THE HALO EFFECT

Less than a year after the release of their punchy second album "March Of The Unheard", THE HALO EFFECT have returned with a five-track EP of surprising (and less surprising) cover versions. Think of it as a pre-Christmas bonus, if you will.

For any cynics that may infer that THE HALO EFFECT exist primarily to fill the gap left by IN FLAMES' drift into more commercial territory (a status, incidentally, that was unceremoniously nixed by 2023's excellent "Foregone"),"We Are Shadows" amounts to a revealing glimpse into the diverse influences that the Swedish five-piece have used to make their straight-ahead melodic death metal sound more nuanced and versatile than expected. Gentle eclectic and tastefully executed, these five songs confirm that there is much more going on in the band's creative life than a ruthless pursuit of an updated Gothenburg sound. Admittedly, that is less obvious in the opening "I Wanna Be Somebody": one of W.A.S.P. 's greatest anthems, and a song that every metalhead of a certain age has secured in their sacred memory banks. THE HALO EFFECT's version is ferocious, a melo-death mauling that retains the original's fiery arrogance but adds an additional layer of heaviness and brutal heft. If it encourages anyone to revisit the first W.A.S.P. album, then it will have done its job. Next, one of the great, semi-obscure hard rock albums of the '80s is thrust into the spotlight. Fronted by the inestimable Glenn Hughes, PHENOMENA released their self-titled debut album in the summer of 1985. A moderately spooky hard rock album that dealt with various supernatural happenings, "Phenomena" is one of Hughes's most potent efforts and "Dance With The Devil" is the best song on it. THE HALO EFFECT's version is fantastic. Grandiose and anthemic, it mirrors the structure of the original without sticking too rigidly to the same script. Mikael Stanne's vocals are a furious delight, and the song's folk-tinged guitar hook is as infectious as an airborne stomach bug. Again, the urge to go back to the source material seems inescapable.

The next two tracks will be of great significance to any Swedish fans, but for everyone else, KENT's brooding alt-rock and BRODER DANIEL's gritty indie pop will be unfamiliar and mildly educational. The former is another fairly straight interpretation, but with a gnarly, gothic undertow that provides Stanne with the perfect backdrop for his sonorous clean vocals. "If You Were Here" is a fabulous song and THE HALO EFFECT perform it with great affection and sincerity. Similarly, "Shoreline" belongs firmly outside of the melo-death wheelhouse, and benefits greatly from this band's tastefully thunderous reworking. Seemingly a certified anthem in Sweden, it is hugely catchy and uplifting.

Finally, that old devil Glenn Danzig rears his head. "How The Gods Kill" first appeared on DANZIG's much-revered third album, "Danzig III: How The Gods Kill" and has long been regarded as a high point in the old spook's career. THE HALO EFFECT give it the respect it deserves, and the incongruous nature of something so bluesy being fed through the melo-death shredder is a real revelation. Again, Stanne has the best of times crooning like a gloom-shrouded goth, and his comrades wring every last drop of drama out of their snappy and startlingly grim ensemble performance.

Call it a stopgap or a momentary distraction, but "We Are Shadows" is all killer, no filler. These guys have great taste.