There is something truly cathartic about heavy metal in its finest form- when it can turn personal demons into sonic catharsis- and that is exactly what is done in Brian Hunsaker and his song, Haunted. The metal veteran out of the Seattle area has produced something that is cinematically epic yet also very personal, making a song that sticks with you long after the last note is played.
The surprise here is the performance of Hunsaker in the voice department. Leaving his instrumental guitar-based background behind, he provides vocals that are classic hard rock bravado with a degree of surprising nuance. His lively wording creates something wholesome out of what would have been simple metal, especially in a chorus that never leaves your mind. Decades of musical commitment can be heard in every inflection-back to those early years when he was practicing four to six hours a day on his battered Gibson Corvus to his award winning work with Stand Up & Shout.
The instrumentation is spot-on in terms of the theme of the song, which is that of being followed by some invisible forces. Orchestral swells provide a sense of increasing tension and layered guitar textures form a wall of sound, which is simultaneously chaotic and tightly controlled. Rhythm section gives an unwavering base which gives Hunsaker the chance to indulge both in harshness and musical refinement without losing the emotional nature of the song.
The first thing that I find memorable about Haunted is its psychological depth. It is not the theatrics of a monster movie but a real investigation of trauma and paranoia- the kind of inner conflict that most of us have experienced but do not talk about. The production by Matt Dougherty is able to capture this sense of power and vulnerability that the concept has, and that is something that transcends influences of Megadeth to Nightwish, but still there is something distinct about Hunsaker in it.
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