[8] Both Goszka and Edward Douglas also credit their love of ghost stories, horror movies, and their studio (a fully restored Victorian era home) as further inspiration for the album.

[9] Douglas mentioned that some of the soundscape on the album was inspired by a presentation George Lutz gave describing his experiences in the house that became the basis for the book, The Amityville Horror.

[10] The album is set in the personal residence of the doctor who created Haverghast Asylum, a fictitious turn-of-the-century haunted mental institution first introduced on the band's 2001 release, Gates of Delirium.

[12] The album was released through Entity Productions and self-distributed nationally through chains like Spencer Gifts and Hot Topic, as well as in costume shops, game stores, and Halloween-merchandise retailers like Spirit Halloween[13][14] The band held a press preview at the purportedly haunted Agora Theater and Ballroom followed by a release party at the Phantasy Nite Club where a psychic, and haunted house actors entertained guests followed by performances by the bands Lazy Lane, Filament 38, and State of Being.

Designed to be listened to first and segued into Mansion in the Mist, Bloodlines expands upon the backstory of the Haverghast family and the events that transpired before the story in The 13th Hour begins.