Abaddon Incarnate



ABADDON/ 1 Hell, 2 The devil (Rev. 9:11). (Heb., = destruction). For those of you unfamiliar with the word, this is the Oxford Dictionary’s definition of ABADDON. The name ABADDON INCARNATE came about as a result of the band’s music, which most definitely provided the inspiration for this name change. But, like all bands, ABADDON INCARNATE has a history.
ABADDON INCARNATE began as a five piece in 1989, then calling themselves BEREAVED. While still playing Death Metal, it was more sedate in nature taking in topics relating more to magic and the occult. BEREAVED released two demos (Signs of Death, Tortured Souls). By late 1994 Alan Kelly, who had been with the band since the start, decided to pursue an alternative career and left shortly before they recorded the third demo (When The Demons Come). It was at this point that BEREAVED changed their name to ABADDON INCARNATE as they felt that the new music was distinctly faster, heavier and topically, heading in a new direction. However it was still not quite there in terms of style and compared to the newer material being written at that time, the five songs on it were quite different.
In 1996 ABADDON recorded a two-track sampler (Nihilist, Temple of Rancid Filth) in one day. In October 1998 ABADDON recorded their debut entitled The Last Supper which included ten hate filled tracks drawing on influences such as early Morbid Angel, Impaled Nazarene and Brutal Truth. It was during this waiting period that ABADDON was to see the loss of another long suffering member. Rob Tierney, the original bassist, left to follow a promising career in graphic design. Luckily a replacement was found within months, Cory Sloan (The Fifth Dominion, Thy Sinister Bloom) joined in July 1999. Over the next year ABADDON would rewrite almost all of the material for the second album hoping to record mid 2001. During the summer of 2000, ABADDON travelled to Germany to play with well-known German Death Metal band Impending Doom. These gigs were a great success giving ABADDON their first taste of the European audiences.
In May 2001 ABADDON INCARNATE signed to Sentinel who has released their new album Nadir in September 2001.

interview with the band on 31-1-2002

Please give us a short introduction of yourself?
We are a four piece Irish death/grindcore band and have been around for a good while in the Irish underground. In the early days We recorded a few demos and did not get anywhere really, until the last one made its way to Season Of Mist in 1998 which we then signed to. Under that label we released our first album 'The Last Supper'. There was not much response to it unfortunately, and we were not 100% happy with the amount of promotion that they had invested in us, so we decided that it might be a better option to go it alone for a while. In mid 2001 a few friends had started up there own label (Sentinel). Around the same time we were about to record our second album in Sweden. It was at that time that we offered a deal by them, and last month it was released.

Happy with the end result of Nadir? Could it be better?
Fuck yeah. It came out better than we expected. On a production level, Mieszko did a great job.
Musically, well thats a matter of opinion. We think it is alot better than The Last Supper, it is alot more varied, and there is much more to it, both on a musical level as well as a lyrical. Overall we are very happy the way it turned out, and i have to admit i like the songs, but then again i should do, what would be the point in recording songs that do not appeal!

Please explain the title and cover image?
We picked the cover image out of a collection of pictures that have been building up over the years. We thought that it was a really cool pic, and it suited the album, so we used it. The name 'Nadir' was used because it is open to suggestion, and it is especially applicable to the front picture, it can be interpreted in many ways. There is no real explaining...it is all about what you make of it yourself.

Around since 1989. Was it natural to switch the style of metal?
For some reason people think we began in 1989, We actually formed in 1992 under the name of Bereaved and then changed in 1995 to Abaddon Incarnate. From 1992 to 1995 we were thrash, with death vocals, something similar to Sepultura. From then till now we have changed our style a good bit. It was a natural progression, we got bored with old songs, and to keep the interest going, we became more brutal and intense, until we began to sound a bit grindy. At the moment we are writing new material, and some of it is crazy, out and out blast.

What where you listening to before 1989? And what today?
Can't remember what i was listening to last week let alone 12 years ago, but I suppose we would have mainly been listening to metal/thrash, Megadeth, Slayer, Metallica, AC/DC the usual suspects. Today we listen to Nasum, Regurgitate, Brutal Truth, Agorophobic nosebleed, Pig Destroyer...grind mainly, but also the classic death bands such as Deicide, Carcass, Immolation, Incantation etc, etc.

I don't know The Last Supper but can it be musically compared to Nadir?
Well its death metal with a real raw edge to it. Not as grindcore as Nadir, but similar all the same. There are only eleven songs on 'The Last Supper', and there are 24 on 'Nadir'. We deicided that songs of about 4-5 minutes became boring halfway through. Too many riffs just stuck in there to fill up the gap. There was no need for them, so we left them out and the songs became alot tighter and more to the point.

