Batoche front man/guitarist Shawn Gabel sits reading a copy of George Gissing’s In the Year of Jubilee in a ‘quiet’ corner of the Ivanhoe Pub. The political science major exudes an unruffled air of calm uncharacteristic of your typical metal vocalist. “It’s funny, because generally I’m a very smiley, happy kind of guy,” Gabel claims, “but when I get up onstage, I suddenly become a very angry human being.”

It’s not that Batoche is an angry band necessarily, but a decidedly furious undertow churns somewhere beneath the opus that is Terra Incognita. The album features 11 stand-alone tracks, each presenting a fragmented personality of its own. Gabel goes on to explain the band’s mandate to make each song an entity unto itself. “When we’re finished with an idea, that idea is done and we move on to the next idea. People have criticized us saying that it hurts the continuity, but if each song stands on its own then that’s good enough for me.”

With influences ranging from the dirge-like sludge of Neuroses to the blinding hardcore of Raised Fist, Batoche strives to keep a sharp edge on its contemporaries. “We have so many influences it’s stupid, but metal is the one thing that we can all agree on. I like things that are very high energy and don’t allow you to be passive.”

Gabel offers a quick illustration of the absurd circumstances in which certain ideas are conceived. “I listen to a lot of bluegrass at work,” Gabel confesses, “and often I’ll hear vocal harmonies that I like. I’ll then go home and listen to Converge and think, ‘How can I make this work? ‘”

The band’s decision to integrate elements of Canadian history into the lyrics and layout of Terra Incognita seems to be of particular relevance. “Something that’s a bit of an issue with our generation is that we’re not very tied to Canada”, Gabel suggests. “We don’t know enough about ourselves. If I can make one person think about that, I’m happy.”

Gabel does maintain, however, that the band is not a political vehicle. The idea here is to keep the focus on composing concentrated material that requires a certain degree of mental spadework. “Basically, what we try to do is make music that we want to hear. We try to be honest and intelligent about it. Generally, we try not to do what everybody else is doing. I don’t like things that are superficial-dump as much thought into it as you can. Don’t waste a word, don’t half-ass it.”

The vocalist explains his appreciation for the extended metaphor. “I like to layer the meanings in as much as possible-I like putting a lot of thought into it. It’s not that I feel that I should, I enjoy it.” It’s this type of work ethic that has kept the core members of Batoche alive and playing together for over eight years.

Gabel admits that band is somewhat limited in terms of tour plans, but hope to cross Canada and head south into the US this summer. “I really like to think of music as a vehicle to travel sometimes. I mean, why else would someone take a road trip to Winnipeg? Or why would four buddies cram into a van and drive to Austin, TX? You just wouldn’t normally do that unless you were in a band.”

Batoche welcomes all interested parties to visit their website (www.batoche.ca) and download Terra Incognita free of charge. If you like what you hear, I urge you to purchase a hard copy of this intensely vital album.

Batoche perform as support for Today Is The Day @ Cobalt (917 Main St. ), Fri.Apr.11th. Posted: Apr 1, 2008