In 1999, English musician Leyland Kirby released the record Selected Memories from the Haunted Ballroom, inspired by a scene from the horror film The Shining.

[3] In the year of 2000, Kirby created a distorted version of "The Lady in Red" by English Chris de Burgh, which NME would feature as single of the week in September 2000.

[11][10] Its transformation of the basic source material is akin to the ones of the bands Skinny Puppy and Will, as well as to those of artists from the Cold Meat Industry record label.

[7] Nearing the album's end, "Each today doesn't lead to a tomorrow" features a gothic production, with a melody that is often interrupted by a reverberating bassline.

"Home" and its distorted vocals are followed by a choral in "Friends past re-united", a recurring track in the project with vague production elements applied to the latter, which is presented in full in A Stairway to the Stars, as opposed to the truncated version featured in the preceding album, Selected Memories from the Haunted Ballroom.

"[7] Writing for A Closer Listen in 2013, Zachary Corsa interpreted the album as the result of "an era of smartphone obsessions and fear-strewn media overload," where "we should all be so haunted by the past and its implications.

[12] Along with Selected Memories from the Haunted Ballroom and Persistent Repetition of Phrases, A Stairway to the Stars is one of Kirby's most praised early records as the Caretaker.