Nearly a year after forming the band The Effect, Trev Lukather, son of Toto‘s Steve Lukather, and Nic Collins, son of Phil Collins are closer to releasing their debut album. The band, which features both musicians taking up the same instruments as their famous fathers with Lukather on guitar and Collins on drums, also features Toto keyboardist Steve Maggiora, and vocalist Emmett Stang.
Formed in May 2023, the band first started experimenting with a song, which became their first single “Unwanted,” released in October 2023. “We eventually got on the phone and had a three-hour convo, and I realized Em [Stang] and I connected personally on many levels,” said Lukather in a recent interview. Lukather was first drawn to Stang’s vocals after hearing his cover of Peter Gabriel’s 1986 hit In Your Eyes.
“It was like we were long-lost friends catching up,” added Lukather. “At the time I was working on my solo record with Steve Maggiora, who is a bro of 13-plus years. Steve brought so much to the table, I thought how crazy good it would be to be in a band together and not just my solo band—a real band.”
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Written by the band, “Unwanted” helped “test the waters” of their new project, and how they would write as a unit. “It’s always a question of ‘do we have writing chemistry?'” said Stang. “‘Unwanted’ really set the tone. We’re going for something alternative in the verse to reel you in, followed by a chorus you can sing along to; it has that pop element. My aim was to ally that with a darker angle of the narrative and get some edge in the lyrics.”
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Outside of The Effect, all four members have already had heavy careers in music with Stang an accomplished actor, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, Maggiora’s background recording and playing with Toto, Collins touring alongside his father with Genesis and Mike + The Mechanics, and Lukather, who started releasing solo material in 2022 and has produced and written for bands including Halestorm and Dorothy.
“The anxiety was high, and man, I fought the thoughts but I knew it was the right move to bring these amazing people together, and I’m so happy I did,” said Lukather. “I’m happy I didn’t cave into my negative thoughts, because I haven’t been more proud of an album in my life, and truly feel like I have a band of brothers I can count on.”
Regardless of their different backgrounds or commonalities, there was never one particular sound or genre in mind when the band formed. “The cool thing about The Effect is the influences apply more to each individual than they do as a whole band,” said Collins. “We never had a conversation about what kind of band we wanted to be or what genre of music we were going to write. The music we make is literally what happens when the four of us write songs together with each person bringing their unique take and influences.”
Along with releasing the band’s first two singles, The Effect played their first show together on October 15, 2023, at The Knitting Factory in North Hollywood, California with a series of more shows that followed and finished recording an entire album, set for release in 2024.
“We do have the whole album done,” said Lukather of the band’s debut album. “It has been recorded and mastered, and now it’s time to build awareness for the band. We just don’t want to throw it out there, because we’re so proud of this. We’re gonna do whatever we can to build enough momentum to really give it a solid shot to be heard.”
Photo: Courtesy of The Effect
