CoC : Augury - Concealed : Review

Augury - _Concealed_
(Galy, 2004)
by: Brian Meloon (8 out of 10)

Montreal's Augury have only been together a few years, but their members have played with such distinguished Canadian outfits as Spasme, Quo Vadis and Kralizec. Their style is generally American-style death metal, with some European influence. The music is tight and syncopative, at times degenerating to amelodic, but usually with at least some melodic component. Their most unique element is their eclectic mix of vocals, which includes gang choruses, guttural belches, operatic warbling, and black metal screams. Another element that's fairly unique is that the bass is pretty prominent. Unfortunately, the bass does have a tendency to sound awkward, as it steps forward at weird times, such as the isolated loud notes in "The Lair of Purity". The guitar work is good, though the guitar solos aren't particularly interesting. However, the rhythm work is quite varied and the band are impressively tight. The production also adds to their sound; it's clear and very powerful. Although most of the music is moderately unique in that it doesn't sound exactly like anyone else, they do succumb to the trendy practice of including some Opeth-ripoff sections. Although these parts are well done, I think the band would be better off avoiding them in the future. Overall, this is a very good release, if perhaps a little lacking in the inspiration department. Still, fans of American death metal shouldn't be disappointed by it.

Contact: http://www.augurymetal.com

(article published 31/1/2005)