians who are self taught or have little theory knowledge usually have a cool unique sound and create complex sick shit

[@zeal6742]

True! I mean, just look at Eddie, he's created some of the sickest shit ever without having a clue how he did it.

[@joeykimble62]

+bluesboy18 he knows theory more than most probably but i bet as a musician you got to be aware that their are always those that are leaps and bounds beyond you in terms of musical development so its not uncommon to see such self deprecation

[@abdulsathar8156]

This man gave me a fist bump during a meet and greet when Periphery visited India to play a festival. To this day, I think of how kind, vibrant and zen he was then and always has been. Love you Mark.

[@tanujcherian3911]

Yo when did periphery come to India????

[@abdulsathar8156]

@@tanujcherian3911 Hi Tanuj! Nh7 Weekender Bangalore, December 2012 ☺️

[@DSloot]

I like how one of the greatest and most creative guitarists I've ever seen says shit like "I don't know theory" hahaha

[@arrestedshrimp]

I find it incredibley fucking amazing that mark is able to come up with so many amazing sounding chords that flow so nicely together without knowing theory

[@arrestedshrimp]

post a song that you wrote on youtube thats better than this one hes showing us, then your comment would be more credible

[@stoltobot]

arrestedshrimp It seems to me that the players who are making all of the cool songs/riffs/sounds are the guys who can't explain the theory behind what they are doing. The people who could (in theory) use the theory to come up with something amazing are the ones bitching in the comments sections of the internets. Musical theory is descriptive, it doesn't have to be prescriptive. After all, it's just a noise. It either connects with you or it doesn't, no matter if how you describe it.

[@FairlyUnknown]

gh3rulz69 "There are many more chords that could sound much better or much cooler" and you're saying that like it's a fact? Music is what comes from inside of you. Maybe he wont like the sound of the chords that you think sound "better or cooler". Different people, different tastes. You're the kind of person who thinks that knowing theory is what makes a musician good, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Just accept it, someone who has a natural ear for what they like is better than your theory junky self. Do you know what I mean Mr. "gh3rulz69" (that name gets me every time).

[@13thsilent]

gh3rulz69 show one of Your phenomenal, "theory-packed" riffs or gtfo, You jealous piece of shit.

[@poragburagohain87]

Well atleast for a fact I can say that music came before the theory about music existed..

[@midihc]

this dude takes the term riffage to a new level. he is truly a riffsmith.

[@RichardGarcia93]

This was Mark’s greatest distorted tone imo. The High end is so rich and it sounds amazing compared to the alpha and omega setZ

[@GuitarMessenger]

TABS HERE: www.guitarmessenger.com/artist-masterclasses/haunted-shores-mark-holcomb-masterclass-part-1/

[@Straixin]

i love it when a musician such as yourself admits to not knowing theory but you could never assume that by listening, just shows the natural grip you have on the direction you go for

[@mrgibson]

wish I could travel back in time and show him what his life looks like in 2016...

[@MattSaintsMusic]

it would be even crazier now haha

[@abhiramkrishna1574]

wish i could "turn" back time to the good old days......

[@Dawn_8OA]

Haunted Shores is so under rated i loved periphery most of all because mark joined , mark is one of the few guitarist i've heard that has such a unique style and when i show people haunted shores they fall in love with the band.

[@FairlyUnknown]

I was learning Pale Aura and now I see where that chord comes from during the intro riff! haha

[@jwcorcoran9838]

Who gives a fuck if he doesn't know theory?! He writes music that sounds amazing - and that's all that matters!!!!

[@ericvalverderosado2046]

JW Corcoran he knows theory

[@TehBloodyYank556]

He admits that he doesn't

[@sudeephembrom325]

who cares man....if someone knows a bunch of theories....but dont fuckin know how to apply that..............

[@ericvalverderosado2046]

he really knows...Jake and Misha also know theory...they just say they dont to look amazing xd

[@MarkToast99]

That’s what’s cool about it. He doesn’t know that he knows theory. It’s not something he thinks about, it’s something he feels naturally. Kurt Cobain had a very similar thing, where Nirvana’s songs are all very melodic and the chord changes are all great! But Cobain never knew a lick of actual theory, he just felt it. That’s how Mark is too

[@Gobbostopper]

Mark, you truly are an inspiration. Ever since i saw this video, ive wanted to be able to create such amazing chords, and use them HALF as well as you do. You really are having an impact with Haunted Shores. Well done.

