Ring Them Bells brings catharsis in times of crisis

Ring Them Bells brings catharsis in times of crisis

Ring Them Bells has grown from a project for noisy friends to a serious entity that garners great reviews and lots of radio airplay. On their new album "All Kinds of Nightmares", they grapple with a turbulent world - with support from guest singers such as Kira Skov, Camilla Munck, and RebekkaMaria and a Slowdive member.

Several times in recent years, Ring Them Bells members have woken up with a feeling many can recognize: 'Is this really happening?' Whether it was the storming of Capitol Hill, the attack on Ukraine, or the consequences of Corona, the world has seemed completely unreal.

"At the same time, there is a public debate that gives you the feeling that the conversation is breaking down. That people are shouting incredibly loudly at each other," says lead singer and songwriter Johannes Nidam.

But when you are fortunate enough to have a band, you can release the oppressive chaos through three guitars, bass, drums, and vocals. And that is what the members have done on "All Kinds of Nightmares". The album is the culmination of a development where the band's star has shone brighter and brighter - their albums and concerts have consistently received glowing reviews, and in 2021, the track "The Fall" was among the most played on Danish national radio, P6 Beat.

What began as an informal space for a group of respected musicians from the Danish rock and indie scene has become a focused collective; completed by the latest addition, Psyched Up Janis bassist Jakob Jørgensen.

It is on top of this reality - both the one outside in the world and the one inside the band - that "All Kinds of Nightmares" was created. The band has dared to follow the musical and thematic trails of the songs further out into the extremes. From the quiet to the noisy. It is all co-mixed and mastered by Simon Scott from shoegaze legends Slowdive, and it has led to a self-willed reinterpretation of music history's more charred and slightly psychedelic virtues - with drips from, for example, the gloom on Leonard Cohen's "The Future," the dirty blues on The Rolling Stones' "Exile on Main Street," or the gospel touches on Depeche Mode's "Songs of Faith and Devotion."

"We dare to be more sensitive, more serious. We put ourselves more at stake. This also applies to the fact that we have invited other musicians in. It is vulnerable when you let people in, especially those who have such high ambitions as those we have worked with," says Johannes Nidam. This has resulted in songs such as the intimate snapshot "Capitol Hill" with Kira Skov, the doomsday sermon "The Fall" with RebekkaMaria, the dusty closer "Europe Is Sinking" with, among others, Camilla Munck, who is also on the opening track and latest single, the more positively toned love song "Wherever You Go".

In addition to their contributions to the nuances of the songs, the guests illustrate how Ring Them Bells wants to act as musicians and people in a high-tension and individualized time:

"When you deal with something heavy in a collective space, there can be a release, a catharsis," says Johannes Nidam.

The band celebrates "All Kinds of Nightmares" with a release concert at one of Copenhagens’s finest venues, Loppen, on March 10 and follows up the album with a series of concerts.

 

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Facts

Ring Them Bells consists of: Johannes Nidam, Jan Johansen, Moogie Johnson, Jakob Jørgensen, and Johannes Dybkjær Andersson.

The group has previously released the albums Things That Come Slow (2020) and No One's Dead - We're Just Dressed in Black (2015).

Five of the group's singles have been in heavy rotation on P6 Beat. In addition to a large number of club concerts in Denmark and abroad, Ring Them Bells has played festivals such as Øya Festival (Oslo), SPOT Festival, Musik i Lejet, and Smukfest.

Regarding the group's concerts, the press has written, among other things:

"A truly strong live band and perhaps the best we have in Denmark right now?" - GFR

 (5 Stars) – Gaffa (VEGA)
"A scoop [...] a big attraction at the country's venues"

 (5 Stars)  – Fyens Stiftstidende
"A heady experience"

  (5 Stars) – Devilution
"It's no wonder that the Danish band has been on everyone's lips lately"

 "One of Denmark's best live bands" - Side 33

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