A Year in Music – 2023 –  Jacob Ware (Rapt)
by Killian Laher

How are you? How are things?

I am well thank you, life is giving me its usual generic mix of pleasure, pain, excitement and dullness.

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

I’ve been selfish in terms of consuming music this year. I’ve been focused on finishing album number 5. When I’m deep into writing I hardly listen to music which is terrible..  My ‘day job’ involves hearing music on a daily basis so when I’m home and writing music it’s either my own guitar playing I hear or (beautiful) silence. My highlights in terms of releases would be Slowdive’s Everything is Alive and Damien Jurado’s recent prolific littering of albums!.

I enjoyed a wonderful tour with the mighty French artist Raoul Vignal in September, playing both France and the UK. I am first and foremost a fan of his work so playing with him was surreal. Anyone reading this needs to check him out.

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?

My first thought reading this question is Simon Reynold’s book ‘Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction to its Own Past’, a fascinating read, much of which covers the cycle of genres coming in and out of fashion. I must admit I hadn’t noticed Goth making a comeback.. I spent my formative years listening to extreme metal so for me gothic imagery/musical aesthetics never went away!

Anyone you’d like to see reform/return?

If I could choose a single band to reform it would be The Blue Nile. I think pigs will fly before this happens though. Deerhunter have also gone scarily quiet.

Are you working on another Rapt album?  Anything you can tell us about it?

I am not far off from having album no.5 wrapped up. It is mostly finished in terms of writing, I’m recording it at my usual meticulous and agonisingly slow pace.

I’ve pushed myself in terms of guitar playing this time around, I’ve also abandoned any desire to consider ‘genre’ or what I ‘should be doing’. It is the most sincere thing I’ve recorded to date. I’m hoping it will surface in the middle of next year.