Bones Park Rider: The Comfort Of Nightmares
Hepcat Records
CD | Stream
Sheffield-based veterans Bones Park Rider release an album of searing passion, integrity and musicianship. Dark, subversive and unsettling, The Comfort Of Nightmares holds up a mirror to humanity’s soul.
The result is a hugely accomplished, high-octane, guitar-based barrage which combines the gravity of modern alt rock with the urgency of old-school punk, the cerebral with the emotional. Opener and lead single, Poison Garden, is a bleak, despairing tale of self-destruction, illustrating the songwriting strength evident throughout the album:
‘It’s like taking a walk in a poison garden,
Sacred and profane,
It’s like taking what’s good out of your soul,
Supplanting it with pain,
Time and again.’
According to the band, the album ‘aims a hefty swipe at the monsters we deserve.’ Someone Else’s Problem is no exception, shining a light on the ‘I’m alright Jack’ rhetoric which pervades much of our current political, barroom and social media debate, while sounding more apt than ever in the light of recent events:
‘We’re not short of hardship, pain or hungry mouths to feed,
Someone has to pay the price for the Western lives we lead,
With our decadence and greed.’
Bones Park Rider’s refreshingly unapologetic willingness to tackle our socio-economic mire head-on without resorting to mere sloganeering, sets them apart from many of their peers. With Andy Walker’s impassioned vocals to the fore, Truth Will Out has the feel of a rousing alt-rock anthem but aims its ire at the thoroughly unglamorous target of angry little Englanders, while Down On The Lowside visits the breeding ground for those miscreants and indoctrinated haters, the squalid slums ignored and neglected by those who make the tough choices from their ivory towers:
‘Like the shadow of a silhouette, or a wasp in winter, they accept,
The inevitable, no regrets, it’s just the way it is.
There’s a thousand initiatives to keep the desperate in a waking sleep,
A slow death on a quicksand street, in squalid dynasties.’
Dead On Time is a statement of intent, a blistering, venom-filled slice of punk anger complete with catchy chorus, as Bones Park Rider firmly nail their colours to the mast: ‘We’re all just running round in endless circles, making rich men richer, that’s the truth.’ And at the other end of the scale, Soldier Boy is haunting, cryptic and quite stunning as it builds magnificently to its unsettling conclusion. No spoilers here though, it really is worth finding out for yourself. Although Drinkers’ Lament could be the title of a rollicking, boozy folk song, in reality it provides little emotional respite other than the unreliable crutch alcohol offers to a life of dead-end jobs and disappointment:
‘Sad bargains circle their chairs,
They’re trapped in Eternal Halloween,
By terrors yet unseen,
But they’re just too scared to dream,
Prefer the comfort of nightmares.’
Further highlights are provided by two songs which fall outside the ‘political’ umbrella, dealing instead with more intimate relationships. The poetically atmospheric October, a rather beautiful tale of romantic obsession and dangerous liaisons, again illustrates the lyrical strength of this most quotable of albums:
‘We walk golden carpets,
Of dead fallen leaves,
The only observers,
Black wings on the breeze,
Our nocturnal haunts,
Remain bitter sweet,
October will come.’
Femme Fatale, on the other hand, is something of a departure, as we’re treated to an adrenaline rush of gothic punk musical theatre. Edgy, spooky and lots of fun. All of which leaves the conceptual and analogous The Wildhunt / When The Devil Knows Your Name, as Bones Park Rider veer into metal territory, bringing this remarkable album to a scintillating close.
Intelligent and erudite, ferocious and challenging, The Comfort Of Nightmares is serious but highly listenable. David Wilkes’ thunderous guitars, the relentless rhythm section of Clive Hoey’s bass and Rob Shapiro’s drums and Walker’s emotive voice, which was made to deliver those fantastic lyrics, coalesce to give the impression of a band at the peak of its creative powers, incredibly potent but not without subtlety. A wonderful melding of music and meaning, this album may have been too late to feature when the alternative gongs were handed out, but it’s right up there with the best 2025 had to offer.
Bones Park Riders Links: Website | Facebook
Photo: Kevin Wells
All words by Robin Boardman. More writing from Robin for Louder Than War can be found at his author’s archive.
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