So is there a reason to try to pick up The Last Supper?
No....Its shite!!!!! Yes, Of course you should!

How was it to work with Mieszko from Nasum? Do you think this is a selling point?
Cool. Yes.

Do you like the albums of Nasum?
Yeah. Personally i prefer Human2.0. Some of the riffs are just so damn catchy! I think they have really brought the grind scene to a new level.

What is your favorit album?
Can't say my number one but, here are a few of my favourites. Immolation - Dawn Of Possession. Nasum - Human2.0, Megadeth - So Far, So Good, So What, and Deicide - Deicide.

Why didn't Rob Tierney made the lay out?
Because he is a fuckwit.............Only joking.
About 3 to 4 years ago, Rob decided to call it a day, he was not into playing in a Death metal band anymore. He never really got into the really extreme stuff. We all parted on good terms, there was no bitching. We still go out for a few drinks, and is a good mate.

You go to a pub everyday? What do you drink?
Hang on, not everyday.......we are not complete pissheads...
Steve - Anything
Olan - Carlsberg and Tequila
Cory - Ice cold Bulmers and Vodka
Myself - Bulmers, Guinness and Sambucca

Why are the Irish such big drinkers? Because of the rain?
What the fuck! The weather is shit alright, but i don't know how to answer that question man!

Going on holiday to some sunny country?
No, Wishful thinking. Cory is off to Sweden for a couple of weeks soon, but the rest of us will be in Ireland.

What is the most important thing/person in your life? Why?
For each of us, although this most definitely will piss the girlfriends off, Abaddon Incarnate is the most important thing.
Music, without the band, christ.....life would be one big bore.

Do you believe in true friendship? What about backstabbers?
Yes, but I believe you cannot be a true friend with another person unless you get pissed off with each other regularly. Its human nature to disagree with someone else's opinion, especially when they are a close friend. Being in a band, and very passionate about the music, tempers flare regularly, and that is when you know that the people you are with are good mates. You share a common interest with them, and there is no bullshit, or crap talk.
Backstabbers, no of us have any time for those kind of people. They piss us off, and are complete dickheads!

What do you advice for those who take your lyrics serious?
Don't believe everything that you read! Sometimes we write lyrics and piss ourselves laughing at them.
Not all of them are a joke however, but some of them are outrageous. They are not meant to be taken literally.

What would you like to see when you're on stage?
Loads of women with big tits, naked, headbanging, and feeling themselves. That and a load of headbangers in a constant moshpit.

Performing live or studio work?
Live, definitely. Studio work; although it can be a good laugh, it can also be very boring at the same time. When we are playing a gig it is just intense and crazy for the forty to fifty minutes. No let up, and then....bang, its all over before you know what the fuck hit you.
Before Nadir, we were a live band, we never had any luck with recording. The fact that there is no engineer in Ireland that could cater for the sound we were looking for did not help of course, but in Sweden we finally found the right edge.

What did you deceided to learn to play an instrument?
As a lead gutiarist, metal allowed me to play weird and crazy riffs, and solo's. Although there are structures to the songs, it is not as restricting as most other types of music. That was the main reason why i started to play the guitar. I learnt from the likes of king and Hammett, moved onto Trey Azagthoth, and then began to progress to my own stlye from thereon. For the rest of the band it was the same. We were all into metal before we played an instrument, we adopted and learnt from many big bands at the time and eventually found our own way of playing. I guess that is the same reason for alot of metal musicians. Then again, maybe not.

Still having some musical training/lessons?
All of us our self taught. At some stage or other i think we all got a few hints or tips here and there, but that has been about it. In Abaddon we push each other musically all the time. That is the reason why we have progressed they way we have. From metal, to thrash, to death, to grind. We get bored easily if we are not constantly writing new tunes or changing our style somewhat.

Have some advice for those who want to play in a band?
If there is one piece of information that i could give, it would be to say to ’KEEP AT IT’. We have had many let downs over the years, and we have still managed to pick ourselves back up, and kept on going. In the past, recordings have gone badly, gigs have gone badly, and people have let us down. Alot of shit like that happens, and can happen reguarly, but if you split because of it, its just a waist of time, and something you should have never started in the beginning.
Playing in a band and sticking with it, you get to know each others musical abilities exceptionally well, and in the end, that makes all the difference... For all the bad shit, time, effort and money that we have put into it, when it has gone right....and eventually it does go right... its all worth it.

Add something you would love to tell us?
Buy Nadir and support the Underground!!!

Last rites?
Cheers for the interview man, hopefully we will get to see you at a gig sometime...GRIND ON...}
Interviewer: twansibon
Jan 31, 2002
Next interview: The Seventh Gate

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