The band unleashed their self produced, full-length debut in 1999. Despite a modest budget, "The Curse of Twisted Tower" won over many dedicated fans that appreciated Twisted Tower Dire's traditional yet unique sound. From 1999 to 2000, the band embarked on a relentless, self-financed world tour in support of "Curse". This tour included U.S. appearances at the Milwaukee Metal Fest, March Metal Meltdown, The Powermad Fest, Phantasmagoria Metal Fest, and The North Carolina Metal Fest. A European stretch of the tour followed with fellow metal heathens The Lord Weird Slough Feg and Solstice including several club dates and appearances at the Wacken Open Air Festival and the Bradford Metal Inquisition.
In 2001, Twisted Tower Dire released the critically acclaimed "The Isle of Hydra" on The Miskatonic Foundation and Hellion Records. The album featured mature song writing abilities and improved production, but retained a certain underground grit. In support they played several shows in the Mid Atlantic Region and beyond, including an appearance at the Classic Metal Festival and a second appearance at the Milwaukee Metal Festival. In July 2002, Twisted Tower Dire returned to Deutschland to continue their relentless assault on small clubs and festivals abroad with a headlining appearance at The Headbanger's Open Air Festival.
In September of that year, Twisted Tower Dire signed to Germany's Remedy Records. Their third release "Crest Of The Martyrs" was unleashed upon the masses on May 26th, 2003. The song "Axes & Honour" was released as a limited vinyl single and picture vinyl single. The release of "Crest" was accompanied by a European tour including festival gigs at the Metal Bash Open Air Fest and the Wacken Open Air Fest.
Twisted Tower Dire has gone through countless trials and changes through its 10 year history but the seminal vision has remained the same from early basement practices to today. The "Tower Brethren" continue to fight for the legacy of Classic Heavy Metal with their strongest line-up and forthcoming 4th album “Netherworlds” in 2007.
On February 6, 2010, Tony Taylor, their former vocalist, died in a motorcycle accident.
The band appreciates the support of its dedicated fans and hopes to see you soon in the audience banging your head!
Current Members
* Jonny Aune – vocals
* Scott Waldrop – guitars
* Dave Boyd – guitars
* Jim Hunter – bass
* Marc Stauffer – drums
Former members
* Anthony "Tony" Taylor – vocals (deceased)
* Hayes Elkins – guitars
* Mike Engel – bass
* Nick Mertaugh – guitars
* Jim Murad – bass
* Tom Phillips – vocals
* Janet Rubin – vocals
Discography
* The Curse of Twisted Tower (1999)
* The Isle of Hydra (2001)
* Crest of the Martyrs (2003)
* Netherworlds (2007)
Guardian Bloodline
Twisted Tower Dire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With holy steel in hand, ourselves to sacrifice
Just pray the future will recall
Against an empire we stood tall
By the light of dawn they saw
The blood of martyrs slain
Life force of noble men
In the darkest night 'twas clear
The sign of errors grave
Five true spirits had remained
Deeds done upon this night will echo in beyond
We the few who still remain, we're gonna face the fall
Oh son of Odin hear my call
Against an empire we stood tall
The song "Guardian Bloodline" by Twisted Tower Dire talks about a group of people who are fighting against an empire that has false gods and is closing in on their sacred ground. The group knows that this could be their last night and they have holy steel in their hands, ready to sacrifice themselves for the cause. They pray that the future will remember the sacrifice they made and how they stood tall against this empire.
As the dawn breaks, they see the blood of martyrs already slain and the life force of noble men in the hands of doom. It is clear that they are in a grave situation, but five true spirits have remained. The deeds done on this night will echo beyond and the few who remain know that they are going to face the fall. They call out to the son of Odin to hear their call and fight against the empire.
Line by Line Meaning
False gods are closing in on sacred ground tonight
Tonight, the enemies who don't worship the true gods are advancing towards our sacred land.
With holy steel in hand, ourselves to sacrifice
We, the defenders, are ready to lay down our lives with holy weapons in hand.
Just pray the future will recall
We hope that in the future, our bravery will be remembered and honored.
Against an empire we stood tall
We fought proudly and stood our ground against a powerful empire.
By the light of dawn they saw
In the morning, they witnessed the aftermath of the battle.
The blood of martyrs slain
The blood of the brave soldiers who died defending our land was spilled on the ground.
Deep inside the hands of doom
Our fate was in the hands of our enemies who wished to conquer us.
Life force of noble men
The lives of our honorable soldiers were sacrificed for our cause.
In the darkest night 'twas clear
Even in the darkest moments, it was clear that we were fighting for a just cause.
The sign of errors grave
The horrors of war were a clear sign of the mistakes made by those who started it.
Five true spirits had remained
Out of all the fallen soldiers, only a handful who were truly loyal to the cause survived.
Deeds done upon this night will echo in beyond
The brave deeds performed on this night will be remembered for ages to come.
We the few who still remain, we're gonna face the fall
Those of us who survived the war are ready to face the consequences of our actions.
Oh son of Odin hear my call
We call upon the Norse god Odin to give us strength in battle.
Against an empire we stood tall
Once again, we fought against a powerful empire and never gave up, standing tall for our cause.
Contributed by Elizabeth H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Daniel Storz
Probably the best metal song ever written...