In the mid-90s, in the cold, bleak, north of Seattle, Washington, two friends in their mid-20s, Greg Anderson and Stephen O Malley, were wading deep in the behemoth dirge of the Melvins, and melting into Earth's expansive, glacial-paced, guitar-based soundscapes. Heavily influenced by these sounds, Greg and Stephen played together in THORR'S HAMMER and BURNING WITCH and forged their own paths after the demise of those bands, only to be brought back together in Los Angeles in 1998. In a new city, at the dawn of a new decade, the two went on to form a new band SUNN O))) and launch Southern Lord Recordings with the vision of releasing recordings of these works.
On April 1st, 1998, Southern Lord Recordings was officially established, and put out their first CD release by THORR'S HAMMER, Dommedagsnatt. Twenty years later, the label is marking this milestone year with the release of a limited edition, silver vinyl subscription and reissue series, which launches today.
The label is releasing eight records as part of this series, six of which can already be revealed: THE WANT - Greatest Hits Vol.5 LP, TOADLIQUOR - Discography 2xLP, THORR'S HAMMER - Live At Roadburn 2010 LP, SUNN O))) - Downtown Rehearsal/Riff Tape March 1998 LP, THE SECRET - Lux Tenebris LP, and REIN SANCTION - Black Album LP. The bundles include a t-Shirt, slipmat, and download code with each record.
Label owner Greg Anderson comments, "Over the years, Southern Lord has the incredible honor of releasing albums from cult legendary bands: ELECTRIC WIZARD, SLEEP, MAGMA, UNSANE, DARKEST HOUR, GRIEF, SAINT VITUS, BL'AST!, WINTER, WOLFBRIGADE, POISON IDEA, PELICAN, as well as iconic, monumental artists: Dylan Carlson (EARTH), Wino, Dave Grohl (PROBOT), Zakk Wylde (ZAKK SABBATH), Josh Homme (DESERT SESSIONS). We are extremely proud to have been a part of the developing rise of several bands who are now part of the essential fabric of the underground: WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM, NAILS, BORIS, and POWER TRIP... It is our mission to create a sanctuary for bands/artists/musicians to have their creative works released exactly as their vision was intended."