Musician Paul Prior hails from Co. Longford. Moving through musical worlds of classical, club, and cabaret, his oeuvre spans the full length and breadth of the musical spectrum.
From writing for the RTÉ National Symphony, to slaying as house pianist for the acclaimed Dublin Fringe-winning ueer cabaret Egg, to self-releasing albums of electronic music under his solo project An_id3al_machin3, he's a creative force to be reckoned with...
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To celebrate the release of his new An_id3al_machin3 album The Reconciliation of Contraries, we asked Paul for his choice cultural picks...
FILM
I recently got to see a preview of Jonathan Glazer’s Zone of Interest at the Lighthouse in Dublin and it absolutely floored me. I’d heard all the buzz from the arthouse darlings about it but didn’t know much of the plot beyond it being a World War II movie. When a few friends invited me to go see it I happily went along, not knowing I was about to have the breath ripped from my lungs in what ended up being my most emotionally intense cinema experience since Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. Cannot recommend it enough.
MUSIC
As a musician I'm always tearing through albums, but one that’s stuck with me since I first listened a few months ago is Starf**ker by Slayyyter. It’s camp girly-pop that goes heavy on the club elements; full of catchy hooks and bouncy beats. It leans into the trope of the famous It-girl-who-lives-for-the-party in a really fun way. I think a huge thing I’ve learned about art over the last few years is that something doesn’t have to be serious or high-brow to be enjoyable. Sometimes you just wanna sing something brainless and strut an invisible catwalk...
BOOK
I recently re-read House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski, a horror novel which is (kind of) about a family that one day realise their house is marginally larger on the inside than the out, the weirdness grows as they discover a labyrinth of stretching corridors and staircases haunted by a guttural, bestial, distant (for now) groaning. I absolutely adore any kind of eldritch, Lovecraftian horror and this book nails that feeling you get when what's terrifying you is beyond your comprehension. It plays with the form of the novel in a really meta way, jumping between timelines and perspectives to stoke a deep, pit-of-your-stomach dread instead of cheap jumpscares. Fab read.
THEATRE
Funny you should mention plays! The Scene + Heard Festival is back in Smock Alley this month and there's so many great productions you should go see! I’m Musical Director for a group called The Bum Notes and we’re gonna be improvising a whole musical - can’t wait! Goblins Goblins Goblins is bringing their solo show Cornucopia Jones Wants You To Succeed! and I can’t wait to see some unhinged chaos firsthand. Síomha McQuinn has her new show Secrets Secrets Shh! And anyone who saw Coffee Kid last year will know it’s not to be missed. Padraig Dooney will be tearing down the stage with Shelf (starring Amy Hughes) in a musical unravelling of one woman’s sanity. I’m also playing a small role in a show called We Regret To Inform You, an ode to the rejection letter helmed by David McGovern with Anna Jacobs, Pea Dinneen and Andrea Williams. There’s so much talent in Dublin and festivals like this really make it known; GO SEE MORE SHOWS!
TV
I've been telling everyone in my life to watch this HBO show called Scavengers Reign. It’s an animated sci-fi show about inter-planetary freight shippers that get marooned on a wild and unforgiving planet. Honestly, move over Avatar, this is the best depiction an alien eco-system; the planet truly feels like a wild frontier of unforgiving savagery. The creators did such an incredibly believable job of capturing symbiosis between different species that at times it feels like watching BBC’s Planet Earth on acid. Special shout-out to Nicholas Snyder’s score, his use of unconventional sounds and instruments goes a long way towards your immersion in the otherworldliness of the show.
GIG
I have to say, for gigs, The Racket Space in Phibsborough have been on fire with the bookings lately. I got to see Jensen Interceptor, a really versatile techno DJ with an incredible ear for floor-filling rhythms just before Christmas. Then maybe two weeks later, they brought Djrum who had me in awe as he perfectly mixed a full two-hour vinyl set (mixing in-key no less). Then another two weeks on, they brought Iglooghost, a genre-bending sonic pioneer of a producer who I'd always wanted to see live but assumed I’d have to travel for...
ART
I'm always captivated by the visceral immediacy of Francis Bacon’s work. I did a piano recital in the Hugh Lane Gallery a few years back and I remember seeing a small version of Study after Velázquez’s Portrait of Pope Innocent X, (the one with the screaming pope in a chair), on a postcard or something in the gift shop. I’d never seen his work before and it, quite literally, stopped me in my tracks and made me pay attention to it. I often find myself drawn to work that makes you confront something uncomfortable and Bacon really is the epitome of that philosophy.
RADIO/PODCAST
I'm gonna have to shout-out the entirety of Dublin Digital Radio for this one. I have my own show on the station (Glitches & Ripples if you’re interested, Glitches if you’re nasty) and the community that they’ve built and continue to foster is nothing short of incredible. Tune in at any stage and you’re guaranteed to hear someone sharing music that they’re excited and passionate about. There’s too many good shows to count but sone of my favourites include Kate Butler, Herzbow, Getting Away With It, The Drum & The Drumless, Mittelschmerz BPM-t, and Desire Path. Honestly, throw a dart at the schedule and you’ll get an hour (or two) with someone who has a genuine love and care for the art form.
TECH
There's this website called Queering The Map which never fails to move me. It’s a map of the world where queer people have geo-tagged the locations of specific memories they hold dear. Ranging from deeply intimate confessions to hilariously scathing remarks, it serves as a crucial reminder that queer people exist all over the world. Equally, it shows that love is all around us; the bridge you pass on your commute is where two lovers shared a first kiss, or that park beside your local is where someone came out to their family. A beautfiul thing for sure.
"There is queer history everywhere."
— The New York Times (@nytimes) June 25, 2023
Queering the Map is a digital atlas that invites LGBTQ people to tag any point on earth with an anonymous message describing what the location means to them. It has collected over half a million intimate recollections. https://t.co/p1d9ye6qkk
THE NEXT BIG THING...
Maybe I'm being naively optimistic, but I think I’m feeling a shift in the culture towards authenticity in media. I’m personally sick to the teeth of trojan-horse style media that’s really just advertising masquerading as entertainment; movies that come from a production line of franchises on franchises with absolutely nothing to say beyond "Buy our merchandise!" or the most watered down version of inclusivity one could imagine (Yes, I’m looking at you Disney-Marvel).
People want to see a move towards real community-focused things; supporting local artists, engaging in creative initiatives themselves, moving away from consumerism, and really valuing the time spent with one another as the most important thing we have in life. Am I crazy? Absolutely. Am I right? I hope.
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The Reconciliation of Contraries is out now - listen to more from Paul Prior and an_id3al_machin3 here.
