Music editor Holly Alder reviews Mind Yourself, the newest album from Irish rock band ‘The Scratch’, as they continue to blend traditional Irish music with whatever they please to create something wonderful.
Irish rock-fusion band The Scratch recently released their third studio album Mind Yourself in late 2023, successfully debuting at number three on the Official Irish Album Charts in the same month.
The progressive four-piece blessed our ears with a blend of traditional Irish music, fast-paced drumming patterns and heavy guitars on tracks like “Banshee” and “Cheeky Bastard.” Amidst the noise and speed, this beautifully created album is not short of melodic ballads such as “Shoes”, the lyrics of which are likely to move listeners. These ballads perfectly co-exist with the album’s loudest and heaviest tracks, such as “Blaggard” which features passionate shouting vocals and metal-esque guitar riffs – a must-see live. Towards the end of the album, highlights such as “Cold Eye” cleverly combine Celtic melodies with electric guitar and “Pocket Full of Roses” showing off the true musicianship and the variety of sounds the band can produce.
Mind Yourself is a perfect combination of slow and haunting tracks that are few and far between amidst the mosh-worthy core of the album, which has been curated to give the band’s audience the live show of a lifetime. One thing about the Irish is, we know how to throw a good party, and The Scratch shows no exception to this rule.
One thing about the Irish is, we know how to throw a good party, and The Scratch shows no exception to this rule.
With their tour commencing in 2023 and continuing throughout 2024, The Scratch is not a band to be missed, and after seeing them play an unforgettable New Year’s Eve gig in Kilmainham, hearing ‘Mind Yourself’ live in full is most definitely on my bucket list.