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Introducing Berlin’s The Halo Trees; deep, melancholic music with plenty of room for the voice and handmade instrumentation. A mixture of indie-rock, pop, wave, and post-rock with many tom-toms, melodic basslines, atmospheric guitars, catchy violin, and sonorous, warm vocals. All questions answered by Sascha Blach (Vocals, Guitar, Synths)…
What are the origins of The Halo Trees? How long have you been playing together?
I’ve been doing music since the middle of the 90s and have covered a variety of genres, whether Metal, Pop, Electronica, Alternative or Production Music. I had launched the Halo Trees around 2016 and first worked alone in my studio on the first songs to develop my own sound because I wanted to establish a band that offers a lot of space for my deep clean vocals, stands for pleasantly melancholy music, and which I can do until I’m very old (laughs). Only then did I search for suitable musicians. In 2018, our debut EP was published “Time and Tide Wait for No Man”, followed by the first album “Antennas to the Sky” one year later. Our second album “Summergloom” appears these days.
How did you feel performing your first gig? And how was it?!
Well, my first gig was way back in the 90s with my first band on a marketplace in a small village in Germany, where we had our rehearsal room. Well, I don’t think we were good, but at least people applauded. Probably because they were friendly. I’m not sure if you are really interested today. Since then, I have certainly been on stage a few hundred times. Unfortunately, shows with The Halo Trees were very rare, because when we had released our first album and played a few shows, Covid kicked in and ended the live situation as we knew it.
What should people expect when they check the band/you out? How would you describe yourself?
I guess we make thoughtful, slightly gloomy indie rock. Who likes atmospheric music with cool melodies and hook lines and a certain experimentation pleasure, should give it a try.
The new music scene is bursting at the seams with fresh talent, in what ways do you feel that a band has to stand out from the others trying to build a name?
The mix makes it. I think bands that are too independent or idiosyncratic and therefore do not fit into any category, have a hard time. But epigones, on the other hand, are rarely really successful in the long term, even if they can benefit from the success of another band in the short term. But this balance can of course be difficult to plan. I think it definitely makes sense if a new band leaves time to find their sound – just as we did. It was a painful time for me because I got a lot of criticism from my environment and have tried countless songs and mixes until it finally fitted. This process took about two years and in the end, were the EP “Time and Tide Wait For No Man” and the album “Antennas to the Sky” as results.
What are you working on at the minute that people can check out?
Well, we’re already working on the third album, but of course, people won’t be allowed to hear it until it’s released š But we have a high-quality replacement for that – our current album “Summergloom”, which was released at the beginning of October. Here you can find all sources of supply at a glance: https://spotify.thehalotrees.com/link/6w5r2s
What band out there at the minute do you feel that you would be best suited to open for?
We had a conversation about this recently and thought R.E.M. would be a fantastic possibility ā if they will ever reunite š
Who do you feel is the next band to break out?
No idea.
What are your first musical memories? And what was the light bulb moment that made you go āI want to do thatā?
I can still remember that as a child I persuaded my parents to buy me a drum kit. I never had lessons, but I always played and sang in my children’s room and recorded it with a cassette recorder. This resulted in demos with self-painted inlays. So I had the urge to record my own “albums” from an early age. The drumkit was sold at some point, but this urge remained.
What was the last gig that you attended as a fan?
Actually, I don’t remember what it was. What I remember is our last gig that was in February 2020 at Duncker club in Berlin a few days before the whole Corona thing started. The club was really full and it was a great show. Something to remember ā not only it would be our last gig for a long time, but also because it was the last gig with the old line-up.
The album that you have in your album collection/Spotify playlist that would surprise most people?
I guess there are many because my taste of music is very broad. If you look through my saved albums at Spotify there are techno, hip-hop or mainstream pop albums, even though I don’t listen to these records very often. There is not that one album that might shock everyone.
How active are you on social media and where can people connect with you?
Unfortunately, due to lack of time, we are unable to maintain all the important platforms, but we are relatively active on Facebook at least. You can also see all of our videos on Youtube and our merchandise, vinyl, and CDs on Bandcamp: http://thehalotrees.bandcamp.com/Ā
