''Looming in the Gloom'' is an E.P. released by

The Gothic Archies The Gothic Archies are an American indie rock/gothic rock band established by Stephin Merritt of The Magnetic Fields. In 1997, Merritt released ''The New Despair''. The EP featured the song "Your Long White Fingers", which appeared frequently i ...

. This album marks the first appearance of the all- Merritt macabre synth-pop synonymous

Production

''Looming in the Gloom'' was released on the

Hello CD of the Month Club The Hello CD of the Month Club, also known as the Hello Recording Club or simply Hello, was a subscription-only record company that operated from 1993 to 1996. Hello was organised by John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants and Marjorie Galen.Mill ...

(run by

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...

) in March 1996. The third track, "The Dead Only Quickly", was later transformed into a

The 6ths The 6ths is a band created by Stephin Merritt, also the primary songwriter and instrumentalist behind The Magnetic Fields, The Gothic Archies, and Future Bible Heroes. One story has it that the band was conceived when Merritt, observing that there ...

' track sung by

Neil Hannon Edward Neil Anthony Hannon (born 7 November 1970) is a Northern Irish singer and songwriter. He is the creator and front man of the chamber pop group The Divine Comedy, and is the band's sole constant member. Hannon wrote the theme tunes for t ...

only after his own band (

The Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and ...

) covered it and released it as a b-side. The last track is the original mix of "City of the Damned".

Track listing

# "The Abandoned Castle of My Soul" – 3:11 # "Your Long White Fingers" – 1:34 # "The Dead Only Quickly" – 1:10 # "In a Cave" – 1:41 # "City of the Damned" – 1:42

References

MusicBrainz listing for ''Looming in the Gloom''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Looming In The Gloom The Gothic Archies albums 1996 debut EPs