“We’re f*cking destined to be metalheads!” Inside The Scratch’s new album, Pull Like A Dog

If Pull Like A Dog is your introduction to The Scratch, you’ll be unsurprised to learn the Dublin folk-rock quartet formed from the ashes of a metal band, Red Enemy, in 2016. Today’s breakneck single sounds like System Of A Down covering Ace Of Spades, with a power-metal solo and the thump of the cajón adding to this rampant experiment in folk-metal overstimulation.

“Having a metal background helps when it comes to organising the chaos,” acknowledges Daniel ‘Lango’ Lang (cajón, percussion, lead vocals), speaking to Kerrang! alongside Cathal McKenna (bass/backing vocals) and Gary Regan (guitar/backing vocals). “When we started, trying to write simple songs was the big hurdle, initially. When we started pulling from our metal roots, as it were, that felt more natural and intuitive.”

Between band practice and Lango’s trip to see Turnstile, three-quarters of The Scratch found time to tell K! about the impetus behind the single, leaning into their heavy heritage, and why Irish artists are inspiring them to keep forging their own path…

The phrase ‘Close your eyes, and pull like a dog’ was coined by Irish rowing duo Gary and Paul O’Donovan at the Rio 2016 Olympics. What was it about those words that resonated with you, to the point where it’s now the title of your third album?
Cathal McKenna: “When you're starting out, you don’t know what the overarching theme of all these songs is going to be. It's been a heavy year, so [I liked] the idea that at the end of the day, it's actually quite simple. You put the head down, you fucking pull away, and something comes out of it.”
Gary Regan: “There's a nice point of perseverance with the term, as well. In the boxing world, they say something similar: ‘Bite down on your gum shield.’ It’s the same with Pull Like A Dog – just fucking get the head down and persevere.”

Did it feel particularly resonant this year, or is it more an ode to the mindset that’s underpinned your whole journey as The Scratch?
Daniel ‘Lango’ Lang: “More so this year, because we lost a member [Jordan O’Leary] late last year, and it was a turbulent period for us. It was one of those ‘grit your teeth’ moments. Plough on, and see where it goes.”

How did this song come to be so much heavier than the majority of what we heard on your first two records?
Lango: “Initially, we were very much an acoustic band with a cajón and acoustic guitars. On the second album, [heavier sounds] started to make their way in, but we didn't really know how to make it work. Since then, we've been working on the instruments and trying to modify things, so we can pivot between super-soft acoustic stuff and really heavy stuff. This time around, we had all our ducks in a row, on the production front. It's what we always wanted, but we've only now figured out how to make it work.”
Cathal: “There's always been that raucous energy in the band… on this album, we wanted to fucking play a riff. Gladrags came to Dock [Conor Dockery, guitar/backing vocals] in a dream. There was an energy when Gary came in, ‘Let's not fucking overthink this.’ If we want to play at a million miles an hour, we're going to do it.”

Lango, yourself and Dock used to be in a metal band called Red Enemy until 2016. Nine years into the future, do you now find yourself resonating with some of the same reasons that once made you want to be a heavy band?
Lango: “Towards the end of Red Enemy, we were ready to not listen to metal for a while. We got into anything from folk to techno, and started pulling from those influences, but as time went on, we started drifting back towards metal. We [used to be] so analytical about everything and hard to please, and now we just get excited about the overall vibe or feeling. I think we're fucking destined to be metalheads!”
Gary: “It’s ingrained in us.”

What helped you reconnect with metal again?
Gary: “Loathe’s latest single [Gifted Every Strength]. The production alone is so raw, and it kicks you in the head. It's not this ‘perfect sound’ coming at you. There's so much happening, it's aggressive and fast. Look at Kublai Khan TX, Knocked Loose, Speed – it’s just fresh.”

You road-tested a song called Pullin’ Teeth on the Opus Stage at Download this year. How did it go down live, and did that affect the version we’ll hear on the album?
Gary: “It has always been bucket-list for me to play Download. We were talking earlier about some of the antics we got up to in 2009…”
Cathal: “You hear a song very differently when you hear it from another person's ears, and you can feel it in the air.”
Gary: “On our U.S. tour [supporting Dropkick Murphys], after the first two or three nights. I think you said you heard some of the Dropkicks’ crew humming the chorus in catering? That's a good sign!”
Lango: “I love the tempo of it. It’s a little bouncer.”

Do you feel Pull Like A Dog sums up the overarching message of the album, or is it more exploratory than that?
Cathal: “Consciously, I'm not sure. Mother Of God is a more personal one, from [Lango’s] point of view, but it's a similar thing: the cost of doing this, if you want to be a full-time musician. It's the best job in the world, but it's a lot of sacrifice. What kept bringing us back was realising that you had three other people that were willing to go in on something, 100 per cent, to risk that. This is gonna be tough, and you might not have time for these other parts of your life, but you've got some lads in the boat here with you that are willing to get stuck in.”
Lango: “Naturally, the older you get, you see your peers at home buying houses, getting married and having kids. There's no way! Conversely, we are so lucky to get to do this, and so it’s constantly battling with that dilemma… and remember[ing] to be grateful for that.”

Lastly, your hit single Another Round recently appeared on Netflix series House Of Guinness. Irish music and culture seems to be really visible in the wider mainstream right now – does that extended buzz affect the way you are able to carve out your own identity as The Scratch?
Lango: “It’s remembering to follow our own notions, when it comes to being creative. It's going to have that Irish tinge because we are Irish, but we're influenced by so many things outside of Irish culture, as well. We’ve learned to not be afraid of wearing all of our influences on our sleeve, and we're really happy to be in this lane that we've fucking landed in.”
Cathal: “Overall, any band around Ireland right now [has] a lot more confidence to draw from their own influences, rather than trying to sound like Foo Fighters. You have CMAT, Fontaines D.C. and Kneecap – all these acts that are mainstream, but they’re very Irish. For a long time, we just thought we were so lame, no-one wanted to sing in their own accents… and now, the pendulum’s swung back.”

The Scratch’s new album Pull Like A Dog is out March 13 via Sony Music Ireland

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