Shockline

Cologne, Germany

Tides

ElectronicInstrumental

Behind the Music

The name of the chapter “Jail Without Bars” is a strong and impressive metaphor. In this chapter, the story of Mndolwa and his desperation really moves us. In our track, we try to capture his state of mind between hope for a better life and the danger and fear he encounters on his journey.

When naming our song “Tides,” we looked for something that symbolizes the ever-changing circumstances and situations that people have to cope with at sea. On one hand, we wanted to recreate the feeling of fear and threat in a dramatic atmosphere and on the other, we wanted to convey something bright and hopeful while still including melancholic glimpses.

Shockline
About Shockline

In 2011, German producer duo Shockline had their first ever track, “Maya Bay,” uploaded to several promotion channels on YouTube. By the turn of 2012, they had finished work on their debut EP “Free Minds” and were signed to Dooh! Records. Big promoters like MrSuicideSheep helped spread the word throughout the melodic dubstep/chillstep and liquid drum and bass scene to help Shockline rise from no-name status to a known artist of the genre. Several releases of single tracks and the compilation album “Free Releases” were then followed by a creative break until 2018. 

Their comeback single “Riven” was to mark a new chapter in Shockline’s history. According to the duo, the break they took not only brought back their inspiration, but boosted it, and brought back the magic of working together. Their hunger for ever-greater melodies and thicker soundscapes is still a driving force in their work. That’s what makes Nicolas Kaiser (piano, vocals and production) and David Nienhaus (guitar, vocals and production) stand out in a vast landscape of talented producers and artists. More releases are planned for 2020.

Winner of the 2021 Scripps Howard Award for Excellence in Innovation in Journalism

The Journalism behind the Music

All music in this project is based on The Outlaw Ocean, a New York Times Best-Selling book by Ian Urbina that chronicles lawlessness at sea around the world. This reporting touches on a diversity of abuses ranging from illegal and overfishing, arms trafficking at sea, human slavery, gun running, intentional dumping, murder of stowaways, thievery of ships and other topics.

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