Haunted Horses
Seattle, Washington, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2017 | INDIE
Music
Press
“Haunted Horses have frequency shaking all around The Worst Has Finally Happened. The punches keep coming, but it is somehow soothing. “Pig” has what seems like a running vacuum underneath; “Thorns” is a structure of falling bricks; and six-minute closer “Severed Circle” is quivering electro with a veil of light and a delicate ride cymbal.” - Jordan Michael - Post-Trash
“The nasty grit and drive that the bass added to the band’s music was exactly what I love in a band like this. And with that being said, the unconventional instrumentation and sonic output that is Haunted Horses gives me hope for the future of music.” - Justin Pearson - BrooklynVegan
"It sounds as though they are all being routed through a stack of distortion pedals, with the final mix abraded by sandpaper. It’s dense, punchy, jagged and blown out in all the best ways. The track has the creepy desperation of Big Black and the gothic pulse and vibe of vintage Bauhaus, with a little Swans lunacy thrown in for extra aggravation." - Decibel Magazine
“Haunted Horses are fighting the good fight through the use of their righteously vicious industrial punk ram-a-lam. Their new album is a call to fight back against the oppressive structures which keep us down. It is one way they deal with the declining state of the world. They do this all through their music, which provides the necessary coping mechanisms for them and gives them a sense of community with like-minded individuals.” - THOMAS PIZZOLA - New Noise Magazine
“a caustic punk/goth/industrial fusion that would fit in nicely next to anything from '80s Swans to latter-day Daughters. It's a punishing, thunderous track that really offers up a fresh take on this sound” - Andrew Sacher - BrooklynVegan
Discography
WATCHER (LP, 2013, Self-Released)
Dead Meat (LP, 2019, Self-Released)
Haunted Horses/Filth Is Eternal (Split 7", 2019, Void Assault)
The Worst Has Finally Happened (LP, 2022, Three One G)
Photos
Bio
Haunted Horses is an industrial-punk trio hailing from Seattle, WA. Their sound is thunderous and chaotic, utilizing a wall of noise techniques through an onslaught of keys, guitars and drums. Myke Pelly’s off kilter drumming and Colin Dawson’s architectural noise structures create jittery post-punk that is both upbeat and gloomy. Most recently, the band enlisted Seattle-based bassist Brian McClelland of Filth is Eternal and He Whose Ox is Gored, creating an added level of heavy rhythmic noise that not only contributes an exciting dynamic layer to the album sonically, but to their already-captivating live performance as well. The bleak vocals are persistently ominous in a seductive way, conjuring up the nightmarish aura of a dissonant horror-film soundtrack. With reviewers like Anthony Fantano (Needle Drop) likening their previous work to legendary bands such as Swans, Bauhaus, and Killing Joke, Haunted Horses carry on the tradition of noise that can terrorize as well as entrance, oftentimes simultaneously. This is evident in the list of hard-hitting contemporaries they’ve shared the stage and toured with, including Lingua Ignota, Portrayal of Guilt, A Place to Bury Strangers, Bambara, and Boy Harsher. Fans of Einstürzende Neubauten, Swans, Girl Band, Death Grips, The Soft Moon, Street Sects, Ho99o9, and Uniform will find Haunted Horses a welcome addition to their lexicon.
The Worst Has Finally Happened was recorded and mixed by Bob Cheek and is available digitally as well as on limited vinyl.
The Worst Has Finally Happened continues in the band’s approach to music as a battering ram into the brain, now as a trio with Myke Pelly, Colin Dawson, Brian McClelland (Filth is Eternal, He Whose Ox is Gored). Sounds sway from mechanical heartbeat thumps and the delay-drenched beeping of echolocation radar devices tracking down a potential victim in “Swarms,” to something resembling an alarm signifying Chernobyl-strength a nuclear meltdown in “Thorns.” Everything feels perfectly orchestrated to leave the listener on edge. It’s hard to tell if Haunted Horses’ music is meant for the hunter or the hunted, but either way, it holds on tight, sinks its claws in and doesn’t let up.
Band Members
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