In 2003, after a long absence from music, Agrippa began to relearn what had been lost over the years and began writing again. With the original interests in metal now expanding to the industrial genre his writing style had reflected this and included influences such as NIN, KMFDM, Skinny Puppy, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, Ministry and more. From this was born the 1st Agrippa93 song, Open Wound, which debuted in 2004 on the online music sharing community icompositions.com with over 500 listens and many positive reviews.

Later songs released in that year included Scorched Earth, A Profound Realization, Fear, The Entity, View From Here, Cold Steel, Divinity, I Invite, Reincarnate, Revival, State of the World, Forgotten Will, and Beneath the Vail of Lies. All of these songs were written and recorded in Agrippa’s small apartment in Hartford, Connecticut using live guitars, vocals, samples, and programmed instruments.

In the following years the A93 style would develop into a unique and instantly recognizable sound, which would include heavy guitar riffs accompanied by driving electronic drums and programmed industrial sequences. Vocals continued to be molded and sharpened, often compared to Layne Staley and Ozzy Osbourne.

Developing the A93 sound farther, 2005 brought a less prolific year but a more refined style to its genre of techno metal, which included the release of Digital Demigod, Untied, Priest of Thebes, and a remix of the  Nine Inch Nails’ song The Hand That Feeds. Being relocated put some restrictions on the writing and production of A93 songs resulting in only 1 completed 2006 release, Isolation and then The Rain in 2007.

The year 2008 brought significant changes to Agrippa93. In the early months 2 songs were released that ended the era of A93 as a solo production – Equilibrium and No Happy Ending. Seeking fresh ideas Agrippa connected with 2 guitarist, Myk Dugan and Carlos Cabrero to expand the A93 sound and work on new material. With the addition of the 2, A93 began to shift from an industrial dominated sound to more guitar driven metal with accented synths and sequences. Drums and bass would continue to be programmed using the same technique and style as all previous A93 songs. The 1st collaboration would result in the song City of Pyramids, which would define the new direction for Agrippa93.

Agrippa93 – 2008 Lineup:

Agrippa – Vocals, guitars, bass and bass programming, synths, sequences, keyboards, piano, and drum programming.
Myk Dugan – Lead and rhythm guitars, and back up vocals.
Carlos Cabrero – Lead and rhythm guitars

2008 continued to be a productive year with the trio writing and recording many songs including Evocation, End of Days, Reincarnate (remake of the 2004 version), Face of Fear (remake of the 2004 version called Fear), LVX, Sun-Bleached Mask, Stranger in the Mirror, Death By Inhalation, October Mourning, and Fade Into Oblivion. All of these songs made up the list of tracks that appeared on Agrippa93’s 2009 debut album, Beneath the Cypress Tree.

During the post production of the album Carlos Cabrero left the A93 to pursue other career interests, which left only Agrippa and Dugan. To support the new album with some live shows, the 2 sought out additional musicians to fill in the needed gaps. Called in as a replacement for Cabrero, guitarist Galen Bessette from a band called Bum Rush joined up to contribute to the goal of transforming A93 into a live band. Later, Alex Richard from Imperium Mortis joined as drummer bringing with him bassist Joe Deep.

Agrippa93 – 2009 Lineup:

Agrippa – Vocals, synths, sequence programming, keyboards, and piano.
Myk Dugan – Lead and rhythm guitars, and back up vocals.
Galen Bessette – Lead and rhythm guitars.
Alex Richard – Drums.
Joe Deep – Bass.

In the next few months Agrippa93’s full compliment of 5 members rehearsed in Sickle Pation Studio in preparation for 2 September 2009 shows that planned to kick off the beginning of the live persona of A93. Their set list included 5 songs from the Beneath the Cypress Tree album: Evocation, City of Pyramids, Face of Fear, Sun-Bleached Mask, and Fade Into Oblivion. With the inclusion of live drums and bass replacing the programmed version, the sound changed and took on a more organic feel in the live performance versions.

The virtually unknown band played to a sparse audience for both scheduled shows, which was to be expected. Although years of online exposure created a presence for the band on the internet, because of absence on the  live scene they were all but non-existant locally. A week after the 1st show Agrippa93 was feature on the Connecticut radio station WCCC as the Homegrown band of the week. This included radio play of the songs City of Pyramids, Evocation, and Face of Fear along with an interview with Agrippa. The second show, which took place at the Webster Underground in Hartford on September 27th 2009 and managed by Gorilla Productions, turned out to be more of a negative experience for the band due to poor management and attitude by the production company.

Shortly after the Webster show Bessette expressed his interest in pursuing success in his other band and parted ways leaving A93 without a second guitarist. Not long after, growing animosity in the band ending in both Dugan and Deep leaving with only Agrippa and Richard remaining. Agrippa93 was put on hiatus until farther notice.

Long time friend and cowriter of the Agrippa’s Laboratory song Ashes, guitarist Scott Williams joined A93 as a major writing force in the band. Williams brought with him Will Richard, brother of Alex Richard and an already accomplished guitarist, whom he had taken on as a student. Soon after, bassist Rich Fern joined filling the 5th positions needed to complete the band.

Agrippa93 – Current Lineup:

Agrippa – Vocals, synths, sequence programming, keyboards, and piano.

Scott Williams – Lead and rhythm guitars.

Will Richards – Lead and rhythm guitars.

Alex Richard – Drums.

Rich Fern – Bass.

The five members of Agrippa93 forged ahead in creating a higher quality music than ever before releasing songs like Forever Wasting Time and Among the Ruins. The A93 sound was redefined and the level of musicianship in the band has been raised high above all previous incarnations. A93 is presently writing new songs to perform live that will eventually be tracks on the 2nd album targeted for a December/January release. In addition to this they are rewriting and recording older A93 songs, such as Evocation, in the new style as a series called Transmutations, which is planned to be released as an EP.

Agrippa93 returned to the stage after a 7 month absence on April 16th at the Webster Underground in Hartford presented by WCCC’s Homegrown Showcase with a great reception. The band plans on playing many shows throughout the summer of 2010 in local venues including June 5th at the Webster Theatre opening for Fear Factory. Also scheduled is an appearance on Connecticut’s public access show The Metal Cyndicate, hosted by metal enthusiast, Cyn Mislivets, which will help expose A93 to a larger Connecticut audience.

Agrippa93’s fan base continues to grow everyday the more exposure the band gets. Once demand for performances outside of Connecticut grows, they will expand their perimeter to include venues in surrounding states. A93 plans to write, record, and perform their unique style of Progressive Industrial Metal for many years to come constantly evolving their sound and elevating their own musical standards.

Last updated – April 17th 2010