Curtis Parker and Joe Eck from Witch Ripper

April 10, 2026·34 min·3 clips

Curtis Parker and Joe Eck discuss their new album Through the Hourglass and the current state of the Seattle music scene.

Brian starts loose. He introduces Curtis Parker and Joe Eck as Witch Ripper members with a new record on Magnetic Eye Records, then mostly lets them talk. The pace has room in it. The conversation sits in the As The Story Grows zone where a band can get into scene context, guitar tone, songwriting goals, and name regret without being hurried along. Melody matters here. One guest says they wanted heavy music with more than anger in it, with pretty parts and real dynamics sitting beside the heavier sections. The host understands the lane. He brings up a favorite heavy band with big guitar tone and strong melodies, more as a fan talking to peers than as a lecture. Then the name comes up. Witch Ripper worked because it caught the stony and metallic sides of the band at the time. It felt original enough. Two years later, the guest says the stoner-doom naming wave made it feel much less distinct, with similar witch, bong, goat, and smoky words everywhere. The laugh is dry. Nobody turns it into a big speech about genre branding. It lands as a musician remembering the moment the room got crowded fast. The record still leads the episode. Through the Hourglass comes across as where the band is now, with the guests talking about growth and a bigger sonic step. The pride is modest. One guest says they can hear the album moving forward sonically, and the host jokes that bands rarely admit a record missed until years later. The hope stays simple: give the album a chance and find something interesting in the songs.

As heard by us

A grounded talk about Witch Ripper's new record, Seattle, and the balance between heaviness, melody, and artwork.

Curtis Parker and Joe Eck of Witch Ripper sit down with Brian Patton on As the Story Grows to talk about the band's new record, Through the Hourglass, out today on Magnetic Eye Records.

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Why you'd press play

You want a heavy interview with real melody and sound-talk.

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