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Thrones

Thrones is the long-running solo project of American bassist Joe Preston, begun in 1994 and given to bass-heavy doom, avant-garde noise rock and experimental drone. Preston is a scene hub in his own right — a former member of Earth and the Melvins and a guest on Sunn O)))'s recordings — and Thrones channels that low-end lineage into one-man records like the Southern Lord compilation Day Late, Dollar Short (2005). The music pairs crushing riffs and heavily processed vocals with an eclectic, unpredictable sensibility.

SCORE PROFILE

JazzyBalkanHardcoreSurfBarbershopDeathBlackTechnicalGlitchTheatricalFolkDoomDroneShoegazeAmbient8-bit
Jazzy0
Balkan0
Hardcore2
Surf0
Barbershop0
Death0
Black0
Technical1
Glitch3
Theatrical3
Folk0
Doom7
Drone6
Shoegaze0
Ambient3
8-bit0

Accent numbers counted towards the index. Hover an axis — or hold it on a phone — for what it means.

WHY THOSE SCORES

  • Hardcore 2Noise-rock heft carried over from Preston's Melvins/High on Fire background.
  • Technical 1Idiosyncratic arrangement rather than overt instrumental technicality.
  • Glitch 3Heavily processed vocals, vocoder and electronic manipulation run through the project.
  • Theatrical 3An eclectic, avant-garde presentation that leans on absurdist gestures.
  • Doom 7Bass-driven doom metal is the project's core mode.
  • Drone 6Sustained, riff-repeating heaviness in the Earth/Sunn O))) lineage Preston helped build.
  • Ambient 3Drone passages open into ambient, synth-led interludes.

MEMBERS

  • Joe Prestonbass, vocals, keyboards· also in Earth

CONNECTIONS

member · 2
  • Earthpath →

    Preston played bass in Earth, appearing on Extra-Capsular Extraction (1991) and later live recordings. source ↗

  • Melvinspath →

    Joe Preston was the Melvins' bassist in the early 1990s, credited on the Joe Preston EP and Lysol (1992). source ↗

collaboration
  • Sunn O)))path →

    Preston contributed as a guest musician on Sunn O)))'s White1 and White2 (2003) and Monoliths & Dimensions. source ↗

label founder
  • Sunn O)))path →

    Southern Lord released Day Late, Dollar Short (2005), compiling Thrones' 1994-2001 material — anchored at Sunn O))), the label founders' band. source ↗

2 split releases

FURTHER LISTENING

Nearest score profiles in the atlas.

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