Lee Dorrian started Rise Above Records in 1988 without the intention of the label being an ongoing position.

[2] Dorrian explained that it was predominantly done to "get the dole off my back as they were asking a lot of questions as Napalm Death were on the front cover of the NME and on TV three times in one week, but I was still living in a council flat and couldn't even afford the rent.

[3] Dorrian was a fan of bands such as Candlemass, Saint Vitus and Trouble but stated there "wasn't really a 'doom scene' as such" and that "doom became an obsession" for him.

[1] Finding that there were a scattered amount of doom metal groups in the United States (specifically Maryland), Dorrian attempted to "give the scene a boost" and released a compilation titled Dark Passages, a compilation stating that "if people asked what doom was you could point to that record and there was something tangible to grab hold of.

"[1] Dorrian found that the release "didn't get as many bands as we'd have liked, hence the reason why there are two Cathedral tracks on there.