The Tide, the Thief & River's End

The Tide, the Thief & River's End is the second studio album by Australian progressive rock band Caligula's Horse. It was released through Welkin Records on October 4, 2013. The album was recorded by Sam Vallen, Dale Prinsse and Zac Greensill at Heaven's Gate Studios in Brisbane. The album was produced by guitarist Sam Vallen.[1]

The Tide, the Thief & River's End
Studio album by Caligula’s Horse
Released	October 4, 2013
Recorded	April 2012 to March 2013 at Heaven’s Gate Studio in Brisbane
Genre	Progressive metal, progressive rock
Length	50:17
Label	Welkin Records
Producer	Sam Vallen
Caligula’s Horse chronology
Colossus (2011) The Tide, the Thief & River's End (2013) Bloom (2015)
Singles from The Tide, the Thief & River's End
"Dark Hair Down" Released: September 22, 2013

Background

In September 2013 it was announced that the band had signed with Welkin Entertainment. Their upcoming sophomore album was reported to be titled The Tide, the Thief & River's End. To coincide with the news the single "Dark Hair Down" premiered along with a music video.[2] The album's progression was chronicled in a series of video diaries that were uploaded to YouTube periodically throughout the recording process between April 2012 and March 2013. Collectively, the videos feature various clips of the band writing, rehearsing, travelling, attending photo shoots and performing live including versions of the songs from "the rough stuff" to the final studio product interspersed with short interviews and interplay between members.[3]

Lyrics and Themes

Vocalists Jim Grey described the album as a "concept [album]…we built the world around". In an interview with Matthew Evans of The AU Review Grey spoke on the general narrative of the album saying that it is "based around two cities" and tells the story "of the journey of a group of people escaping oppression, and seeking a new home free from tyranny." Grey also stated that "the concept and story itself is never explicitly told. There is room for interpretation", in that "the text between the tracks ties it all together".[4]

Track listing

Lyrics and music by Grey and Vallen. Additional music and lyric contributions by Greensill on track 6.[5]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"A Gift to Afterthought"	6:17
2.	"Water's Edge"	7:39
3.	"Atlas"	5:02
4.	"Into the White"	8:19
5.	"Old Cracks in New Earth"	6:30
6.	"Dark Hair Down"	6:03
7.	"Thief"	2:09
8.	"All Is Quiet by the Wall"	8:18
Total length:		50:17

Personnel

Caligula's Horse Jim Grey – vocals Sam Vallen – guitar Zac Greensill – guitar Dave Couper – bass Geoff Irish – drums Production Sam Vallen – producer, engineering, mixing Dale Prinsse – assistant engineer Zac Greensill – assistant engineer Dave Collins – mastering Kelly Meyer – artwork Stephanie Bernard – photography

Additional musicians Holly Terrens – flute on "Into the White" Michelle Wilson – violin on "Water’s Edge" Natasha Ivanovic – violin on "Old Cracks in New Earth" Stefanie Bernard – clarinet on "Water’s Edge" and "Into the White" Sean Thomas – electric piano on "All is Quiet by the Wall" Boy Potts, Dario Lagana, Dave Couper, Geoff Irish, John Grey, Lucas Stone, Mitchell Legg, Sam Grey, Sam Vallen, Sean Thomas, Zac Greensill – various backing vocals

References

1. "The Tide, the Thief & River's End (2013)". caligulashorse.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
2. Solo, Michael (September 22, 2013). "Caligula's Horse sign to Welkin Records, announce new album". ozprog.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
3. "Caligula's Horse - Studio Video Diary #1". youtube.com. April 1, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
4. Evans, Matthew (October 21, 2013). "the AU interview: Jim Grey of Caligula's Horse (Brisbane)". theaureview.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
5. "Caligula's Horse – The Tide, the Thief & River's End". discogs.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.