My Dying Bride band photo

Resurrecting the Darkness: Aaron Stainthorpe's TOWARDS THE SINISTER Rises from the Ashes

By Jason •
The former MY DYING BRIDE frontman gathers his weary compatriots for a nostalgic return to doom's shadowy roots.

In a move that reverberates through the graveyards of gothic doom, Aaron Stainthorpe, the voice behind MY DYING BRIDE for over three decades, is back with a vengeance. Unceremoniously dismissed from the band in 2025, Stainthorpe has resurrected his creative spirit with TOWARDS THE SINISTER—a project that sees him join forces with former bandmates Calvin Robertshaw, Ade Jackson, and Rick Miah. This new venture is not merely a walk down memory lane; it’s a full-throttle tribute to the haunting melodies that defined the first four MY DYING BRIDE albums, a dark tapestry of misery and melancholy that shaped the death-doom genre.

The lineup is a who's who of MY DYING BRIDE's classic era, featuring the core architects of their sound alongside fresh faces like second guitarist Chris Revett, keyboardist Mark Deeks, and the ethereal violinist Emma Allington. Their mission? To conjure the spectral essence of albums like "As The Flower Withers" and "Turn Loose The Swans". With a handful of intimate gigs planned in England and European festival slots looming next summer, TOWARDS THE SINISTER is poised to remind the metal world of the haunting power of despair.

Stainthorpe recounted the serendipitous reunion, sparked not by nostalgia, but by the cold, hard realities of the internet. After his departure from MY DYING BRIDE, support from Robertshaw, Miah, and Jackson came flooding back as they rekindled old camaraderie over drinks. "We didn't discuss anything about reforming at first. It was just a celebration of the past, a gathering of ghosts in a pub. But the chatter online about a reunion got us thinking," he shared. And thus, the seeds of TOWARDS THE SINISTER were planted, watered by the memories of their golden years and a shared yearning to revisit the music that once defined them.

What can fans expect from this new venture? A setlist that focuses on the early, formative years—those four seminal albums that birthed a legacy. Stainthorpe was clear: they’re not interested in performing tracks they didn’t help write. Instead, they’re diving deep into the abyss of their own creations, with plans to breathe new life into classics while also exploring uncharted territory—songs that have never graced the stage before. The band is poised to unleash a setlist that will resonate with the long-time faithful while drawing in a new audience eager for the raw, unfiltered emotion that only these musicians can deliver.

But that's not all—new material is on the horizon. Stainthorpe confirmed that Calvin Robertshaw is perpetually crafting fresh riffs, some of which will find their way into TOWARDS THE SINISTER’s repertoire. While Robertshaw’s current project, MANY SUFFER, leans towards a heavier death metal sound, the duo aims to blend those influences into their own darkly woven fabric. The future looks ominous yet promising for TOWARDS THE SINISTER, as they prepare to carve their own path while honoring the echoes of their past.