Music
04 Sep 22

Live Report: The Scratch create divine chaos at Rankin’s Wood

The Scratch at Electric Picnic. Copyright: Miguel Ruiz/hotpress.com

Just as the sun set on day 2 of Electric Picnic, the Rankin’s Wood tent began teeming with a particularly rowdy crowd. Word clearly spread – The Scratch had touched down.

Even with their metal roots, the Dublin 12 four-piece have an inexplicable connection to their crowd. There’s not a moment of silence from the second Lango plops a seat on the cajon, beckoning to the masses with his sticks and shouting, “I wanna see youse running!”

A spirited ‘Cig in the Breeze’ gets The Scratch's audience bouncing. There’s such a lightness to their onstage presence, an amiable casualty exuding from each member of the band, it becomes easy to overlook their expert musicianship.

Complex melodies, rapid timing and soul-pounding acoustic rhythms are masterfully handled with ease, blending comedy and craic with an irrational outpour of talent.

The Scratch at Electric Picnic. Copyright: Miguel Ruiz/hotpress.com

A dense, metal-driven rhythm steered ‘Another Round’ headfirst into ‘God Slap,’ with its more laidback introduction and steady chord progression. The song built in thick, forceful layers, as Lango encouraged the crowd to scream along at their highest volume.

A descending guitar riff faded into the hum of an outro as the audience took over, nearly sending the roof off the place.

The Scratch at Electric Picnic. Copyright: Miguel Ruiz/hotpress.com

Lango welcomed a guest Irish dancer onstage for a fiery rendition of ‘River Dance’ like you’ve never seen or heard before. What began as a slow dive into the track over the audience clapping rapidly transformed into a full-fledged sonic production on the chorus, made all the better with some spitfire dancing.

The Scratch at Electric Picnic. Copyright: Miguel Ruiz/hotpress.com

No matter how loud the crowd was, The Scratch insisted we could be a bit louder. “I wanna see that pit open up one more time,” Lango instructed.

Over the powerful drive of their rhythmic folk, the crowd split in two: a circle right in the centre proving to be a black hole of absolute madness. Which is to say it was a successful night for one of Ireland’s most sprightly acts.