Abigail could really not have come from anywhere else than from South America. While the influences from European extreme metal bands are apparent, their 2022 debut album ‘Imperio Maldito’ is clearly influenced by the band’s Andean roots both musically and lyrically.

Although ‘Imperio Maldito’ was released recently, Abigail has been around in some shape or form since the late nineties. “When we started the band in the late nineties, we tried to look inside ourselves”, guitarist and main songwriter Fernando Jara explains. “And doing so has brought us back to our origins. Everything eventually came back to the traditions of Andean music, or as we like to call it: ancestral metal or Inca metal.

We thing we chose the right time to finally release our debut album, since we felt making a more lyrical album out of the raw material we had, in which the influences of rock with Andean music were more present, was something complementary. That album came, and we felt it was a premonition of completing our essence.”

Interesting Journey

“Prior to the album, we have recorded five demos: ‘Lacrimae of Passione’ in 2001, the instrumental demo ‘Abigail’ in 2003, ‘Winter Tears’ in 2005, ‘Evans’ in 2009 and ‘The Curse of the Evil’ in 2017. Songs from ‘Abigail’, ‘Evans’ and ‘The Curse of the Evil’ have found their way onto the album. We still have some good material left: the song ‘Sacrilegio’ from the ‘Evans’ demo, as well as multiple songs from ‘Lacrimae of Passione’ and ‘Winter Tears’ will be on the second album.

As the band matures in our search of the right sound, it is mostly a matter of knowing who you are. And life itself is already enough of a search for who you are. We tend to return to the past at certain moments, because our essence is in each part of our nature. This is a very interesting journey, because we are still alive as a band after all these years, but even more so because we have managed to create a mix of the ancestral and black metal, with all of its branches. We are always looking for new horizons, without losing the primordial essence of how the band was formed and has always maintained since then.

We have gone through a lot of musical growth, because of our willingness to learn to grow more than anything. The limitations that have existed years ago have been disappearing, but the most important thing is the band’s conviction to expand the range of what is possible within our style of black metal. For the second album, the fact that the entire band will take part in the composition process will have a significant effect on how everything will sound.”

Andean Essence

With that Jara shows his appreciation for the current line-up of the band. Although he is the only remaining original member, vocalist Marco Tovar has worked with the band since 2003, while guitarist Gonzalo Porturas and his younger drumming brother Diego have been working with Abigail since 2015, with Luis Medina joining about two years ago. “What has made it possible for the current line-up to function so well is the fact that we are a brotherhood with the conviction, integrity and loyalty to maintain our essence in Abigail”, Jara states.

“Although I have written all the songs on ‘Imperio Maldito’, and although the sound is somewhat reminiscent of early black metal, it is important to note that when the material was presented to the rest of the band, we all fully agreed to focus this project on the origins of the Andean people. In that sense, we can say it sounds fresh and modern. It contains everyone we would like to hear in our own music. It has become an epic and multi-layered album. Please give it a chance to enjoy it in all of its Andean essence. It is better to listen to it than to talk about it.”

Part of why ‘Imperio Maldito’ is so difficult to describe is because even the extreme metal segments aren’t simply black or death metal. “Metal is incredibly varied”, Jara asserts. “Although we categorize ourselves as black metal, the basic essence has been there since the beginning, with bands like Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, UFO, and the original bands from the first era of black metal, such as Mayhem and Emperor. Around the time we started the band, we also listened to bands like Opeth, Tool, In Flames, The Gathering and Insomnium a lot. It’s quite difficult to clearly definite our musical tastes, but appreciating metal in its totality has been an important part of who we are.”

Traditions of Tahuantinsuyo

The connection to the band’s Andean roots and the Inca empire is also apparent in the lyrics on ‘Imperio Maldito’. “The ideas of our lyrics focus on our love and passion for extreme metal, combined with our Andean Roots”, says Jara. “‘Imperio Maldito’ tells the story of what the arrival of the invaders was like and how proud we still are to have the origins that we have.

Inca mythology was nourished by a series of myths and legends of its own. Our Inca people worshipped beyond death, beyond our origins – essentially our ancestors. Even beyond Tahuantinsuyo (the Quechua name by with the Incas referred to their own empire). Our lyrics refer to the battle against the false religion that was forced upon our people and its deadly legacy.”

These themes are further enhanced by the use of indigenous instruments, such as the charango and various wind instruments. Jara emphasizes that it was not as difficult as some might think to incorporate those instruments into Abigail’s extreme metal sound. “We have been connected to the ancestral traditions of Tahuantinsuyo, from the pre-Inca era to the Inca era, since birth”, he explains.

“Our culture is very rich in these aspects. South American culture is wrapped around our souls. Andean music, in all its magnificence, together with the pure passages of nature, magic, blood, purity and roots that black metal evokes, has been our nature as long as we have stepped into this world.”

Huancayo

While Abigail operates from Lima these days, the band was actually founded roughly 300 kilometers east of the capital, in Huancayo. “My studies brought me to Huancayo”, Jara explains. “And when I finished them, I eventually ended up moving to Lima. It was never that difficult to find members for the band, since we always had the same idea of what the band should be. The ancestral rules have been in the souls of everyone who has been a part of Abigail throughout the history of the band.

In the late nineties, there were a lot of bands in Huancayo, all of whom were also a part of the ancestral metal movement at its peak. There were also bands that were more strongly influenced by death metal, as that style influenced a lot of bands at the time. Bands like Sarcoma, Ayahuaira, Stygia Tenebre, Carccaria, Reo, Via Crucis, Legión, Esquizofrenia, Tenebris Filis, Yana Amaru, Khroda, Mystica and many other bands that were around at the same time will always be a part of the legacy of the scene.”

Spreading Metal to the Masses

That is not to say that things have always come easy for Abigail. “There are always political difficulties of some kind in South America”, Jara states matter-of-factly. “But we have always maintained our conviction and strength to achieve our goals. The effort that we all put into obtaining the economic means and facilities – with the help and support from our metal brothers abroad, who have contributed by helping us get the instruments who helped us develop ourselves musically – has been worth it.”

The Peruvian metal scene is also quite different from how it was when Abigail just started. “It has changed a lot”, Jara nods. “What is most noticeable is that people have started to expect less from rock and metal, mostly due to issues that have to do with commercial parties who are no help in spreading South American metal to the masses. Fortunately, the loyal metalheads that have always been there are still around!

On a national level, productions have grown even outside of Lima. There is more access than ever to decent productions, as well as more access to music in general. And the good thing is that there is a group of extremely promising young bands. Let’s hope that they will continue like this and their potential will come to the light in the South American metal scene. It would also be great if divisions between metal bands based solely on the specific styles of metal they play will disappear.”