[@rhinoguitar]

Love Mark! Also love the Holdsworth Signature guitar. Makes me want to get one. They are a little high end for me but that helps with the heavier sound. As he's talking I can't help but be reminded of Keanu from Bill and Ted - Excellent!!

[@crazyfaceperson]

Hi, I'm Mark. I guitar in Haunted Shores and...." wait let me stop you there. You play for Periphery now. Welcome to one of the most progressive newer bands today. You will be remembered for decades as "one of the guitarists for Periphery".

[@MrFigman420]

I dig Periphery but, fuck i miss Haunted Shores.

[@tcarafi]

Mark said he would record new HS tunes as well as re-record old demos into an album after they're done with Juggernaut.

[@davethedm]

New EP out tomorrow

[@jwcorcoran9838]

Bob Dole Yep, gonna be so good

[@MikaTarkela]

I heard they're making a new record.

[@666luc666]

So glad Mark was brought into Periphery! This stuff is amazing!

[@CreeCore94]

I love watching videos of these musicians. There's always a diamond if the rough, now i found one of my new favorite bands.

[@retrocny5625]

I'm still hoping to one day hear Periphery recycle Immaterial into one of their albums just like they did with Scarlett. The first time I ever heard Immaterial I was totally fucking mind blown. I was listening to your typical metalcore stuff at the time like As I Lay Dying, Parkway Drive, stuff like that in the late 2000s. Randomly stumbled onto Haunted Shores when I was an active member of the harmony central forums and people were talking about it in the gear/rig section because Djenty tones had all of a sudden surged in popularity with the axe-fx becoming a thing, etc. I had heard nothing like what Mark was playing on Immaterial. Totally reshaped my approach to playing. Pretty much made me hit the reset button on guitar.

[@sebastiansallean8240]

And now just a few months later it's been teased that it's being redone for an official Haunted Shores release, I'm very interested to see if they'll have a singer on it this time around

[@MarkToast99]

Oh man I bet you’re happy with the new Haunted Shores album

[@drummerdude6670]

What I love so much about this post is how many people got the reference.

[@bradhargis2261]

Oh mark. Before you even knew you'd end up designing the most balanced/aggressive sounding Seymour Duncan pups ever created.

[@MajorPonch]

I am in LOVE with the tone. My sweet God, it gives me goosebumps.

[@kennn1234]

Dude writes some of the most interesting riffs I've heard in a long time.

[@RoyaltonDrummer922]

Mark seems a lot more chilled out these days. He comes across a little nervous here

[@Dampfwalzi]

i try to play with these chords a lot

[@maxnewellmz8025656]

i love when bands write by what sounds good and not what some music teacher taught them... i love when mark says they are basically in the same scale

[@Peron1-MC]

he remind me of scarecrow from batman

[@B3rrymon]

Mark is a magician and his guitar is basically his magic device! Change my mind.

[@THALL_1]

if anyone is wondering how he gets his tone, and why it sounds different, is because when he strums chords on the treble strings, hes basically holding his pick as if he were doing a pinch harmonic, but strummed instead of individually picked.

[@krazybadger78]

masterful guitar player

[@BustaBeware]

so right dude elliot coleman's vocals are just fantastic, best I've ever heard I think I can say but spencer is amazing as well, and fits periphery perfectly in my opinion

[@AchilionX]

I love how he plays all these chords that I immediately recognise in Periphery II songs. Prime example: 2:31, Mile Zero, middle section c:

[@GuillerDrummer]

I really love his style, so elegant and clever.

[@altpath]

@basedgod293, you're right. What I'm saying is that a lot of people like to make the argument that carvin does not produce guitars, especially the holdsworth model, that will work for metal. This video helps prove those people wrong.

[@Joe.Shmo.Eskimo]

He may not know theory, but he knows how to play... AND THAT TONE. It makes me moist.

[@VoVikMakaR]

he does. Haunted Shores is a side project. Misha and Mark are main members but they can invite whoever they want for songs, Spencer for example. etc

[@Dethsquirrel]

please read my comment, he is a fantastic musician and guitar player, he just doesn't speak the standardized language I'm used to, and I agree with you, whenever I compose I avoid theory whenever possible I only bust it out when I get writers block, and thats one of the reason I love Periphery, because they don't know what they are doing (in the context of theory) they get a lot of really interesting sounds that make sense sonically but not theoretically

[@coleearnest7784]

i can't believe he doesnt know theory, hes just so good. one of my favorite guitar players!

