Whipping Boy--Heartworm--A Fire That's Wild And Glorious

They built portholes for Bono, So he could gaze...

Whipping Boy was a great but somewhat unsuccessful Irish band from the 1990's. Heartworm, their sole major label album, was critically acclaimed, but did not sell enough in the eyes of Columbia to merit a followup.



Barefoot And Blind

 Which is too bad. They did put out a fantastic self-finance eponymous album , but internal strife and lack of commercial success led to an implosion. A tragedy for them and all music fans, as they deserved a much better fate. Because folks, there is a world of contemporary Irish music beyond Bono and the Cranberries that more people need to know about. Whipping Boy was one of the greatest Irish bands ever, and when they sank, most of the world didn't notice the ripple.

You Lead Me Astray

I picked up Heartworm in a used Cd shop years ago for $3.99. You can probably get a copy of it now for under a dollar through Amazon, a bargain that I would encourage you to not overlook. Their second album is currently a rarity. It just seems crazy that a label would drop a band that had a relatively successful album with hit singles. You probably could make the argument that Whipping Boy are not exactly a singles band. Their music is dark, moody, passionate, literary, touching on difficult subject matter. But with a very Irish sensibility--there is very much a point of origin for these songs. Their musical style is heavily influenced by the shoegazer movement. Vocalist Feargus McKee has a talking singing delivery and a commanding presence at the mike, not unlike a Hibernian Lou Reed. Rounding out their lineup is Paul Page (guitar), Myles McDonnell (bass,backing vocals), and Colm Hassett (drums).

The album begins with the huge single Twinkle. Poundingly loud and dreamlike, it is a dark and jaded love anthem. The second tune is the bittersweet warts n all nostalgic narrative of When We Were Young. "The first time you got drunk, you drank Pernod and dry cider, smashed a window in as police came round the corner." Darkness and brooding thoughts cast a dark cloud across this album. Struggling through the difficulties of everyday life and resulting deteriorating relationships are a recurring theme. Paul Page's guitar work is a revelation on this album, huge explosive bursts of power at times, then fading into quiet elegant restraint. Reminiscent of a classic band like The Who (I'm reminded of Quadrophenia), Whipping Boy are masters of dynamics.

Another single from this album was the gripping, revelatory We Don't Need Nobody Else, which is as much a short story as a novel. The song received criticism for misogynist lyrics--I personally don't see it that way. It tells a story, and highlights the grim irony of claiming to love someone yet turning around and being the agent of their harm. Destroy what you love, including yourself. What is happening in the song is that the narrator betrays himself by demonstrating that he is not the person he imagines himself to be. By no means is this any celebration of violence against women.

More accurate is that this is a gut wrencher of an album, full of cynical opinions, withering self-criticism, abject sadness, human failing. Uncompromising. Tripped starts out slowly and builds with a crescendo to a powerful conclusion. "I've lost my faith in all things good, just like mother said I would. She tripped, she had nothing left to give." The Honeymoon Is Over Is Another tale of the cruelties we perpetrate in relationships. A bit of a contrast is the dreamy stream of consciousness of Personality with lovely string accompaniment. Another winner is the pounding Welleresque shoegaze pop of Blinded. The beautiful noise intensity of Fiction is very much in the vein of  Kiwi eardrum destroyers Bailter Space.

Now I Know The Distance Between Us

The album conclude with the epic string filled Morning Rise. Starting with steady gravitas, the song builds gradually to a sad but hopeful finish. "I look down and all I see, is nothing staring back at me". Puzzlingly, there is a song appended to the end entitled  A Natural. It's basically a spoken word disquisition on mental illness. A sad and strange ending to a special album. Overall, Heartworm is a sonically amazing set of songs with difficult challenging subject matter, an introspective and poetic look at the difficulties of everyday life.Whipping Boy made quite a statement here, an album that can stand toe to toe with any of the more celebrated classics of the 90's. Yet relatively unappreciated and forgotten. Don't you make the same mistake. Hopefully their third album will be reissued someday soon. But more about that in a future post.