The Halogens

Have you heard of the Boston band The Halogens? If you haven’t yet, you’re missing out. Perhaps the best new Pop Rock group emerging in Boston today, they play everywhere from Bills Bar to the Middle East. Signed under Revelation Record’s subsidiary label, Simba Records, The Halogens are quickly gaining interest from larger labels. As their website at www.thehalogens.com outlines, The Halogens are a four-piece guitar rock band, located in Boston, MA since 2001. The Halogens call to mind the stylings of Oasis and early Radiohead with their own mix of lyrics and attitude. The band formed in late 1998 and released two well-received albums in 2000 and 2001 under their own label—“Gin and Nothing” and “Element”. Under their new Simba label, The Halogens released their tradition sound now highly polished in The Resolution EP.

I had the pleasure of hearing The Resolution EP recently. The instrumentality on the album is amazing, the pop rhythms perfectly suiting the bittersweet lyrics sung by lead singer Jason Dunn. It’s the perfect album to plug into your car CD player for short trips around Boston. The first track, “car crash in the dream” opens with a highlight of the guitar strumming and drumming talents of Jason Dunn, Taylor Barefoot, Ryan Peters, and James Caldwell (a.k.a. ‘Slider’). The sound of the song itself reminds you of British influence on American rock, its theme emphasizing the transience of sadness. The first song then flows perfectly into the second song on the album—the upbeat “losing out on me”. As the title suggests the song poetically forewarns a lover of the impending disappearance of the mistreated ‘nice guy’ vocalist. If you’ve ever been dumped, you’ll find yourself dancing out your frustration to the beat of this song.

The third song of the album is arguably the ‘single’ of the album—“full of it”. After listening to it once you’ll want to immediately skip back to the beginning of the song for a second listen. Yup, it’s that good. The lyrics portray an exasperated jilted lover throwing up his hands at how far ahead people who are ‘full of it’ get in comparison to his honest and open approach. The chorus is so catchy you’ll find yourself singing along on the second listen. This song truly deserves Boston radio play, currently withheld.

The remaining three songs on the album—“living in letters”, “ship in a bottle”, and “under the stairs”—round out the bittersweet theme, focusing on the more beautifully poetic aspects of a relationship lost. “Ship in a bottle” focuses on the ‘on top of the world’ feeling experienced during the infatuation phase of a relationship before the lovers ‘drank it all away’. “Under the stairs” ends the album with a mellower note, incorporating ambient vocals and instrumentals, reminding one of a marriage between Faithless and Oasis.

- Sarah Capatano-Friedman - SubterraBoston.com

Saying a band splits the difference between Oasis and Journey (perhaps more similar than we want to admit here in anglophile land) may not sound like high praise to some, but for those of us with an unabashed jones for the sentimentality of a big hook and a wall of guitars, what better blue-print is there? In short order, this Boston-by-way-of-Vermont band has staked its claim in the rare soil of "bands with good taste." Doesn't make sense that there should be so few of those, does it? This six song EP features a singer that can -- dare I say it -- sing and solid musicianship of the strip that may alienate Boston heads chained to the amateurish metal tomfoolery that we've become infamous for. Similarly, patches of contemporary rock mannerism such as the lead track "Car Crash in the Dream" (reminiscent of Thursday's "Understanding in a Crash") may turn an over-the-hill (24+) nose or two, but for a song with such a foreboding title, I can't help thinking it makes the perfect driving music.

- Luke O' Neil - Weekly Dig

The Halogens delight the ears and the senses with their new disc, The Resolution EP. Sounding like Matthew Sweet careening into an oasis of '60s flavored melody and melancholy, this CD is one of the best I have heard released locally-or nationally for that matter-in quite some time. Jason Dunn's strong and passionate voice adds a brilliant texture to the strong songwriting, not to mention musicianship that draws the listener in deeper and deeper with each spin of this disc. Beginning the ride is "Car Crash," a heavier number than most of the songs here, yet not out of place. The disc grows more interesting as it progresses. My favorite track is "Under the Stairs." With its original arrangement and stellar production, this could have easily been released on a major label. The pop sensibilities are deftly placed against Mr. Dunn's lyrical prowess. This is an excellent release. http://www.thehalogens.com
- Shady
- The Noise

This band hail from America, but are not jumping
on any of the present band wagons - they do not
have any obvious comparisons and this collection
of 6 songs is really not that bad from a band just
starting out. 'Car Crash in the Dream' (though it
sounds like he is singing 'Car Crash in the Tree'...)
is a soaring song with thashing guitars and a
pretty addictive chorus. His nasal voice hints at
a hundred other vocalists, but is still quite
individual.

The bassline on the second song is thumping and
drives along the song to an almost Britpop era
sound. The third song is perhaps the most
commercial - an upbeat indie track, while track
five is the obligatory indie track. It may not be
anything astoundingly different, but it certainly is enjoyable.

- Miuzik.com