Dann and I have primary seen music in the form of festivals over the years, as we enjoy seeing lots of bands when we go somewhere. I’ve also more recently seen a tribute act – due to Amelia wanting to see more live music this year – so was quite interested in my friend Gary invited me to see The Scratch at Rough Trade in Bristol.
The Scratch is an Irish band based in Dublin, who play a blend of traditional Irish music and heavy metal. This band released their first album during Lockdown, where there was a huge craving for music and media, so they did well during that time. They’ve since been nominated for the Choice Music Prize. The Scratch has released a new album – Pull Like a Dog – and this event was around that album. Purchasing a ticket to this gig included a signed CD or vinyl of the new album too.
We got their a bit before the doors opened and waited outside. Rough Trade is a record store which is quite a neat venue, with a gig room at the back. Gary and I had a look around at the records after we entered and got our CD / vinyl, before heading into the Live room and going right to the front of the stage. The Scratch started shortly after we were all brought in and checked in, with people piling their bags and vinyl towards the front of the stage. They felt rough and loud, much like you’d expect! They started off by playing songs from their new album, before moving to take requests from the audience of people, which lead to them playing a cover of Ace of Spades before going back to some of their older songs.
The general vibe and audience interaction for The Scratch was amazing. It felt both intimate and full of energy – like the room was teeming. People were head banging, a mosh pit was encouraged, at one point The Scratch explained that in order for them to play a requested song everyone needed to run in a circle… it was just a wild event. I felt like I was feeding off the energy within the venue. Despite the album being quite new, so many people knew the words and were shouting along.
The Scratch were a fantastic band to see live. After they were done performing, we all lined up to meet the band and have them sign our merch. All of them were very lovely, chatting with everyone individually before signing.
You can check out our other Days Out to see what else we’ve been up too!