Secret Stairways

Secret Stairways was the solo instrumental dungeon synth project of Matthew Davis (also known for his work with Twelfth of Never, Faces of Bayon, Labyrintheory, Blackened Chapel, and Tears ov Blood). Enchantment of the Ring was originally released in 1997 on cassette, and was digitized and released digitally via Bandcamp in 2017. As a result, you can hear tape hiss and other imperfections in these eight songs, but they only add to the effect. You get the sense of listening to a relic, a long-lost recording from another age because, in a sense, you are. A true remastering that cleaned up these songs would just break the spell that Davis casts. Matthew Davis committed suicide in 2011, years before dungeon synth began to emerge into the spotlight. Enchantment of the Ring, along with its follow-up, 1999’s Turning Point, are stunning works of art that elevate the dungeon synth genre to a new level, leaving behind a wonderful legacy of epic synth music. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.