Review THE HALO EFFECT ‘Days of the Lost’

The ‘The Needless End’ EP had already given reason to expect great things, and now the time has come. The Halo Effect come with their debut album to the record stores. That Gothenburg is the home for very well done melodic death metal is known since In Flames and Dark Tranquillity took the metal world by storm. These days it’s The Halo Effect who prove that Sweden’s second largest city belongs to the great metal metropolises.

The Halo Effect is in a way a product of the pandemic. Suddenly time was not the problem because everyone had more time than wished. So five old friends got together to bring an old idea to life. As you surely know, the five guys who delight the metal world as The Halo Effect are no rookies. Niclas Engelin, Jesper Strömblad, Mikael Stanne, Peter Iwers and Daniel Svensson, they all have a long history in different bands. In Flames and Dark Tranquillity are the monikers that are closely associated with the mentioned guys and have essentially shaped the Gothenburg sound.

The advantage that the five guys have as The Halo Effect is that they could start relatively expectation-free. The creation of the album was therefore rather natural and the creation of the songs arose from the situation and spontaneity. You can hear this in the album a lot.

It’s not that ‘Days of the Lost’ delivers a revolutionary new sound. Rather, it is the described ease in the creation process which makes the record one of the best releases this year.

Songs like ‘In Broken Trust’ show the whole range of The Halo Effect. On the one hand there are massive riffs and a very dark mood, which dominate the verse. In contrast comes the chorus, with Stanne’s clean vocals as a well done arc of tension.

However, the beginning is made with ‘Shadowminds’ a song that is already known. What immediately stands out is the enormous density of sound. In addition, the feeling for a good melody line becomes evident, an ingredient that runs through the entire album. In this context, it should also be mentioned that Trivium’s Matt Healy contributes with some vocals, which gives the song a certain extra.

‘Gateways’ has a basic anthemic character and pleases immediately and the felicitous melody which accompanies ‘Feel What I Believe’ as a motive is of the finest.

With ‘The Most Alone’ The Halo Effect closes the gates and one is involuntarily inclined to press the start button again. ‘Days of the Lost’ instantly pleases and yet has a lot to offer. Slowly the songs unfold a deeper and deeper impact. The Halo Effect deliver the debut of the year and you can be curious how it will continue with the band, because with an album and a few festival appearances it is certainly not done.