Hailing from Wrocław in western Poland, The Dog has been blasting out the powerfully violent powerviolence for a solid three years now. They’re undeniable Spazz and Negative Approach fans, but we’re also hearing Yacøpsæ, early D.R.I. and even some Slayer in there as well to go along with the quartet’s collective disposition as dark and brooding souls. Their label sent the following as a rather apt description: “Lost generation music for people who feel like shit and don’t know exactly why. Keywords: lost hope, broken dreams, lack of satisfaction, stagnation.”
Today, we’re previewing the band’s upcoming debut full-length, The Devil Comes at Night – dig that ominous cover photo! – which follows the EPs recorded and released in each of the last two years and sees the return to their cover art of the nefarious-looking, obviously-up-to-no-good, hooded mystery man. As well, we tossed the band a few questions a means of introduction to the wider world and below you can read what’s on their minds.
Can you give us some band history?
Igor [vocals]: The story of The Dog started somewhere around 2013 but we’ve all been friends since forever. Lukasz and me were playing in death ‘n’ roll/punk rock band called We are Idols, Dawid was bass player in classic Polish straight edge band The Age and Maciek is still the guitarist in the grindcore act known as Ass to Mouth. The idea of playing together turned up on many occasions – while we were partying or hanging out – and finally it materialized. The love for fastcore/powerviolence music brought us to The Dog. Lukasz and Maciek did a few songs, they invited Dawid and me for the rehearsal and that’s it.
Your forthcoming album will be your second release featuring the hooded, horror movie-looking killer-type guy. Is this going to be a long-term mascot, sort of like the band’s Eddie?
Yeah, I guess so. The hooded guy refers to my personal interests. I’m a big fan of American culture and its symbolism and I cannot imagine anything more cruel then the vision of an offender wearing that kind of mask, hiding somewhere in the bushes before doing some bad things. There is a scene in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford which truly shows what kind of thrill it brings. On the other hand, there was a guy who said something like, “Man, I didn’t know what kind of music you play, I just bought the record for the cover.”
What can you tell us about writing and recording The Devil Comes at Night?
We are very fast in making songs. At first, we get the riff from Maciek, then we get the beat from Lukasz and the track is almost done. The first pieces were done shortly after recording of our second EP called Fountain of Youth, so the whole album was finished in less than a year. We recorded it in two days at Satanic Audio Studio which is known in Poland for black metal and all that heavy experimental productions. Haldor Grundberg, who runs the place, is our good friend, so he exactly knew what kind of sound we expected. Almost everything was recorded in first or second take. We wanted it to be scary, like the devil who comes to you at night.
Does the title of the album pertain to a particular story or incident? Or is it all a creation of your own minds?
The title of the song which later became the title of the whole album came to me during one of the sleepless nights. I don’t like to sleep. I’ve always been the type of a guy who has troubles with falling asleep, so I really do know that night is the best moment to struggle with bad and depressing thoughts. If you’re not sleeping and you know that you should to because you have to get up early and go to work, you don’t think about the positives but you go through all the things that are totally fucked up. All the lost dreams, all the shit that frustrates you, all the people you hate… The night, for the people who deal with insomnia, is like a devil who whispers into your ears. The album is about that kind of stuff.
Any concrete plans for the band once the album is out?
At first, we will play at Obscene Extreme Festival in Czech Republic. It’s a really big event, so we’re pretty excited. Then we’ll have a short summer break and before the beginning of autumn we’ll come back to regular playing.
Photos by Dawid Schindler
To order or for more info, check out: Everydayhate Records
