Augury Like Keeping Things Eclectic

Toronto likes to think it's the centre of Canada, but when it comes to metal, Hogtown doesn't hold a candle to the cryptic winds ushering out of Montreal. From Voivod and Cryptopsy to Kataklysm and many more bombastic acts, the Quebec heavy music scene is really the driving force behind our nation's worldwide profile.

Add another name to that list of monumental acts: Augury. The melodic death metal quartet made up of vocalist/guitarist Pat Loisel, guitarist Mathieu Marcotte, bassist Dominic "forest" Lapointe and drummer Antoine Baril are are set to join the ranks of the Great White North's illustrious blackened outfits thanks to the release of sophomore effort Fragmentary Evidence.

The album was a mere five years in the making. As Loisel notes, determination to secure the band's name in the annals of Canuck metal took precedence over getting music out immediately.

"Augury has been around since 2002, but each of us have been doing this for a long, long, long time before that," he says. "Concealed was the first album back in 2004 and we've been really busy pushing the band forward ever since.

"We really want to represent ourselves strongly and since we've had many other recordings with other bands, we weren't overly-anxious to record right away. Now that we have Fragmentary Evidence done, though, this is just getting into what we really do."

Taking their time to get a second album completed was a smart move. Not only is Fragmentary Evidence far more cohesive and progressive than its predecessor, it also finds them stepping up into international territory. The band have signed with renowned independent metal label Nuclear Blast Records (with Goodfellow/Sonic Unyon taking care of representational duties here), making Fragmentary Evidence their first release with the legendary home of influential acts such as Candlemass, Cathedral, In Flames and many more.

"We kind of keep doing the same thing, but since we're more experienced at doing the same thing, we do it better," says Loisel. "Some parts that were experiments in our previous songs are now in the forefront. Things like finger-tapping harmonies and swell-volume stuff. Well, there's also the acoustic stuff, the vocal variety stuff, the solos... it's something we already had but we expanded on it. We had no change in our agenda, though."

Loisel concludes that because Fragmentary Evidence has a better grasp on the multitude of influences behind Augury, it does come across as far more diverse than Concealed.

"We relate to all of (the metallic sub-genres). Well, take all of metal but sub-strike glam, stoner and stuff like that.

"We're like Jackie Chan. They asked him if he was kung-fu, karate or judo. He said, 'I'm chop suey. There's a bit of karate, a bit of kung-fu and judo in everything I do.'

"Within kung-fu, you have seven sub-arts, so I can see what he means. It's called being eclectic," he says wryly in his thick Quebecois accent. "I just learned that word so now I love to use it when talking about Augury."

Augury will play these dates:

Sept. 19 Jonquiere, QC @ Place Nikitoutagan w/ Insurrection
Sept. 23 Nashville, TN @ The Muse w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Sept. 24 Jonhson City, TN @ Stage 5 w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Sept. 26 Metaire, LA @ High Ground w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Sept. 27 Shreveport, LA @ 516 Sound Stage w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Sept. 28 Claremont, OK @ King Of Clubs w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Sept. 30 Tucson, AZ @ The Rock w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 1 Mesa, AZ @ U.B.'s Bar w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 2 Las Vegas, NV @ Cheyenne Saloon w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 3 Santa Ana, CA @ The Galaxy Theater w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 4 Los Angeles, CA @ Key Club w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 5 San Francisco, CA @ Thee Parkside w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 6 Portland, OR @ Satyricon w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 7 Vancouver, BC @ Bourbon w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 8 Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 10 St. Paul, MN @ Station 4 w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 11 Milwaukee, WI @ Rave w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 12 Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 13 Toronto, ON @ Annex Wreck Room w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 15 Hartford, CT @ Webster Underground w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 16 New York, NY @ The Blender Theatre At Gramercy w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 17 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 18 West Springfield, VA @ Jaxx w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 19 Baltimore, MD @ Sonar w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 20 Rochester, NY @ Penny Arcade w/ Abigail Williams, God Dethroned and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 21 Buffalo, NY @ Club Diablo w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 22 Southgate, MI @ Modern Exchange w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Oct. 23 Blairsville, PA @ The Corner Pocket w/ Abigail Williams and Woe Of Tyrants
Nov. 4 Baltimore, MD @ Sonar w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 5 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 6 Hartford, CT @ Webster Underground w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 7 New York, NY @ The Blender Theater w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 9 Quebec City, QC @ L'Imperial De Quebec w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 10 Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 11 Rochester, NY @ Penny Arcade w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 12 Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 13 Mokena, IL @ The Pearl Room w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 14 Milwaukee, WI @ Rave w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 15 St. Paul, MN @ Station 4 w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 16 Winnipeg, MB @ Royal Albert Arms w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 17 Regina, SK @ The Exchange w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 18 Calgary, AB @ The Underground w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 19 Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 20 Prince George, BC @ Roll-A-Dome w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 21 Vancouver, BC @ Bourbon w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 22 Victoria, BC @ Sugar w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 23 Seattle, WA @ El Corazon w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 24 Portland, OR @ Satyricon w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 25 San Francisco, CA @ Regency Grand w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 27 San Marcos, CA @ Jumping Turtle w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 28 Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 29 Hollywood, CA @ The Key Club w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Nov. 30 Mesa, AZ @ U.B.'s w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 1 Tuscon, AZ @ The Rock w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 2 Farmington, NM @ Gator's w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 3 Salt Lake City, UT @ Club Vegas w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 4 Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 5 Tulsa, OK @ Marquee w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 6 San Antonio, TX @ Scout Bar w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 7 Houston, TX @ Scout Bar w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 9 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 10 Virginia Beach, VA @ Peppermint Beach Club w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 11 Raleigh, NC @ Volume 11 w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 12 Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS
Dec. 13 Philadelphia, PA @ The Trocadero w/ Vader, Decrepit Birth, Warbringer, The Amenta and SWAATS