In Flames Veterans The Halo Effect Unload Second Single 'Feel What I Believe'

It's been a couple of months since we first heard the debut single 'Shadowminds' from The Halo Effect. Who are they, you may be asking? Quick refresher - they're your new favourite Swedish melodic death metal band (trust us) - and a big part of our confidence is that most of them are former In Flames members, namely Jesper Strömblad (CYHRA guitarist),  Daniel Svensson (drummer), Peter Iwers (bassist), Niclas Engelin (guitarist) as well as non-In Flames member Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity vocalist). 

In the meantime, the current lineup of In Flames have been re-releasing parts of their back catalogue, celebrating their journey as a band, whilst vocalist Anders Fridén is also focusing on some solo work, a project titled If Anything, Suspicious and he’s released two instrumental ambient tracks titled ‘Nodes Of Yesod‘ and ‘Farewell‘ - released on his Lullabies for the Damned record on December 3rd last year.

We digress; The Halo Effect are signed to Nuclear Blast and they've already announced their first ever tour with Machine Head and Amon Amarth across the UK/Europe this year. The Gothenburg metalers blew us away with 'Shadowminds', so the news of second single 'Feel What I Believe' is certainly enough to electrify the pulse a bit.

On the single, the band commented:
“'Feel what I believe' is basically about how it felt growing up and discovering extreme metal in our late teens. Delving into something that was both frightening and alluring at the same time. And having that as the sole focus as you started playing in a band and in essence decided who you wanted to be. That confidence and laser focus is what still fascinates me I love that this somehow endured over the years. This is basically us at 19 screaming 'How don't you understand this?'. And even if people around us didn't get it at the time at least they could see our passion for it and that's what this song is about.

The video is also reminiscent of the videos we saw growing up. A bunch of long haired people in an abandoned warehouse playing loud music while trying to look cool basically. What we did here though is bring it to another level thanks to Theo Gabay and his amazing team. I love that it captures the vibe of us playing and really enjoying what we do. Also it looks spectacular. Enjoy!"

The new single amplifies some classic melodic In Flames, sonically, with Stanne delving into his Swedish vocal roots immediately. Once again, the fusion of 90s nostalgia and contemporary exploration is a heavenly recipe for the old school fans. Svensson is an animal behind the kit and really brings 'Feel What I Believe' to life. Speaking of contemporary, these signature sounds also really help you appreciate the Nordic influence on Australian metalcore records from bands like I Killed The Prom Queen, who recorded and mixed in Sweden. Strömblad is relentless on the axe and will get your blood pumping for what we hope may be a full-length record.

Words by Ricky Aarons (@rickysaul90)

Stream The Halo Effect - 'Feel What I Believe' here