Hot on the heels of ‘On A High Ledge’, this is ‘Ratking’.
Boston Manor have released their second new song in two days.
Have a listen to ‘Ratking’ below:
Vocalist Henry Cox had this to say about what the track represents:
“‘Ratking’ is about our inability to empathise with each other and work together as a collective. Even those who consider themselves tolerant should look at their inbuilt biases. I think our inability to show compassion to people who think differently to us is what is holding us back. We’ve seen this so much over the last few years.
“Just because someone voted differently to you, it does not automatically make them a bad person or invalidate their feelings. Even if someone is a hateful person, don’t deny that person the opportunity to change. We need to help each other to grow rather than trying to cancel, shout down, ridicule or attack each other.”
The song follows the release of ‘On A High Ledge’, a deeply personal song with a stark and powerful video to match:
Henry described why the song is so close to home for him:
“When I was seven years old I saw a man commit suicide by jumping off the bus station in Blackpool a few feet in front of me.
“Growing up, I always rejected the idea of what a ‘boy’ should do; I never liked football, I thought fighting was stupid and at age six I spray-painted my bike pink.”
“I’ve always hated the term ‘man up’. I think it is such a damaging thing to say to little boys. A big problem that we have to tackle is men’s inability to seek help; it’s this ‘man up culture’ that is baked into young men from a young age that makes them think – it’s wrong to cry, it’s wrong to share your feelings and being vulnerable is weak.”
“The biggest killer of young men today is suicide. Obviously, mental health support in the UK and most of the world is not what it should be, and mental health issues affect everyone – not just men. But I wanted to write a song dedicated to that man who died when I was young.”
“I hope, as a society, we can teach little boys being born now that being sad is okay. Strangely, the day after we wrote this song, one of the guys in the band was driving home and saw a man on a bridge over the motorway about to jump. He quickly pulled off the road and managed to talk to the guy until an ambulance came. A strange coincidence, but I really hope that man is doing better now.”
In the UK, you can contact Samaritans freely and anonymously for support. Find out how here.
Both songs appear on the band’s upcoming album ‘GLUE’ which is set for release on May 01 through Pure Noise Records.
They have also announced a UK headline tour, with support from Trophy Eyes – check out the list of tour dates below.
APRIL
30 – SOUTHAMPTON Engine Rooms
MAY
02 – BRISTOL SWX
03 – NOTTINGHAM Rescue Rooms
04 – GLASGOW The Garage
05 – MANCHESTER Academy II
07 – LONDON Electric Brixton
08 – BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute II
09 – LEEDS Stylus