[@Kevinelevin92]

Just to think, a year after this video was uploaded, this would be a Periphery song.

[@altpath]

The pickups is especially something people like to argue against. I like their pickups. I put an M22SD in an old cheap guitar once and it sounded killer with it.

[@matthewcolwell6593]

That one chord is basically the Achilles last stand opening chord. Jimmy adds his twist at the end. Pretty sick to hear it last generationally. Two of my all time favorite bands makes sense lol

[@AnvikThe]

with this great guy in the band im sure the next records of periphery are going to be awesome

[@bakedbean1232]

Pretty much instantly became my favourite guitar player. Wow

[@EmbraceTheWorld1990]

Hey guys, I just learned the tuning for scarlet. It's like drop C, CGCEGD.

[@socaldgr24]

So happy this guy's in Periphery now

[@Psyshimmer]

@TheBlackDahlia815 The first riff is Scarlet by Haunted Shores. Scarlet will also be on the next Periphery album.

[@nazarf1884]

I love when mark stated extol as his main influence..i can tell there's a lot similarity on mark/ole borud playing 🤘🏻

[@TehFenix]

Also The Gods must be Crazy was written mostly by Jake, trying to write like Mark. He said his main influence was Mark's writing technique. Also if you listen to it, it has many of the same chords/progressions as Immaterial.

[@Giraffe-Dealer]

That first chord Mark talks about is an Fm11, if you guys wanna know (:

[@njudndudi]

Did he really say he knows no theory ? wow Good to see it's possible to write this kind of music without having to know theory really well

[@juvedoo99]

Great chords. Really helps to add atmosphere while still retaining the metal aspect.

[@guitarblade1891]

@SmileyMcGee900 you are correct to an extent. alot of great musicians dont know theory and i cant remember who said it i think it was devin townsend. he said learn enough theory to play the ideas you get in your head. which is the best advice because not everyone is great at theory. not arguing or anything just throwing an off shoot of your thought

[@drumfisch]

brilliant stuff. why are all those masters so shy and down to earth...

[@fercontreras8]

love the tone!

[@asciicatface]

OH MY GOD HE'S A LITTLE BABY

[@myself3209]

How does he even come up with melodies like that, its like from another dimensiion

[@BiggyTalls93]

Maybe because they re-recorded it for Periphery II, plus Mark is in Periphery now. The song Passenger is also from Haunted Shores I believe.

[@Sickz666]

@Spliffor The voicing of chords is pretty much how you make the chord. I mean like if you take a normal G major chord, it contains the notes G,B and D. Now i can make a couple of different voicings with that. I can have the G note as my bass note (lowest note) then a B and then a D, or i can have the B in the bass and then a D and a G. It's really taking one chord any playing it in different ways.

[@Simen0303]

I love mark! Absolutely a great guitarplayer! Huge inspiration!

[@ghandrbluver]

this is a miracle no fucking dislikes finally people have good taste in music

[@Surrey_01]

If you'r talking about the rhythm solo, there is a video of him tracking it in the studio update, so your assumption is invalid. How do you know he didn't write more of the song? I def here mark in there. He was a big part of the album for sure. And Im really glad he is in Periphery as well.

[@sanntiimusic]

intro riff of the song passenger is the best fucking thing Ive ever heard

[@KingNed]

Haunted shores is a side project setup by Misha with Mark in. Since Mark and Misha are now both Periphery, and it didn't look like Haunted Shores was going anywhere with the success Periphery is having, they decided to use Scarlet. Haunted Shores was basically just another recording project of Misha's which I think he didn't want to associate with Periphery or Bulb. Scarlet was so popular and Spencer's vocals fitted so well that they just decided to record Sacarlet as a Periphery tune.

[@mikesinaro]

Indeed it is. Extremely fun to play though. The periphery version with Spencer singing is even better, believe it or not.

[@LemurianTime]

it was originally a haunted shores song which was a project with mark and misha but they adapted it into a periphery song since they're both in the band now :D

[@horizoniki]

because it IS Scarlet by periphery. Originally written by Mark and Misha back when they were Haunted Shores.

