Augury hails from the French part of Canada, and this very album had been recorded in the year 2004 and released under the wings of an obscure label by the name of Galy Records; In the info webpage dedicated to the band, the label writes, and I quote: " Will appeal to fans of Emperor, Nile, Opeth, etc…", I swear. A banana, on the other hand, will likely appeal to fans of Mercedes-Benz cars, fancy toilet seats and cardboard effigies (what?)…

Labels are like that. Their over-enthusiasm to promote something drives them out of their minds, usually resulting in pathetic, lame, imaginative claims and descriptions.

On the other hand, the info sheet says that these guys (and one girl) play "technic" (again a quote, although it is actually supposed to be 'technical' – again, this fucking 'technical' thing in regards to music, again and again…) while Augury cannot be pigeonholed with these simplistic descriptions, not by a long shot…

The parody continues; Adipocere's website does not mention this apparent 'licensed release' anywhere in its bands/releases section, however it does post a picture of the album's cover art with no link to it in its 'new arrivals' frame (Nouveautes, in French) and labels this album as being "melodic death-black", again a quote (nothing is more false and inaccurate than this claim). I'm confused. Is this a re-release? Why was it re-released now, a couple of years after the original release? Why does Adipocere not mention the fact clear and loud, and does not count this release as one of its own licensed releases although it has clearly given it an official release number, being CDAR103 (that's CD Adipocere Records release no. 103)? Questions upon questions, but that's what happens when you are too obsessed with the 'business' behind the music, you forget some details… Labels should know this: music fans do not care about the labels, they care about the bands, and especially about the music. Sometimes I really feel as if the labels treat the music consumers like a bunch of analphabet redneck idiots, thinking they'll surely swallow any bullshit being served to them by the big brother, oh, mighty labels – what could we have done without you?

If music is all we care about, then never mind the irrelevancies you were fed by the label, the half-truths and disinformation and let's move on, to the music: Okay, I'm kind of impressed here, really. These Canadians have given death metal a new, personal interpretation, and have been able even though – to remain still a death metal act playing death metal par excellence. After all that's been said and done in death metal, you could think there is nothing more to say there, and to this claim I see and hear almost on a daily basis the pathetic evidence; second tier death metal bands who are forgotten the second their album stop playing, keep falling on my head mercilessly from all around and over the world. Disposable albums such as the new efforts from Yyrkkon, Decapitated, the newest Kataklysm and Sinister to name only a few. Out of the rubbish of mundane and uninspiring death metal, rises this anonymous band and delivers what's been missed so much – death metal with some built-in interest, identity, character and originality.

You might get the wrong impression completely after initially acknowledging the fact there's a female co-vocalist in the band, lending her soprano voice to the music, thinking this might be a gothic metal band, the kind of which you've learned to despise maybe, as I have. The truth is different altogether as this is a mighty, harsh-at-times, wonderful and brutal slab of death metal of the highest order, flaked with feminine vocals (and some clear male ones as well) not as fillers to the music (the music here does not need any filler, nor does it need the feminine vocals altogether) but an element that actually enhances it, which acts really more as a generator of opposites and extremes, that makes the guttural vocals and the heavy searing riffs all-the-more heavy. The 'progressive' elements here – one of which is without a doubt the vocal arrangements – are organic, meaning they have been fused together with the metal, perfectly, serving as a whole, undivided product of utter beauty, majestic in-your-face brutality and innovation. One cannot survive here without the other; the keyboards, the dual vocals, the guitars and blasting drums, the multi-layers and the schizoid rhythms – all serve one another, all enhance and amplify and lend positive feedback, circling in a mad dance of violence and angelic rapture, until every element loses any personal identity and melts into the musical reactor, to create – together with all other instruments – a musical kaleidoscope that does almost the impossible: this album actually succeeds in creating a new dimension in death metal, and still remain very much a chunky, corrosive and brute of a death metal album.

These almost 50 minutes of music will pass so quickly it will make your head spin, because the drama and the craftsmanship in this album will make you forget about the dimension of time and as soon as you start absorbing anything that's going on, it will be over. "Concealed" is at least as revolutionary as Pestilence's "Spheres", Sadist's "Tribe" (or "Above the light" for that matter") or Atheist's "Piece of time", however with one clear difference: it is much heavier on the death metal part, which makes it, eventually, an accomplishment second to none.

For me, this album comes as close to being the perfect death metal album as possible, at least in these recent times, and one of the best ever, imagine that… Comes as highly recommended.

written by Chaim Drishner

Playing time: 47.20