Half Moon Run is a Canadian indie rock band based in Montreal, Quebec. The group is known for their heavy use of layered percussion, group vocal harmonies, and for playing multiple instruments during live performances.
Career 2009–2013: Formation and Dark Eyes Half Moon Run was formed in 2009 in Montreal's Mile End neighbourhood by Conner Molander and Dylan Phillips, who had both moved to Montreal from Comox, British Columbia. They posted an ad on Craigslist that said they were looking for a bassist and/or a drummer. The ad caught the attention of Devon Portielje, originally from Ottawa. Despite not being a bassist or a drummer, he got in touch with Molander and Phillips who agreed to let him join.
Their debut album, Dark Eyes, was released on 27 March 2012, with "Full Circle" being released on 19 March as the lead single. The entire album was co-produced with Daniel Lagacé and Nygel Asselin. They toured Europe, Australia and North America.(14 June 2012). "Half Moon Run are indie's rising stars", Daily Mercury, p. 28. Critical acclaim has included praise for their three-part harmonies.Sadleir, Rose (17 January 2013). "Trio bask in moonlight", Gold Coast Bulletin, p. 5.
Shortly after the release of Dark Eyes, Isaac Symonds, originally from Comox, joined the lineup.
Throughout 2012 and 2013, the band played at numerous music festivals including South by Southwest, Osheaga, Canadian Music Week, Glastonbury, WayHome Music & Arts Festival, and opened for artists such as Of Monsters and Men, Metric, Patrick Watson, City and Colour, and Mumford & Sons.Lepage, Mark (7 December 2012). "Montreal trio Half Moon Run: Lunar rovers in the fast lane ", The Gazette. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
In August 2013, "Full Circle" was featured in a trailer for Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. The song "Unofferable" also appears on an episode of the CBS's show Elementary as a backtracking to a scene.
2014–2019: Sun Leads Me On and A Blemish in the Great Light In July 2014, they announced that work on their second album had begun. They announced that it would be released in fall 2015. That same year, they were the recipients of the International Achievement Award at the annual Francophone SOCAN Awards in Montreal.
On 24 July 2015, the band announced a European tour that included shows in the United Kingdom, France, Ireland, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands.
On 7 August 2015, the band announced, via their Twitter page, the release of their second studio album, Sun Leads Me On, on 23 October 2015. They simultaneously released a teaser track, "Trust", which was available as a free download with pre-orders of their album. Pre-orders via their website offered the album signed by all band members. A deluxe version was also released.
On 1 November 2019, Half Moon Run released their third full-length album A Blemish in the Great Light. The album won Adult Alternative Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2020.Stephen Cooke, "Virtual 2020 Juno Awards includes breakthrough win for Neon Dreams". Halifax Chronicle-Herald, 29 June 2020.
2020–2022: Symonds's departure, The Covideo Sessions and subsequent releases On 25 May 2020, the band announced that Isaac Symonds would be leaving the group.
Throughout May and June 2020 while the band members had been self-isolating due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they recorded and released videos of themselves performing together via video conference. Symonds remained with the group throughout this time. That same year, they also released seven new singles, six of which were then released together as an EP entitled Seasons of Change on 17 July. They followed up in September with The Covideo Sessions, an album featuring the recordings of their May–June video performances.
On 21 August 2020, Dylan Phillips released his debut solo EP entitled Undercurrents.
On 18 March 2021, the band released a single, "How Come My Body", to promote their Inwards & Onwards EP which was released on 18 June 2021.
On 26 December 2021, Half Moon Run released Seasons of Change and Inwards & Onwards together on a compilation album.
On 10 March 2022, the band released "Fatal Line", a song they contributed to The 1969 Record. The album also featured songs from Louis-Jean Cormier, Elisapie, Les Soeurs Boulay, Jason Bajada, and Matt Holubowski.
2023–present: Salt and subsequent releases On 3 March 2023, the band released a single, "You Can Let Go." On the same day, the band announced that they signed to BMG, as well as a tour for Europe and North America. On 20 April 2023, the band released a single, "Alco," to promote their then-upcoming album Salt. This was followed by the release of another single, "Everyone's Moving Out East," on 18 May 2023.
On 2 June 2023, the band released their fourth studio album, Salt.
On 23 October 2023, the band released a cover of Fred Again's "Adore U" as part of a series of songs recorded live in a studio called Live from the Treehouse. The band released the songs periodically over the course of the following few months, including the release of "Can't Stop Loving You" on 29 February 2024. The full EP, Live from the Treehouse, released on 21 March 2024.
On 28 November 2024, the band released a single, "Loose Ends." Three other singles, "Back on the Road", "The Message", and "Another Woman" were released on 31 January 2025, 20 March 2025, and 30 April 2025 respectively. These songs were outtakes from the Salt sessions.
On 23 December 2024, the band released a cover of Bob Dylan's "Boots of Spanish Leather."
On 31 October 2025, the band released a song, "Shadows of Night," which was written for the Witcher season 4 soundtrack.
