Midwaves Breaks Unveil Debut Album 'Echo. Tide. Awake.'

Ruling Aotearoa New Zealand's rock radio airwaves ever since they announced themselves at the start of this decade, the opening moments of Midwaves Breaks' new debut album Echo. Tide. Awake. have a monumental feeling, like the theme to 2001 A Space Odyssey ('Also Sprach Zarathustra' by Strauss to be precise). Finalists for Te Manu Taki Rakapioi o te Tau | Best Rock Artist in 2024, the Tauranga-based duo of Bruce Conlon and Paul Russell (Supergroove) have a shared history which runs deep, all the way back to Lynfield College in fact, and later with Eight at the turn of the millennium, so this record could be considered a work many years in the making indeed.

Coaxing a massive scale sound from guitar, drums and strategically deployed electronics on their 13 track opus, Echo. Tide. Awake. was entirely written, recorded, and self-produced by the band, "in the spare room of a farmhouse, overlooking the Bay of Plenty coastline." They resist the temptation to overload the record with earlier radio hits — only three recent singles are present — treating fans to a generosity of fresh anthems.

Midwaves Breaks' love for high energy and impassioned alt-rock positively radiates from these tunes. The pair's interlocking, ever-shifting dynamism propel their choruses stratospheric, plus they've included a handful of gentle cinematic interludes which hint at coastal setting of the recording. Case in point is 'Chasing Euphoria', in which power-pop catchiness and explosive riff-power balance out and amplify the song's melancholic musings, while 'Impossible Heart' makes almost IDM moves with squelching synths and pounding robo-rhythms.

Wisely concluding their debut with oceanic post-rock ballad 'And,Now', showing they have even more up their sleeves, the next step for Midwave Breaks is their four date album launch tour. Grip Echo. Tide. Awake. on vinyl LP / compact disc at your friendly local record store, or peruse the merch table at the following dates...

"This album is a real line in the sand for us, as we’ve been able to explore a full dynamic range of ideas across a body of work, and we can’t wait to bring that journey to the stage and experience it live with our friends and fans." - Paul Russell

Midwave Breaks
Echo. Tide. Awake. Album Release Tour

Friday 6th November - Moon Bar, Wellington w/ Courtnay & The Unholy Reverie, Van Brookes
Friday 20th November - Totara St, Tauranga w/ Courtnay & The Unholy Reverie, Not Exact*
Friday 27th November - Double Whammy Bar, Auckland w/ The Response, NoPilot
Friday 4th December - Rolling Stone, Christchurch w/ The Response, The Rainfall

Tickets on sale HERE via UTR
*Tauranga tickets on sale HERE

'Echo.Tide.Awake.' is out today on major streaming platforms.