[@naraithsil]

Looks like a Peavey 5150 Combo or similar on the right there. Combine that with whatever his pickups are (probably some Bare Knuckles) and you'd get pretty close after some tweaking. I think the main aspect of his tone is that the mid range is defined so you can hear all the notes of chords, so basically don't scoop your EQ.

[@sinksinkswim]

Life would be bliss if Casey Sabol joined Haunted Shores and you got a whole band together and started touring. I don't think I'd listen to anything else if that happened!

[@Waltzhybrid92]

Good comment. I would also add that in order to break the rules, you have to first know them. And that isn't just cheap wordplay, its what every famous composer worth his salt has done to some extent in order to shape their style. That and analysis of style.

[@smashingpoop]

nice, the world needs more players like this

[@rsrichyify]

anybody else dieing from this video?? he comes off as a complete nerd here! hahaha gotta love it

[@DifferentPerson557]

Dimebag Darrel admitted to understanding little if anything at all in the way of scales and theory and that dude put out some killer music.

[@PhantomNote]

@Straixin Yeah I would feel really blind without theory. On the other hand, he probably figured all the "theory" things out by ear, which is basically what theory is. A description of how sounds works with our ears. I cant imagine how misha and him just plays this amazing stuff with no theory

[@nova495]

Mark = Best riffer ever. Like if you agree. You never see other bands or members in bands doing what Mark does best. Not saying he's only limited to riffing. He can shred just as well.

[@liquidtension94]

he is probably one of the most laid back person i have ever met ha

[@standindarkness]

Carvin Guitars FTW!!!!!!!!! they are amazing.

[@0juan23]

i wish someone had the full tab of passenger. like EVERYTHING. it's an awesome song

[@hideki12345]

haunted shores = best melodic riffs of all time in the whole universe

[@deftones0918]

simplicity is amazing

[@Zuurkool1]

@PhantomNote I understand what you mean. Although i always look it the other way around. Theory is derived from what we play and what we hear. ^^

[@CptColtFlash]

@Spliffor The way you play the chord. You can take one chord and play it many different ways. Its all about the shape.

[@jacobburr7835]

just discovered this channel, I love it!

[@Tenac91]

I think it's encouraging, 'cause I don't know too much theory myself but I love writing music and I think I'm not too bad at it ;) I guess it's all about the feel you have discovering certain sounds by just fooling around more or less, with stuff you already know, creating new out of it... and I guess it can also be the other way around, that you have absolute knowledge of theory or WHAT exactly you're doing but lack the passion, like, not really knowing what to make of it

[@altpath]

Looks like a stock carvin holdsworth signature guitar. Sounds amazing. Goes to show that a good amp and awesome player is all you need to get a wicked tone.

[@MillsJonEric]

I see why he's in Periphery now, he fits in with Misha perfectly. "Like umm, the main like, um riff, is um like, the minor tonality is like, umm, the like, yeah."

[@demon92490]

I love his tone.

[@Jrocka7x]

Sometimes guitarists are so good that you forget that they likely don't know theory...

[@jessejameslv702]

Every good guitarist inherently knows a bit of theory whether they spent hours studying it or they picked it up just from noticing what they liked from other songs and mimicking it. Music theory is just what makes music sound good

[@FlamencoPassion]

Its an a minor shape with a raised 5th . dunno what that is but you just push your ring finger one fret further towards the bridge.

[@xAfroMetalHead1990x]

@sanntiimusic the first song is called immaterial, the second is passenger, they should all be on Haunted Shores Myspace, and you can buy them at a site called bandcamp, which they have a link to at thaeir myspace:0

[@thatguy5557123]

love the guitar

[@Wraithbound1]

It's variation of drop C. It becomes an open suspended chord,

[@thegreatdama]

omg EXTOL if you havent heard this band yet, get "Undecieved" NOW Thank holy hell those guys are getting some recognition on here! "Synergy" is also a good album, very technical. "Burial" their first album is amazing if you arent bothered by less than perfect quality recordings - still very well produced though. Can't say enough about the talent of those guys. They're out of Oslo Norway I believe. Skip they're last album "Blueprint something.." imo, but some might like it. The band is the NUTS

[@grungus7200]

Make him do another one of these please