Artist Biography
by Ryan Downey
Damnation A.D.
was one of the first bands who arose from the U.S. hardcore scene to
almost completely forgo their punk roots in favor of a full-on,
heavy-handed, dark-metallic assault similar to the early-'90s work of
Cleveland, OH's
Integrity. Only
Mike "DC" McTernan's sharp, biting, shouted vocal style, reminiscent of
Rollins-era
Black Flag,
recalled any sort of punk rock or hardcore aesthetic. This despite the
fact that most of the band's members were schooled in D.C.'s dynamic
punk scene, and that one of them, primary songwriter/guitarist
Ken Olden, doubled in more traditionally minded hardcore outfits
Battery (for whom
McTernan's brother, producer
Brian McTernan, sang) and
Better Than a Thousand.
Damnation A.D. started primarily as a studio project, with
Olden playing both drums and guitar, and
McTernan singing. They cut a couple of singles this way, before recruiting Flying V-touting guitarist/
Kirk Hammett-lookalike
Hillel Halloway, bassist
Alex Merchlinsky, and drummer
Dave Ward.
Damnation A.D.
(who added the "A.D." to avoid confusion with the West Coast punk band)
partnered up with Jade Tree Records, releasing a split single with
Walleye and the dark, brooding
No More Dreams of Happy Endings full-length album in 1995.
Rigorous touring -- often mismatched with hardcore bands like
Ignite and
Earth Crisis -- saw them struggle to build a fan base that understood them.
McTernan and
Olden
held fast to the straight-edge ideal, often "X'ing" up at shows, though
other members were drinkers. This confused some narrow-minded
listeners, who liked their bands to be clearly definable by lifestyle,
sound, or politics. Despite this, they soldiered onward, releasing the
well-received
Misericordia
CD EP in August 1996. Feeling confined by the decidedly indie
rock/punk-oriented Jade Tree, the band signed on with California's
Revelation Records, putting out one last full-length,
Kingdom of Lost Souls, which featured new drummer
Dave Bryson. After
Damnation A.D. split up,
Olden continued to work with
Better Than a Thousand and opened a recording studio called Monster Island;
McTernan studied tattooing, then moved to Richmond, VA;
Halloway joined forces with a metal band called
Black Manta;
Merchlinsky studied design at the Maryland Institute in Baltimore; and
Ward relocated to Los Angeles, CA.
After an eight-year hiatus,
McTernan, who had started singing with a project called
When Tigers Fight, called
Olden
for some tips on recording his vocals. They went down to his studio,
recorded some takes, and soon decided that they should reunite and
record some
Damnation A.D. tracks at Monster Island. Pleased with the results, the band went to work and recorded a full album of material called
In This Life or the Next,
which was released in 2007 by Victory Records. This record was a return
to their initial sound of sludgy metalcore and featured appearances by
members of
Give Up the Ghost,
Darkest Hour,
Earth Crisis, and
Fall Out Boy
Tracklist
.