Australian Cinematic Post-Rock Trio Echotide Announce International Release of Second Album "Into The Half Light"!

Australian post-rock trio Echotide have announced they will re-release their 2017 album Into The Half Light for its 5th anniversary in 2022, as part of the Bird’s Robe Records 10th anniversary series. With a slow-burn introspective sound, Echotide are an Australian cinematic three piece with a dynamic songcraft approach, ranging from delicate and minimalist ambient to an all-encompassing wall-of-sound.

The band was originally formed as a side project for members of progressive metal outfit Arcane, guitarist Michael Gagen & keyboardist Matthew Martin. The original lineup included original Caligula’s Horse drummer Geoff Irish, who featured on the band’s 2012 debut record As Our Floodlights Gave Way To Dawn.

Following the dissolution of Arcane in 2015 and the departure of drummer Geoff Irish to focus on joining Arcane vocalist Jim Grey in Caligula’s Horse, the profile of Echotide lifted further with the original 2017 release of their second album Into The Half Light.

Prospective fans need go no further than the epic title track which opens the record to hear the might of the band on full display. It’s powerful, progressive, cathartic, ethereal and emotional all at once.

The lead single Her Back To The Sun sports a wonderful swing amidst its uplifting chordal passages, blending Sam Mead’s excellent groove on drums with Gagen & Martin’s sprinkling melodic tones.

Watch share: Echotide - 'Her Back To The Sun' [Official Music Video] - YouTube

The band on the album: "Seven symphonies for ends, those loose and neatly tied. For half lights, for dawn, for dusk. For tape delay. For our families. For our friends. For headlights over the road. For childhood memories and the sheer terror of growing up. For Jane (RIP, we hope you would have loved this record). For the late nights of loops and feedback that coat the walls of our particle board home. For some things never change. For each other. For the distance. For the road."

Guitarist Michael Gagen reflects on the period that led to the record: "Our second album, a new drummer, a successful crowdfunding campaign, our first film clip. It really felt like this album was the solidification of everything we had done so far as a group. New drummer Sam's presence on the album is distinct and special, he found a perfect line between paying respect to songs our previous drummer had written and bringing his own unique feel to it.

The writing of Into The Half Light came at the tail end of a period of turbulence and uncertainty, losing our first drummer, going through the dissolution of other bands we were involved with, and our desire to write something older, wiser, and more aware of its faculties. Where 'floodlights...' is a beloved first child, Into The Half Light is the bright one, the one that I hope that in 20 years time that more people have found and connected with."

Listen share: Echotide - 'Into The Half Light' [Full Album] - YouTube

Bird's Robe Records Director Mike Solo adds: "I’ve known Mikey for years through all his various musical projects – from Arcane to Echotide to Hazards of Swimming Naked and Soma, I have so much respect for what he has achieved and continues to produce musically. Plus he is one of the most lovely guys I’ve had the good fortune of meeting on my many musical journeys up north to Queensland. To me, he’s an essential part of the vibrant and collaborative Brisbane & wider Queensland progressive/post-rock music scene, which I greatly and enjoy and admire.

As we enter 2022 following a long period of upheavel and turbulence, it felt like the right time to re-introduce this record to people around the world...after all, we are stumbling ‘into the half light’ blinking and anxious about the future. But all you need to do is listen to a life-affirming record like this and know that reassurance is there.

I’m extremely proud and excited to welcome Echotide into the Bird’s Robe family, though truth be told, they’ve felt like that for a long time already."

Into The Half Light will be released internationally on Friday 21 January 2022.