Inkubus Sukkubus formed in the summer of 1989 when Tony McKormack, Candia Ridley and Adam Henderson met at college studying graphic design. They shared an interest in paganism, witchcraft and vampirism as well as making original music from an early age, and so the type of band that was to emerge from the joining of forces was, quite naturally, an expression of this. Initially the band was called Incubus Succubus. The original aim of the band was (as it still is today) to be the vehicle in which the celebration of the Pagan experience could be conveyed. After being in existence for about a year the band released their first single, Beltaine, which received Radio 1 and regional airplay. However, shortly after this some members of the band drifted away leaving just Candia & Tony. The couple, however, continued in the form of Children of the Moon, a studio-based project in much the same vein as Incubus Succubus. Their material was very well received by the growing Pagan underground scene.
In December 1991 Bob, the original for Incubus Succubus. drummer, rejoined Candia & Tony, and Incubus Succubus was consequently reborn. The band played around Gloucestershire, Bristol and Oxford, and released all of the Children of the Moon material on one cassette album called Beltaine.
In 1992 the band recorded the album Belladonna & Aconite which was released in October. By this time Incubus Succubus were being hailed as `Britain's Premier Pagan Rock band'.
1993 brought offers from independent record companies, which resulted in the release of Belladonna & Aconite on CD in October, and the Wytches CD in April 1994 on Pagan Records. During 1993 the band toured twice with Nosferatu, and became regulars at the Marquee in London and Nottingham's Rock City. The band's following grew and so did their fame. They appeared on the BBC World Service and in several European, American and Far Eastern magazines.
In 1994 they recorded the EP Corn King, did two headline UK tours, played Paris and also supported the likes of The Damned, Zodiac Mindwarp, Clawfinger, Patricia Morrison and The Marionettes. In 1995 Incubus Succubus played alongside The Mission, Genitorturers and Danzig at two prestigious German festivals. By this time they had also appeared on many compilation Gothic CDs including What Sweet Music... I & II released by Thee Vampire Guild, Dreams in the Witch House released by Grave News, Touched by the Hand of Goth from Euromedia and Jungle's Gothic Rock 2.
In 1995 they signed to Resurrection Records and released the much-awaited album Heartbeat of the Earth at the end of October. The album was promoted with a successful tour where the new material was welcomed with enthusiasm. In the spring of `95 it was decided that the spelling of the band's name would change to Inkubus Sukkubus for numerological reasons, and with this came other notable changes. The live band went through a stunning metamorphosis and they now play with a drum machine and full programmed orchestral backing from sequencers giving the richness and diversity of sound and emotion previously found only in the recorded band. Bob returned to his first instrument and began to play bass guitar for Inkubus Sukkubus, and the distinctive celtic bodhran was maintained as an integral part of the live as well as recorded I.S.
In March 1996 Inkubus Sukkubus appeared on the popular British nationwide television programme, The Big Breakfast and were filmed playing live by The Girlie Show, another nationwide quirky youth show! In May/June 1996 I.S. did a very successful tour of Germany - including a return trip to Paris - so winning over a new army of followers. They returned to Germany as well as playing for the first time in Belgium in the Autumn of 1996. Also in 1996, by popular demand, the band's first album, Beltaine, was released on CD for the first time through Resurrection Records. On 23rd November 1996 Inkubus Sukkubus were invited to perform at the Pagan Federation's 25th Anniversary Annual Conference. The day was a great success, and the band rounded it off by playing to an enthusiastic spiral dancing crowd.
1997 brought more appearances on compilation CDs including the 3rd and final Vampire Guild release, What Sweet Music... R.I.P. with their track Vampyre Erotica; the CD to accompany Mick Mercer's new book, The Hex Files with the track Heart of Lilith; a 4 CD compilation (Cleopatra Records) called The Goth Box; and a cover version of Spellbound on a Siouxsie & the Banshees tribute CD also on Cleopatra. On 24th August 1997, six weeks after the birth of Tony and Candia's baby boy Leon, the band headlined a major convention at the Hippodrome in London - Vampyria - featuring many well-known horror authors as well as stars from the world of Hammer to over 1000 enthusiastic fans. The band released their fifth album, Vampyre Erotica, exploring wilder as well as more sombre and haunting moods. It was released 22nd September 1997 and was promoted by a series of UK dates including headlining the now-famous Whitby Gothic Weekend on Hallowe'en.
1998 proved to be a very exciting year for Inkubus Sukkubus. In February they headlined The Bank in Manhattan, New York promoted by Sabretooth Inc. to a capacity audience. They returned to Belgium in the spring, and during the summer they headlined a major festival held in a medieval castle in the Polish mountains. They also headlined the annual Sacrosanct festival in London. September 1998 found the band performing at Vampyria II which was held at the Camden Palace in London to a capacity crowd of around 1600 people, shortly followed by Symphony of Shadows Festival at Whitby, N. Yorkshire (home of Bram Stoker's Dracula). Inkubus were also invited back to play the Annual Pagan Federation Conference on 21st November where around 1700 pagans attended from all over the world. They also returned to the U.S. at the end of October to tour, culminating in a show in New Orleans on Hallowe'en. The CD entitled Away with the Faeries, was previewed at Vampyria II, and was available on general release in November. The recording was a limited edition album featuring 6 new studio tracks along with 9 live tracks recorded recently in the band's home town of Cheltenham.
In 1999 Inkubus Sukkubus toured Germany, France Belgium, America, as well as the UK. They also released the album enttiled ' Wild'. They continued to consolidate their position as the world's biggest and most popular Pagan Rock band and launched their domain site, www.inkubussukkubus.com.
During 2000 Tony McKormack released another album entitled 'Death Rides Out' with his former band 'Screaming Dead'. Both Screaming Dead and Inkubus Sukkubus toured the UK and Germany and Inkubus Sukkubus headlined the Whitby Gothic Festival (now the biggest Gothic Festival in the World), Screaming Dead were main support. The band wrote and recorded their 8th album, 'Supernature', and also played Greece and France. The year was seen out headlining a celebratory Yule festival in Chicago, USA.
2001 saw Inkubus Sukkubus go from strength to strength. They appeared three times on Channel 4 television this year, and also released their eighth album 'Supernature' on vinyl and CD (with CD-Rom section). The band toured the UK and headlined the Gotham Festival in London. They also headlined the Reading Goth Festival, and supported Marilyn Manson on the mainstage at the M'era Luna Festival to an audience of over 24,000. The year also saw Inkubus Sukkubus make major intrusions into cyberspace; in the first six months or so, their MP3 site www.mp3.com/inkubussukkubus had over 400,000 downloads. The Band finished of the year by playing the 10th Anniversary of the Return of the Dead festival in Hamburg, and a couple of gigs in an unexpectedly snowy, yet still welcoming, Italy.
2002 saw the band increase their profile on the internet becoming the most downloaded Goth band in the world. They also re-released the WYTCHES album and continued to play Europe and the UK.
During 2003 The band have recorded their 9th album "The Beast with Two Backs" which is intended for release on October 31st . The Band also played Belgium, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, UK and Germany, Including the Wave Gotik Treffen in Liepzig. They are to play The Black Elben Festival - Dortmund, Headlining the Whitby Goth Festival with Wayne Hussey and All About Eve, and are Playing The Witchfest in London with the Medieval Baebes. The Band have also gone on to be the most downloaded UK band on MP3.COM with 1,500,000+ downloads.
