The Halo Effect, a melodic death metal supergroup featuring members of Dark Tranquillity and In Flames, are back with their sophomore album, March Of The Unheard, out January 10 via Nuclear Blast. Mikael Stanne of Dark Tranquility fame was excited to talk about the new record and taking their show on the road for the first time with this band, but certainly not the first time in the personal history of the supergroup members.
The band’s genesis happened during the pandemic, like many bands, and what started as casual writing and reminiscing about their teenage years quickly turned into some serious songwriting sessions. This allowed them to release their first album and still have material to kickstart the second. However, the approach to this second album was markedly different, as they’re now thinking about it more like an established band and less like a one-off supergroup.
“When we started this album, we felt like, OK, well, let’s, we need maybe five, seven songs or something like that, and then we have an album because we have all these songs already that we really like, that are already recorded,” Stanne explains.As they kept writing, this led to a renewed burst of creativity and a decision to write and record entirely new material. “We ended up writing more songs and then recording again, and then we had an album that is all new material.”
This shift proved to be pivotal. The band found a new level of focus and confidence. “That was actually great because I think we all felt that now we knew what we were doing,” Stanne reflects. The first album had been a period of discovery and defining what The Halo Effect could be. This time, they had a clear vision.
“The first album was us kind of discovering what we could be and what the band should be, and now we knew exactly what we wanted. So there was a lot more confidence and kind of commitment to our sound now. That made it easier, in a way, but also that pressure was on, you know, that maybe we didn’t feel first time around because there were no expectations. We didn’t even have a record deal; we didn’t know anything. We just had fun in the studio. But this was felt more for real, you know, and I appreciated that because you could tell, like everybody, tried a little bit harder to make sure that this had to be a worthy successor to that first album that people seem to like.”
The thematic content of the new album also marks a departure. While the first album explored the shared experiences of the band members’ youth, the new material delves into more contemporary themes. Stanne draws inspiration from observing the world around him, particularly the experiences of his children.
“The first one was kind of discovery, and what I wanted was to talk about the things that we went through as kids, and that, and then what our kids went through, because it feels strange to be that old,” Stanne says, “But for this album, I felt like I had to step up and make it a little bit more serious.”
The album explores how people interact with the world today, the challenges they face, and the ways in which the environment has changed. Stanne contrasted his own youth, spent in rehearsal rooms and youth centers, with the experiences of today’s youth. “For us, it was hiding in a rehearsal room, you know, when my parents gave us space, or we went to the youth center to hang out and just be together, create something, and you don’t really have to do that anymore,” he says.
Despite being conceived as a studio project, The Halo Effect have now embraced the live experience. They are preparing for shows across Europe, and soon, touring the U.S. Stanne expresses a desire for more extensive touring in the future, aiming for longer runs to truly connect with fans. “At first we said, like, we could do some, some shows here and there, if we have time, you know. And we’ve found out that it’s a lot of fun. We really, really enjoy it. So we’ve done some cool tours here in Europe, last year, and it was excellent, and we really enjoyed it. So now we will be playing a lot more.”
Looking beyond the current album and tour, The Halo Effect are already looking ahead. The creative process is ongoing, with new material being written and even a secret project underway, something they promise to talk more about in the future. Stanne emphasizes the strong bond and trust between the band members as a key ingredient to their success.
“I love the fact that we don’t really have to try too hard. This is just the instinct and the 30 years of experience speaking. So it’s easy to communicate about music when we don’t have to talk about it; we just go for it, and we all trust each other 100%. You don’t have to worry. You don’t even have to be in the studio (when the others are recording). We just know it’s going to be awesome.”
The post Interview: The Halo Effect Hit Their Stride with “March Of The Unheard” appeared first on Decibel Magazine.