Members Current Devon Portielje – lead vocals, guitar, piano, percussion (2009–present) Conner Molander – backing vocals, guitar, keyboard, piano, pedal steel, bass, harmonica (2009–present) Dylan Phillips – backing vocals, drums, piano, keyboard (2009–present)
Former Isaac Symonds – backing vocals, drums, mandolin, synthesizer, bass (2012–2020)
Discography Albums Title Album details Peak chart positions Sales Certifications CAN Salt: AUS BEL (Fl) BEL (Wa) FRA NL UKPeaks in the UK: For all except noted: "Call Me in the Afternoon": USFolk USHeat Dark Eyes Released: 27 March 2012 Label: Indica Format: Digital download, CD, 12" vinyl 8 — 119 186 138 48 56 — 12 US: 12,000 MC: Platinum Sun Leads Me On Released: 23 October 2015 Label: Indica Format: Digital download, CD, 12" vinyl 4 39 152 81 110 49 46 16 9 MC: Gold A Blemish in the Great Light Released: 1 November 2019 Label: Crystal Math Music Format: Digital download, CD, 12" vinyl 3 — — — — — — — — Salt Released: 2 June 2023 Label: BMG Format: Digital download, CD, 12" vinyl 48 — — — — — — — — "—" denotes releases that did not chart
Live albums Title Details The Covideo Sessions Released: 4 September 2020 Label: Crystal Math / Glassnote Format: 12" vinyl, digital download Live from the Treehouse Released: 21 March 2024 Label: BMG Format: Digital download
Compilations Title Details Seasons of Change – Inwards & Onwards Released: 26 December 2021 Label: Glassnote Format: 12" vinyl, CD
EPs Title Details Seasons of Change Released: 17 July 2020 Label: Crystal Math / Glassnote Format: Digital download, 10" vinyl Inwards & Onwards Released: 18 June 2021 Label: Crystal Math / Glassnote Format: Digital download, 10" vinyl
Singles Year Title Peak chart positions Certifications Album CANAltPeak positions for the Alternative Rock songs in Canada: For "Full Circle": Canadian Active Rock & Alt Rock Chart Archive: Alternative Rock – 1 May 2012 For "Call Me in the Afternoon": Canadian Active Rock & Alt Rock Chart Archive: Alternative Rock – 12 February 2013 CANRock BEL (Fl) NL SCOScottish Singles Chart positions for Half Moon Run: "Full Circle": UK 2012 "Full Circle" 29 — 27 67 63 60 MC: Platinum Dark Eyes 2013 "Call Me in the Afternoon" 19 39 69 — — 166 MC: Gold 2014 "She Wants to Know" 22 37 — — — — 2015 "Trust" — — — — — — Sun Leads Me On "Turn Your Love" 11 13 — — — — MC: Gold 2016 "Consider Yourself" — 43 — — — — 2019 "Then Again" — 21 — — — — A Blemish in the Great Light "Flesh and Blood" — — — — — — "Favourite Boy" — 36 — — — — 2020 "Grow into Love" — — — — — — MC: Gold Seasons of Change EP "All at Once" — — — — — — "Jello on My Mind (More Sugar Mix)" — — — — — — Non-album single "You Won't" / "Look Me in the Eyes (Skitstövel)" — — — — — — Seasons of Change EP "Monster" — — — — — — "Seasons of Change" — — — — — — 2021 "How Come My Body" — — — — — —Inwards & Onwards 2022 "Fatal Line" — — — — — —The 1969 Record 2023 "You Can Let Go" — — — — — — Salt "Alco" — — — — — — "Everyone's Moving Out East" — — — — — — "Adore U" — — — — — — Live from the Treehouse 2024 "Can't Stop Loving You" — — — — — — "Loose Ends" — — — — — — Non-album single "Boots of Spanish Leather" — — — — — — 2025 "Back on the Road" — — — — — — "The Message" — — — — — — "Another Woman" — — — — — — "Shadows of Night" — — — — — — The Witcher: Season 4 (Soundtrack from the Netflix Original Series) "—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released.
Other charted songs Year Title Peak chart positions Album BEL(Fl) 2013 "Nerve" 36 Dark Eyes
Music Videos Year Title Director 2012 "Full Circle"Pierre-Luc Racine "Call Me in the Afternoon"Człowiek Kamera 2014 "Judgement"Matt Joycey "No More Losing the War"Człowiek Kamera2015 "Turn Your Love"— "I Can't Figure Out What's Going On"Heston L'Abbé 2016 "Consider Yourself"Devon Portielje and Conner Molander2017 "Hands in the Garden"Agathe Bray-Bourret 2019 "Then Again"Sacha Roy "Flesh and Blood" "Favourite Boy"Philippe Grenier2020 "Look Me in the Eyes (Skitstövel)"— "Monster"—2021 "How Come My Body"— "On & On"Alex Tomlinson "It's True"Michał Biegański "Fxgiving"—2023 "You Can Let Go" Alex Tomlinson "Alco" Marc-André Dupaul "Everyone's Moving Out East" Maïlis
References
External links Official site