Review: Haunted Horses ‘Dweller’
My first review of 2025 comes courtesy of a band who hail from the birthplace of grunge, Seattle, and who go by the name Haunted Horses who comprise of Myke Pelly (HINTS) on drums, Colin ‘Cobra’ Dawson (Dragon, DAISYHEROIN) on guitar and new member since 2022, bassist Brian McClelland (Filth is Eternal, He Whose Ox Is Gored).
The band already had a string of records out before dropping Dweller including 2013’s Watcher, 2019’s Dead Meat and 2022’s The Worst Has Finally Happened and this album, according to the promotional notes, delves ‘into intense, unsettling themes… the fear and anxiety tied to the obliteration of one’s self or identity, and the unknown outcome of this dissolution’.
What this appears to suggest therefore is that Dweller shares an all-pervasive darkness and gloom with the aforementioned grunge scene and hence is one I am looking forward to examining in greater detail.
Dweller On The Threshold opens with crushing early Swans style worship from around the time of albums such as Cop and Filth, what with the despairing vocal similarities to a certain Mr Michael Gira. The sound may be grinding and industrial sounding but it thankfully lacks the cartoonish elements of what Ministry have been churning out since the mid 2000’s and with a hell of a lot more class, the perfect opener.
The Spell at just over two minutes is the shortest track on the record with a punchier vibe and one also imbued with a post-punk bluesy spirit ala The Birthday Party as well as a certain black metal ambience. Fantastic. Grey Eminence is an interesting number, what with the nods to Godflesh as well as experimental hip-hop artists such as Ho99o9, Dälek and Danny Brown, at least in terms of the texture and space created.
There is a propulsive beat and angst present that makes the whole thing so darn infectious…
Fucking Hell is, dare I say, one that is a little ‘grungier’ sounding, like a remixed version of a track from Nirvana’s In Utero such as Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. There is a propulsive beat and angst present that makes the whole thing so darn infectious, a trait which made Cobain and his band of not so merry men so appealing to millions. Temple Of Bone is an absolute gem that fans of Joy Division will surely lap up, the drumming especially reminiscent of the tribal rhythms of Stephen Morris while the vocals have a gothic theatricality in the spirit of the late Pete Steele and Misery Loves Co’s Patrik Wiren.
Dweller In The Abyss again mines early Swans but alternated with the thrashcore sound of Force Fed era Prong which fans of will fall in love with. Precisely my cup of tea that’s for sure. Destroy Each Other is primetime Killing Joke both musically and as implied by the nihilistic and apocalyptic title recalling that band’s Madness from second album What’s This For…!
SEED again sees Haunted Horses embracing Nick Cave were he to transition over to heavier metallic musical fare and before he started collaborating with bearded bore Warren Ellis on countless nondescript soundtracks and Watch Tower sees shades of The Wipers and Suicide creeping in, particularly the latter what with the pulsing, minimalistic, electronic backdrop, spectacular. Finally, Fevered Water draws the album to a close with some driving synth-punk as well as a little noise-rock akin to Chicago legends The Jesus Lizard. A scintillating conclusion to the album.
As with Venamoris’ fantastic Drown In Emotion, Justin Pearson and Three One G have again demonstrated an open-mindedness when it comes to putting out records that confound musical boundaries and expectations, with Dweller being a prime example.
Label: Three One G
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Reza Mills
