Metal Music Stronghold VOIVOD Received Honorary Doctorate From Université Du Québec À Chicoutimi

Voivod, the legendary Progressive Metal band, received a honorary doctorade from the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC) on April 26th, 2025. This is a celebration of the band’s 40 years career and its valuable cultural contribution especially to Saguenay comunity, where the band is from. The event took place in a graduation ceremony and it was drummer Michel “Away” Langevin, one of the founding member of the band who received the honor.

Langevin expressed his deep gratidude and remembered the uneasy years the band had in its beginning and everything the prize meant to them. He said  “I would like to sincerely thank the entire UQAC team for this generous and honorable gesture. This moment will be forever etched in our memory, as a symbolic culmination of our journey. I would also like to take this opportunity to offer my sincere congratulations to all the students. Bravo for your perseverance, determination, and this remarkable achievement — you can be proud.”

He also stated:

“We are deeply touched by this exceptional recognition, as it celebrates not only our artistic journey of over 40 years, but also our commitment to our Saguenay community.

“A huge thank you to the UQAC team and The Pickup Box for their wonderful tribute video presented at the ceremony.

“A big congratulations to the graduates for your determination and success!

“This moment will remain etched in our memories.

“Thank you so much to all those who have been supporting us all the time. The ongoing adventure continues!”

Voivod were founded in the early 1980’s as an early Extreme Metal band which later developed its unique style to Metal music being one of the pioneers of the use of science fiction in their lyrics and Progressive Metal.

Voivod found mainstream success in the late 1980s with their fifth studio album, 1989’s “Nothingface,” which is the band’s only album to enter The Billboard 200 chart, peaking at number 114.