Bridging the gap between indie and emo comes naturally to ultra-cool Welsh ghouls The Nightmares. So too, it turns out, does crafting worlds that hold a mirror up to ourselves and ask important questions of love and life…
‘Punk’ probably wouldn’t be the thing that springs to mind when you listen to The Nightmares for the first time. The Newport quintet deal in a synth-laden emo-meets-indie sound, and they’ve even got some songs with no guitars at all. Despite not being particularly in-your-face, though, it turns out the band – vocalist/guitarist Adam Parslow, vocalist/keyboardist Eleanor Coburn, guitarist Craig Preece, bassist Benjamin T. Mainwaring and drummer James Mattock – owe their existence to the vibrant punk scene of their Welsh hometown.
“We all met through our local punk venue, Le Pub, in Newport,” frontman Adam begins. “We’d been going to gigs there for years, and it was a shared love of the same kinds of bands that brought The Nightmares together. We didn’t have any grand ideas other than to make music we could be proud of.”
“Le Pub is known for the hardcore and punk scene, but we all love bands like The Cure, Interpol and Bright Eyes,” Benjamin adds. “With The Nightmares, we wanted to bridge that indie world with darker punk stuff like Misfits and Alkaline Trio. Our sound is an amalgamation of those two worlds.”
Speaking of worlds, it’s The Nightmares’ visible desire to dabble in ambitious world-building to complement their music that’s helping them stand out. Looking to the likes of My Chemical Romance and how they “don’t just give you an album, but a whole world around it”, The Nightmares’ storytelling is a key facet of their excellent new album, Fire In Heaven.
An emotional collection of songs that’s both dark and packed with heart, the record centres around themes of love and self-acceptance, with a character-driven narrative underpinning everything from the artwork to its cinematic videos.
“It might sound big and dramatic, but it feels right for the music that we give it a full story,” Adam says of the band’s grand approach.
“Like with the icy blue colour scheme of the album and how it reflects the tone of the music, how we present everything is important to us,” Benjamin continues. “We want to build a world around us that other people can feel like they belong in. We’re inviting the listener into more than just songs – we want them to see the world through our eyes.”
It’s bold stuff, definitely, but The Nightmares have already proven they’ve got both the musical ability and knack for storytelling to back up their mission statement. Having won plenty of new fans supporting the likes of Creeper and Funeral For A Friend in recent times, the band are heading out with fellow dramatists Save Face later in the year, with summer festival dates also booked in.
They’ve got a busy 12 months ahead, but ask The Nightmares what would bring them the most satisfaction, and it’s the legacy they hope to leave, rather than a big bucket-list achievement, that’s the answer.
“I’d like this album to be something that people carry forward with them in their lives,” Benjamin concludes. “Fire In Heaven asks a lot of overarching questions about love and our existence, and I hope people really buy into that and see the depth that’s there in our music and in Adam’s lyrics.
“Hopefully, these songs will help people, and allow them to ask some questions of their lives.”
Fire In Heaven is out now via Venn. The Nightmares tour the UK from March 28.
This interview originally appeared in the spring 2025 issue of Kerrang!.
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