Damaged

Damaged
Origin	Ballarat, VIC
Genres	Grind, death
Years active	1989 - 1996, 1997 - 2000, 2003 - 2004
Labels	Black Hole, Rotten
Associated acts	Brutal Truth, Abramelin, Cemetery Urn, Sadistik Exekution, Discordia, Earth, The Wolves, Walk the Earth, Terrorust, Running With Scissors, Uncle Chunk, Heaven the Axe, Hellspawn, Insidious Torture
Past members	Brendan Birge, Jarrod Bongiorno, Chris Hill, Ed Lacey, Jamie Ludbrook, Paul Meddick, Jason "Mohawk" Parker, Dave Saddington, Matt "Skitz" Sanders, Kevin Sharp, Matt Silcock, Chris Wallace

Band members

• Final line-up
  • Chris Hill (guitar)
  • Mohawk (Jason Parker) (bass)
  • Skitz (Matt Sanders) (drums)
  • Dave Saddington (vocals)

• Former members
  • Ed Lacey (bass) (2000)
  • Kevin Sharp (vocals) (1999 - 2000)
  • Brendan Birge (vocals) (1998 - 1999)
  • Chris Wallace (vocals) (1998)
  • Jamie Ludbrook (vocals) (1989 - 1996, 1997 - 1998)
  • Mat Silcock (guitar) (1989 - 1996)
  • Jarrod Bongiorno (guitar) (1989)
  • Paul Meddick (guitar) (1989)

Band information

Over the course of their long and often turbulent history, Damaged consistently created some of the most extreme, pulverising and ferocious death grind known to Man. Their self-styled "hatecore" was a combinatoin of brutal death metal, grindcore, hardcore punk and black metal, played with a feverish intensity that made them unique.

Damaged formed in Ballarat in 1989 around Matt "Skitz" Sanders on drums and Jamie Ludbrooke on both vocals and bass with Jarrod Bongiorno and Paul Meddick filling out the guitar spots briefly before Silcock and Hill replaced them. Jason "Mohawk" Parker also joined the band to relieve Ludbrook of bass duties. The demo "The Art of Destroying Life" appeared in 1992, a track from which appeared on a hardcore punk compilation.

Damaged had already developed a fearsome reputation and supported Cannibal Corpse before Do Not Spit was released by Black Hole in 1993. Still regarded as one of the greatest Australian metal albums ever, Do Not Spit was an insane combination of hardcore and violently extreme metal featuring Ludbrook's incomprehensible hard rhyming delivery and Skitz' insurmountable drumming attack. A live show at Melbourne's Corner Hotel was made into a video for the track "Nails".

During 1995 the EP "Passive Backseat Demon Engines" appeared, three tracks of which appeared on a 7" vinyl single release not long afterward. Relations between band members was always volatile and in 1996 Silcock was fired; at the same time Damaged entered into a legal dispute with Black Hole and tensions eventually caused the band to split by the middle of the year. Hilly joined Discordia and Skitz toured Europe as the drummer with Sadistik Exekution and took over behind the kit with Abramelin. He also formed Engraved (later to become Hellspawn) around the same time.

Less than a year later however, Damaged announced it had reformed, minus Silcock, and had signed a five-album deal with US label Rotten Records. The band began touring once more and mid-year issued Token Remedies Research, finishing 1997 with a return appearance at Metal for the Brain. 1998 began with Damaged supporting Entombed on a national tour but old tensions were beginning to appear once more when Ludbrooke was late to the Sydney show and missed the band's first two songs. He was sacked a few months later when he once again failed to show up on time for a gig in Canberra, with Damaged playing the set without him and banning him from getting on stage on join them. Chris Wallace took over on vocals for a short time before Brendan Birge from Melbourne death metal band Earth joined the line-up. However, he only stayed until the beginning of May 1999. Mohawk also left Damaged around this time and the band was reduced to the duo of Hilly and Skitz, who recorded a track for the Under the Southern Cross compilation album.

Rumours soon began that former Brutal Truth vocalist Kevin Sharp would join Damaged and in late 1999 this indeed occurred. With Terry Vainoras from Order of Chaos supplying bass, Damaged completed a new album called Purified in Pain that had something more of a death metal feel than previous releases. Ed Lacey from The Wolves was hired as bass player for a national tour in late 2000 which with Sharp out front had them performing only new material, to some disappointment from fans. After that tour, Damaged went to ground with Hilly playing in Running With Scissors.

Mohawk rejoined the band during this period and in early 2003 it was announced that former Uncle Chunk vocalist Dave Saddington had stepped into the line-up in place of Sharp. The band re-entered the live arena with a national tour in mid-2003 that culminated in support slots with Sepultura and a headlining appearance at Metal for the Brain.

Damaged played what was to be their final performances in January 2004. Skitz left the band citing a serious health condition that restricted his playing. In March 2004 the decision was made for Damaged to come to an end. The remaining members avowed to continue under a new name, but this never happened.

In May 2004 it emerged that Skitz and Jamie Ludbrook had in fact formed Walk the Earth with DW Norton of Superheist. This band released an EP and toured Australia several times but ended in mid-2005 when Ludbrook left, announcing some months later that he was in the process of reforming Damaged once again with Skitz and Silcock, however in early 2006, this new formation had become known as Terrorust.

Discography

Albums:

	1993	Do Not Spit	Black Hole
	1997	Token Remedies Research	Rotten
	1999	Purified in Pain	Rotten

Single:

	1995	Satisfaction?	Black Hole

EP:

	1995	Passive Backseat Demon Engines	Black Hole

Compilation tracks:

	Year	Song Title	Album Title	Label
	1992	"Respect"	Check This Action!	Destroyer
	1994	"Dethroned Emperor"	Sounds of Ordinary Madness	Deported
	1995	"Untitled track"	Worst Case Scenario	Underclass
	1996	"Equimanthorn"	Vulgar Tongue	Shock
	1999	"Vengeance Consequence (Crucifed Remix 99)"	Under the Southern Cross	Chatterbox
	2000	"Head Trauma"	Route 666 Vol. 2	Shock