The Vile Augury

Earlier in the year, The Vile Augury released Americancer to pretty good reception and marketed their debut around the scene. With a solid debut album that launched their career, I got the chance to have a chat with frontman of the group, Michael Vile.

Welcome to the site and thank you for this opportunity. First off, as a generic starting question, tell us about The Vile Augury and who's in it.

Michael Vile - "Thank you for reaching out to me! The Vile Augury is my therapy. It's a very personal project to me, my way of venting my frustrations with the world, love, politics, religion, sex, death, and society as a whole. The Vile Augury is not any one thing, It's more like a collection of thoughts from the mind of a cynical pissed off kid with ADHD. As far as writing goes, I am, as of now, the one to blame, with the occasional contribution from a fellow traveler."

The band first started in 2011 by yourself. What gave you the real edge to start on this project? Did you have any past band experience that made you want to start a project on your own?

Michael Vile - "I started writing music back when I was 13, and while it's something that I've always loved, I've never been able to really find a project that resonated with me before this. I started out with a buddy of mine, writing/playing keys for the band Consectum, which had a small following, but sadly never took off. The years passed, I continued to write, but it was really more of a hobby than anything, until 2011, when (as cheesy as it may seem) I wrote an instrumental track hoping to impress a girl. It worked, but surprisingly enough, I had impressed myself as well. The Vile Augury was born."

There are also two other members of the bands, Leslie Saint and Kay Dolores. How did you meet them and how did they end up in the band?

Michael Vile - "I met Leslie Saint back in 2011 and we became fast friends, when I started up the project she had expressed that she had always wanted to be in a band, so I threw a keyboard at her and we began to perform. I met Kay Dolores on public transit one evening whist he was attempting to solicit us for his own project, Sorrow Church. We became friends, and when our first guitarist didn't work out, he was the first to step up and offer his services, and he was a perfect fit, from his massive stage presence, to his exceptional talent, he is a true gem."

Your name certainly sounds evil in every sense of the word; however, how did you come up with the name and what does it mean to you?

Michael Vile - "It started out with me trying to come up with some different project names, and ill omen was the leading choice, from there it evolved to ill augury, and finally vile augury. The vile augury to me is a feeling, when all seems lost, when hope is a distant flicker in a hurricane, control a laughable offense, the lowest of the low, a sign of the end times, the final omen."

As a band, do you try and tackle any major political, social, religious, or even personal issues? Or do those emotions come out based on the song you're writing?

Michael Vile - "I never really set out to tackle any one issue, my songs are very much influenced by how I'm feeling from moment to moment. Usually I'm just trying to capture a particular feeling before it gets away. I don't like to limit myself by deciding on a set agenda, the world and life are living and breathing and constantly changing, and I prefer to take inspiration where I stumble upon it."

Now, to build up funds for your debut album, you began a Kickstarter that ran successfully. How did you manage to gain a quick following from a relatively unknown band?

Michael Vile - "All I can say to that is that I've had some incredible friends and fans, it never ceases to amaze me the love and support I've received. I also try to follow one simple rule, in life, and in my approach to the band and fans; treat people right, and they'll treat you right. We've also had some great opportunities opening for a few high profile acts, such as Psyclon Nine, and Velvet Acid Christ, which has been great for exposure."

Currently, you're based near the San Francisco Bay Area, and have become both respected and well known. There have been a lot of complaints from around the world that the darker industrial scene is dying out; how does the scene hold up around you?

Michael Vile - "Everyone seems to be very fatalistic when it comes to the scene, I just chose to ignore it. There will always be shows that pull less of a crowd then you want, the key is to not get discouraged. The scene is alive, just hesitant, always waiting for the next big thing to show up instead of making it happen. Also, it never hurts to have friends, there are many great acts emerging out of the SF scene right now, and we all help each other out."

You've stated that you try and deliver high energy and theatrical performances; is there any one live show that you can think of where these words were defined?

Michael Vile - "I can't think of any one show in particular, because I always try to bring that level of energy to every performance. I don't care if I'm playing to 10 people or 10,000, if you are out to see us perform, It's my duty to ensure you get the best performance that I can deliver. That being said, you can find a few of our live videos on Youtube."

Your debut album, "Americancer", was released earlier in the year. In March, exactly. Did you receive much feedback on the album? If so, how was the overall response?

Michael Vile - "I have received a good bit of feedback from fellow artists, and it has been overwhelmingly positive. As an artist I will say that there are parts of the album that I am not 100% happy with, but it's a learning process. I am very fortunate to have had Sean Payne work with me during the production process, he really put that final oomph on a few of the tracks."

The title of the album is interesting, to say the least. Where did it come from, and does it hold any true meaning?

Michael Vile - "Americancer to me is my form of patriotism. It's a jab at corporate America, and everything that is wrong with our society and economy. America was built on a promise of freedom and liberty for all, not to enslave it's people with the dollar. Americancer is a protest against what is wrong with the country, poverty, oil, corruption, big business, wars for resources, no corporate liability,the country is already sick, we just need a stronger disease to eat the infection."

And, did you play the album or songs from the album in show anywhere? How was the response from the audience if you did?

Michael Vile - "Most of the songs on Americancer have been in our live rotation for some time now, and our audience seems to really get into it, dancing, swaying, even a mosh pit here and there! As I've said before, our audience has been nothing short of phenomenal in terms of enthusiasm, energy, and support."

And, currently, are you writing anything up for the future? Do you have any songs or albums that you're working on?

Michael Vile - "I am definitely in the writing process and have a few tracks in the demo stage, though I'm not quite ready to talk about them at length yet, I can assure you that they will be worth the wait. I am definitely not a 'one and done' kind of guy, you have not heard the last of The Vile Augury. (You can check out a sample of our new track "Blood and Hope" on Soundcloud)"

I also noticed that you've been toying with the idea of a The Vile Augury/Sorrow Church tour. Have you discussed it any further and are there any definite answers on that as of yet?

Michael Vile - "We here at The Vile Augury don't comment on rumors or speculation... Just kidding, we love that stuff! There are definitely some talks in the works, but nothing solid yet."

I also noticed that you recently made "Americancer" fully available to stream on Soundcloud. Did you do that just so you could connect to a wider audience?

Michael Vile - "In short, I suppose so, yes. I wanted to give fans an option to listen to the album online, without feeling pressured into buying it. While I do greatly appreciate any support, I don't want anyone to feel left out. Sometimes you just don't have money to throw around, we've all been there, that shouldn't mean that you can't listen to my music."

Are you involved in any other musical projects, or is The Vile Augury your sole output for music creativity?

Michael Vile - "At the moment The Vile Augury is my only project, however I have been feeling the itch to branch out a bit and explore some different avenues."

And this is where I end off. I thank you once more, and I leave the space below for you to say anything you wish to anyone, or to just deliver a final message.

Michael Vile - "Well I suppose I'd just like to thank our friends, family, and fans, you guys make this all worthwhile. Take risks, make mistakes, believe in yourself."