I find it hard to classify one bit what Eric Anders and Mark O’Bitz were going for on Bardo Hauntings I: Butler Remixes. Now does that for one moment mean that it’s a bad thing? Not in the slightest. The confusingly eclectic record incorporates elements of dark house, indie rock, folk music, Americana, and also classic pop. The record is in effect a remix collection, a reimagining of past work that completely blurs the lines of what the originals were. They see and view remixes as ‘Hauntings’, hence the aptly titled name. But, in other forms, the sheer mood and tonality of the tunes themselves definitely give off those same haunting vibes.
‘Won’t Live It Down’ opens the album on a cracker of a note, a dark and brooding electronic emphasized instrumental that slowly but surely gives way to more decisive rock tunes before hitting a cathartic crescendo with a beat drop that had me absolutely floored. Matterbloomlight feels like bouncing around in the clouds, a floating sensation that’s blissful throughout. ‘And One Love’ returns to that magnificent electronic and rock confluence with striking confidence.
Perhaps there’s more to be gained from hearing the originals through and through, but from the remixes alone, I found myself very enamoured by the entire record. It’s so refreshing to see such an eclectic approach, the kind that I really can’t even draw a parallel to, especially taking these uplifting Americana based driving melodies and then tilting them into this cascading river of electronic music to give it a wholly different flavour and flow. A truly mesmerising record.