3 out of 5

Label: digital self-release

Produced by: Robert Cheek and Myke Pell (remix and remaster)

A ten-years on remix / remaster of Haunted Horses’ 2013 debut, Watcher – original review here.

There are good reasons for revisting and remixing past albums; when done by the band itself (as opposed to an out-of-print anniversary something or other by a label or etc.), it tends to fall into the scheme suggested by Haunted Horses’ “redux” of this album: to bring its sound up to spec with their current output. That means having Robert Cheek on board, who worked on The Worst Has Finally Happened and the (then forthcoming) Dweller. While I loved the former and had some thoughts on the latter, the low-end thump and balanced fidelity brought to both is definitely appealing, and I can understand wanting to sharpen the reverb-soaked noises on the original Watcher; especially from vocalist Colin Dawson, bringing his layer forward in the mix, and allowing some higher-end sounds to be clearer in general.

But: to me, this is an instance where the original recording benefits from its limitations. And this isn’t me as some “original” fan: I joined with Worst Has Finally Happened, then picked up Watcher on cassette; I dug it for sure, but Worst was still the one spinning in my player at the time, so I didn’t craft any deep-seated opinions on the album beyond my enjoyment of it. Later, I picked up the “redux” out of curiosity (or it might’ve been a free add-on, honestly), and it just triggered a different curiosity in return: the album didn’t sound as heavy as I’d remembered. Doing a side-by-side listen proved out what I’m chattering about above, which may suggest Chris Common’s mix had a goodly effect on Worst’s sound over Dweller’s…

All to say: if you prefer HH’s Dweller mix, Watcher Redux is in line with it, or perhaps more properly a nicely balanced line between that sound and the original. If you’ve dug on the band’s old cassettes and earlier releases in general, well, the re-do is interesting, but not preferred. And for those happy with it all, I honestly don’t think the sound is so drastically different as to merit two purchases; some of the extra vocal and melody layers come out a bit cleaner, but they’re present in the original – just moreso part of the murky ambience.