Trev Lukather + Nic Collins Celebrate New Band, The Effect

Guitarist and producer Trev Lukather admitted on Loudwire Nights Tuesday night (Dec. 5) that his new band, The Effect, started out as an experiment.

“I had a bad last band experience, so I was always like, ‘I can’t be in a band,'” Lukather told host Chuck Armstrong. “It’s too much PTSD. It’s like judging every relationship by your ex-girlfriend or boyfriend. You got to find the right fit.”

Fortunately for Lukather, the experiment of finding the right fit turned out to be better than he could have expected. After coming together with keyboardist Steve Maggiora, frontman Emmett Stang and drummer Nic Collins, Lukather and company created their first song, “Unwanted.”

“When that came out so well, we were like, ‘Okay, we have to really do this.'”

Collins, who joined Lukather for the Loudwire Nights chat, gave the guitarist plenty of credit for things turning out so well.

“We [only] met this year and already it feels like there’s this real, beautiful friendship and love that all four of us have for each other,” Collins said.

“When he sent me the riff of ‘Unwanted,’ I was like, ‘Oh yeah, let’s do this.’ We saw how good it turned out and we were like, well, let’s do another one and then it just kind of snowballed into becoming a real band.”

The Common Bond Trev Lukather and Nic Collins Share

As deep of a connection as Collins and Lukather have with their fellow bandmates, the two of them share a unique bond: Their dads are internationally renowned rock stars.

Trev’s dad is Steve Lukather, founding member and guitarist for Toto, and Nic’s dad is Phil Collins, most well-known for his work as the drummer and lead singer of Genesis as well as for his own solo music.

“I feel like Trev and I have lived the same life,” Collins told Chuck. “There are so many of these weird parallels that we’ve had where we’re just talking about something and it’s like, ‘Oh, you know about that, too’ … I don’t want this to sound like how it sounds, but not a lot of people really know how it is, just growing up in that environment. We’re obviously very privileged people who have been able to grow up in the way that we have…so when Trev and I started talking and seeing how much we relate to and seeing how similar we are in a way, it was a really beautiful thing.”

As Collins opened up more about his relationship with Lukather, he admitted one of the reasons their relationship is so beautiful is because they’re able to be vulnerable about many things that they simply can’t be with other people.

“Nic and I always have our deep chats that will last a very long time,” Lukather added. “I appreciate that and it definitely has bonded us. There is a deep connection there. It’s kind of funny how you can talk to someone and it’s like, we really have experienced a lot of the same things … It’s really almost kind of a comforting feeling in a way, to be like, we understand each other.”

READ MORE: Duff McKagan Says He’s Already Played In His Dream Supergroup

Lukather wasn’t the first son of a rock star that Collins had met and befriended and he admitted when Lukather first reached out to him, he figured their relationship could go one of two ways.

“He’s either going to be a really cool guy or he’s going to be some kind of douche about everything,” he said. “I’m lucky that he was a nice guy.”

Lukather was quick to add his love of Collins to the conversation.

“Nic’s probably one of the most humble, sweetest people. Going on the road at 16, playing stadiums and arenas, you could easily become a massive douche. He was raised right, man. I think we both learned a lot about how to be and not to be.”

What Else Did Trev Lukather and Nic Collins Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

• The best live shows they’ve each experienced as fans
• What they’d be doing if they weren’t creating music
• What “Unwanted” and their latest single, “Something Wrong,” are pointing to for The Effect

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below

Trev Lukather and Nic Collins joined Loudwire Nights on Tuesday, Dec. 5; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand. Stream The Effect’s “Unwanted” and “Something Wrong” at this location and stay up-to-date with everything going on in their world here.