Remastered from the original 1/2" master tape, 'Towers' is the 1996-recorded first EP/mini-album from Stephen O'Malley's fabled doom outfit Burning Witch. Sounding better than it ever has before, it's prime fodder for fans of Black Sabbath, Sleep, Om et al.
Before Sunn O))), there was Burning Witch. The band was put together in 1995 by Stephen O'Malley, Greg Anderson, EDGY 59, Jamie Sykes and G. Stuart Dahlquist, but Anderson left shortly afterwards when he moved to Los Angeles and formed Goatsnake. 'Towers' was the outfit's first release, and although it was bundled with 'Rift.Canyon.Dreams' and released as 'Crippled Lucifer' in 1998 on Anderson's own Southern Lord imprint, the original masters had already been lost. Now rediscovered and given the luxury treatment by Mell Dettmer, this new version sounds heavier and sludgier than the original, bringing out all the nuances of Steve Albini's recording.
Like Sunn O))), the band took their cues from Black Sabbath's sludgy, blues-inflected heavy metal, but they put these influences on the surface, rather than burying them in warbling bass tones. EDGY 59's hoarse screams are perfectly placed over O'Malley's familiar, syrupy riffs and Dahlquist's subharmonic bass - there's an echo of the past, but the band were entering new territory, and setting a benchmark for the genre. The black metal influence was a new ingredient at the time, and while they ignored the faster tempos and lo-fi production standards, they captured the Norwegian scene's stifling, tortured darkness. If yr into ISIS and Goatsblood, this is where it all began.
View more
Limited edition 2023 reissue. Remastered from the original 1/2″ master tape (lost until this version) by Mell Dettmer.
Available To Order (Estimated Shipping between 7-14 Working Days)
This item is to the best of our knowledge available to us from the supplier and should ship to you within the time-frame indicated. If there are any unforeseen issues with availability we will notify you immediately
Remastered from the original 1/2" master tape, 'Towers' is the 1996-recorded first EP/mini-album from Stephen O'Malley's fabled doom outfit Burning Witch. Sounding better than it ever has before, it's prime fodder for fans of Black Sabbath, Sleep, Om et al.
Before Sunn O))), there was Burning Witch. The band was put together in 1995 by Stephen O'Malley, Greg Anderson, EDGY 59, Jamie Sykes and G. Stuart Dahlquist, but Anderson left shortly afterwards when he moved to Los Angeles and formed Goatsnake. 'Towers' was the outfit's first release, and although it was bundled with 'Rift.Canyon.Dreams' and released as 'Crippled Lucifer' in 1998 on Anderson's own Southern Lord imprint, the original masters had already been lost. Now rediscovered and given the luxury treatment by Mell Dettmer, this new version sounds heavier and sludgier than the original, bringing out all the nuances of Steve Albini's recording.
Like Sunn O))), the band took their cues from Black Sabbath's sludgy, blues-inflected heavy metal, but they put these influences on the surface, rather than burying them in warbling bass tones. EDGY 59's hoarse screams are perfectly placed over O'Malley's familiar, syrupy riffs and Dahlquist's subharmonic bass - there's an echo of the past, but the band were entering new territory, and setting a benchmark for the genre. The black metal influence was a new ingredient at the time, and while they ignored the faster tempos and lo-fi production standards, they captured the Norwegian scene's stifling, tortured darkness. If yr into ISIS and Goatsblood, this is where it all began.