"Ruin Songs" by Ric Bower

Back in the Summer of 2022, I asked Ric if he’d like to write some songs about the ruined buildings featured in my book “Sheffield in Ruins” (published November 2022). A sort of mini soundtrack to the book, if you like. He’d already penned a song about the ganister miners of Sheffield back in May (“Ganister Miner’s Lament) and by the time of the book’s publishing, he’d written and recorded another 5 songs. As RepoMen, we’d written “King of the Tunnel” about Sheffield’s Megatron, giving a total of seven songs. All of this culminated in a performance of the songs at the Red Lion pub in Sheffield on Wednesday 31st May, 2023, with Ric ably supported by fellow Batman’s Treaty guitarist Tommy Binks, following a book talk by myself at Sheffield’s Central Library the same evening.

After the performance, it came to my attention that not only had he written the songs, he’d also recorded them. Listening to the songs, scattered across his very low-key Bandcamp site he used for stock-piling his song ideas, it very quickly became apparent that (like all of Ric’s songs) they were meticulously researched, beautifully crafted and well-recorded. And that, outside of our band’s endeavours (RepoMen and Batman’s Treaty), Ric had truly found his voice as a solo artist. Thus, it became very clear that these songs deserved a posthumous “official release”.

So here they are, as part of the mini album “Ruin Songs” (Phantom Power Records – PPR023); seven intimate vignettes about the bricks and mortar of these Sheffield buildings and the importance they played for the human-beings associated with them; the grave diggers of Loxley Chapel (It’s Our Own Graves We’re Digging), members of the congregation of Middlewood Church (We Are Not Sacred), the ganister and fireclay miners of the Loxley Valley (Ganister Miner’s Lament), the clock tower of the old Courthouse/former town hall building (Town Hall Clock), the workers at William Stone’s brewery (Wm Stones), Woollens’ Signs on Love Street (Time O’ The Signs) and Sheffield’s Victorian culvert over the River Sheaf, a.k.a. Megatron (King Of The Tunnel).

Thanks to Rachel Bower, Ric’s wife, for her support with the project and James Hughes (RepoMen drummer) for the beautifully designed sleeve.

Denzil RepoMen, July 2024

Ruin Songs by Ric Bower:

1. It’s Our Graves We’re Digging
2. We Are Not Sacred
3. Ganister Miner’s Lament
4. Town Hall Clock
5. Wm Stones
6. Time O’ The Signs
7. King of the Tunnel (by RepoMen)

Hailing from Sheffield, the post-punk four-piece guitar-combo take their name from Alex Cox's 80's US cult flick 'Repoman'. It's easy to hear the ghost of The Undertones not to mention the guitar progressions of The Buzzcocks in their sound, but in truth a myriad of influences infuse their sound, although a definite 80s feel is the glue that binds everything they do together.

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