Playing a mix of prog, psych, and trance-like indie pop while displaying the influence of artists such as Björk, Blonde Redhead, and Broadcast, French band Halo Maud began making music in the mid-2010s and eventually released their debut album in 2018 on Heavenly Records. Halo Maud is the creation of Maud Nadal, who grew up in rural France then moved to Paris, where she got her start in music during the early 2010s playing guitar and singing in like-minded psychedelic bands Melody's Echo Chamber and Moodoïd. She appeared on several albums with the latter band, then struck out on her own under the name Halo Maud in the mid-2010s. The first appearance on record by the project was a self-released three-song single, "Du Pouvoir/Power," in early 2017, and then on one side of a split single with the band O later that year for the La Souterraine Magic Vinyle Club. Helping Nadal on the songs were producer Robin Leduc and a trio of drummers. The "Du Pouvoir/Power" single garnered attention from Heavenly Recordings and they reissued the single in 2018. Nadal had already begun recording the first Halo Maud album by then with the help of Leduc, her Moodoïd bandmate Pablo Padovani, Benjamin Glibert from Aquaserge, and members of her live band -- Olivier Marguerit, Stéphane Bellity, and Vincent Mougel. Nadal wrote and sang all the songs and also added guitars, bass, keys, and other instruments. The sound the assembled musicians came up with nods to the proggy past, French pop, and the slick modern psych of bands like Stereolab, while displaying Nadal's hypnotic voice in front where it should be. Je Suis Une Île was released by Heavenly in May of 2018. ~ Tim Sendra