A Year in Music – 2023 – Paul Page (ex-Whipping Boy)
by Killian Laher

How are you? How are things?

I am good Killian, thanks. Hard to believe how quickly that last year has passed!

Do you think it’s been a good year for music? What were your highlights?

Yeah, it’s been a pretty good year I would say. Got to see some really memorable shows – Stars in Whelans, the Raveonettes in Opium, Arrivalists in Smock Alley. The Weyes Blood show in Vicar Street was spectacular – she was really amazing.

Some great albums too – old favourites like Sufjan Stevens, Slowdive and Sigur Ros didn’t disappoint with their latest releases. A couple of new discoveries for me – a band called the Bathers have just released a truly brilliant album ‘Sirenesque’. Saw their music described somewhere as a mix of Tom Waits and the Blue Nile & that’s pretty accurate. Also loved the warm, nostalgic jangle of ‘Bunny’ by Beach Fossils. A little bit of shoegaze in there too.

My obsession with ambient music continues – got into it in a big way during the pandemic and am always on the hunt for new stuff. Two albums in particular I loved in 2023: ‘Atlas’ by Laurel Halo and ‘Romantic Piano’ by Gia Margaret.  Some great records released on the local scene too – Arrivalists, Lankum, the Murder Capital & Hilary Woods all released fine new albums. And the best new band of 2023 was Cardinals from Cork. Watch out for them in 2024.

Music seems to be on an endless cycle of comebacks – with goth making something of a resurgence this year. What do you think about that?

I didn’t realise Goth had made a comeback! I am obviously old… and out of touch. To be honest, it’s a little concerning that many of the biggest live acts today are bands that have been around since I was a kid. Or bands that split up, and have reformed in the last few years. Nostalgia is big business it would seem. There haven’t been too many bands since Arctic Monkeys that have really exploded onto the scene and captured the imagination of younger music fans. Don’t get me wrong – lots of great young bands making fantastic music, but they all seem to reach a certain level.  The biggest live draws are acts that have been on the go for a long, long time.

Anyone you’d like to see reform/return?

If you had asked me that question this time last year, I would have said without hesitation, The Smiths. Now, with the sad passing of Andy Rourke earlier this year, I am not so sure. They were one of those bands where all four members were integral to their sound. They had a really unique chemistry; take any one of that band away, and it is not the Smiths anymore.

I would love to see the Cocteau Twins reform. All three original members are still involved in music to some degree; they have such an incredible back catalogue of albums & EPs – would love to see them play live again.

I’m greatly enjoying your blog posts about the Whipping Boy, are you enjoying sharing your memories?

I do enjoy it, but it feels like a lot of pressure in a way that is hard to explain. In many ways, I feel more exposed and open than I did when I was playing music in front of an audience!

I am not a writer – never did any formal training or study, in fact, I never went to college at all. I left school after the Leaving Cert, so I always feel that pressure to try and write as well as I can. So I agonise over it a bit more than I really should. I want to represent the band as well and as accurately as my memory & modest writing skills will allow.  I don’t find it easy to do, but I am surprised how much I actually recall from what in many ways, is just this blur of noise, dry ice and madness. That whole period of my life – it feels like I am writing about someone else in many ways. But it is good to document it, because as the aging process inevitably takes its toll, more and more of those memories will recede, and will eventually be lost completely.

Any more plans for any Whipping Boy reissues?

A lot of the momentum and energy around the reissue of ‘Heartworm’ has been lost I am afraid. The band saw very little return for all the effort and hard work put in for the ‘Heartworm’ reissue – I know this surprises people as the perception was it did really well, breaking into the top 5 in the Irish album charts. But the reality is, that the band made very little money from the whole endeavour. That comes as no great surprise to us – it’s the music business after all. So understandably, there is no real appetite to devote time & effort to try to drive any further reissues – I would like to think it would happen, but it becomes less and less likely as time passes by, which is a shame really.