MUSIC REVIEW: TIDE LINES – Let’s Make Tonight EP

After monumental success with their debut album, Dreams We Never Lost, Tide Lines  released an EP near the end of 2018. Beautifully carrying over from their debut album, this EP follows its own journey. Instead of following the rural to the urban, Let’s Make Tonight focuses on the journey of dreaming. The album artwork shows an ambiguous scene where the colour tones represent both the warmth of the sunrise and the cool of the sunset, fusing the start and finish of each day together.

The track list follows through with this theme, creating a story that moves day dreams to night dreams:

1. 17 Again
2. Streets of Dreamers
3. Bring the Summer
4. The Rising Moon
5. Watch the Stars
6. Far Side of the World (Live from HebCelt)

“17 Again” carries the same nostalgic feeling as the album before it. The central character of the song wishes to have a night like he did at 17, again. The wish to go back into the past to relive a moment while feeling the spontaneity of making the most of something before it is over, is the epitome of nostalgic song writing.

“Streets of Dreamers” depicts the youth of Scotland dreaming of what their future holds. Robertson repeats that he will “always be there, on the streets of dreamers”, while walking alone, pointing to dreams being subjective to the individual. This is visualised in the solo silhouette on the album artwork. Robertson sings the song dreamingly in a soft tone, making the lyrics entirely convincing.

“Bring the Summer” casts a longing for seeing someone again. The light opening on the guitar brings a fresh, hopeful sound. The song is about wanting to bring the summer, the autumn, and “the years”. This relies on fleeting time, suggesting that the past, present and future can all blend together for a dream.

Right of the bat of wishing for fleeting time, “The Rising Moon” brings uncertainty with the protagonist repeating the words “I’ll never know”. Although, this uncertainty is balanced out by the repeating of “we’re still young”. The rising of the moon symbolises the end of the day, recognised by the wishful words “flying a tune to the rising moon”.

While the songs before it are waiting for something to happen, “Watch The Stars” takes a breather in both tone and tempo. The first line “I took a lot for granted waiting for you girl”,  hones in on the need for reflection. The need to slow down and reflect represents the notion that life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.

The EP ends with a live performance of “The Far Side of the World”. Ending with a live version of their most popular single brings this EP to a satisfying full circle. The dreams have turned into a physical journey where the protagonist has ended up on “the far side of the world”, but he still holds a longing to return.