Underground star Scratch pulls the rug out from under our feet with hardcore rap-punk follow up
Scratch is back with a new edgy single that pushes boundaries and blows the notion that we know him out of the waterWhen underground London music sensation Scratch came to the attention of the wider media just last month with the release of his debut single
The Leaders, The Liars, we made the assumption that we had generally got the measure of the politically-driven young man. His folk-rap acoustic sound was unique, and he was a man with a message to spread. Simple, right? Well, apparently we were wrong. Just a few weeks from the release of his debut, the rapper is back, and this time he's come armed with a clear intent to pull the rug out from under our feet.
His second single
Wear Me Down is as different from his first as it would be possible to find. Sure, it's still a politically-powered punk rap song filled with incredible lyrics that challenges the norm and talks out against capitalists and the perceived system, but that's really where the similarities end. Whereas The Leaders, The Liars was an acoustic, almost upbeat number, Wear Me Down is a violent, aggressive, electronic punk rap track that never lets up and gets the listener in a stranglehold that lasts a full four minutes..and it's intense. As well as completely changing his sound, Scratch has also employed the services of London-based hardcore punk vocalist Rich Buckley. The unknown singer comes in to provide vocals on the chorus of the track, which are screamed, bringing a metal edge where we never expected to find one.
That Scratch can surprise us so much in the space of just a few weeks is probably testament on some level to our naivete, but also speaks volumes about his own artistic skills. Whereas we thought we were seeing the birth of a new artist who we could pin down to one genre and one form of music, what we've actually been introduced is the musical equivalent of a chameleon, changing colours and environments at will to keep us on our toes and make sure he can never be shackled. It's a touch of genius from a young man who has already shown in his musicianship and lyrics that he was so deserving of such a tag. Scratch is a man not to be underestimated, a force to be reckoned with, and an artist that will seemingly continue to challenge perceptions and preconceieved notions as much as he does the status quo.
Speaking to Londonist about his new single, Scratch said: "I feel it's important to be able to keep people on their toes with art. If you keep feeding someone the same thing again and again, then they start to just accept it without really appreciating it. By morphing my sound, I can get someone's attention. They might be like "Oh that's Scratch, I liked his last song about hating the government, here's another one," and then they hear this, which is essentially the same but so much more aggressive, fast and hard hitting, and they're like "Oh holy fuck!" and they pay attention. Keep doing the same thing and it just becomes white noise, like background music, you know? But change it up from time to time, throw something totally out of the blue in there, and people notice it. The important thing in what I do is the message, being true to my punk ideologies, and that's what I've retained here, even if it is totally different. The catchy acoustic chorus and banjo backing might be replaced by hardcore punk and electro stuff, but the rap is still there, and the message is still there. I think it's true to me, and that's all that matters. Always be true."
On working with fellow London punk Rich Buckley, Scratch told us it was something that had been in the pipeline for some time. "Rich is my boy," he laughs. "We've been friends for a lot of years now, yeah. We have the same sort of background in underground music. I'm mostly rap and he does this screamed hardcore punk thing, but we're running with the same crowds, and I've always loved his intensity. Geezer is honestly the most intense live performer I've ever seen in my life, and I wanted to bring that sort of energy and passion to my track. When I knew I was looking for that, there was only ever going to be one man for the job, and that was Rich. I know the sound is quite jarring from what I've done before, with his screaming and that, but he really brought what I wanted to the track. It's so full of energy and really so fucking intense. The man hit the jackpot for me."
We say: Scratch's follow up is a million miles from his acoustic debut, but Wear Me Down is a punk rap masterpiece. The lyrics are as clever and cutting as he showed us he had in his arsenal before, and his message is as clear as ever. The addition of a much faster, passionate and heavier sound and the screamed vocals of Rich Buckley add a new element that really makes the listener sit up and take notice and gives him an all new edge.
Artist: Scratch
Title: Wear Me Down
Album: N/A
Genre: Punk rap/ hardcore punk
Label: N/A
Produced: Self
All lyrics and music by: J. Graze
Additional guitars: Paul "Watto" Watkins
Drums: Zav
Backing vocals: Rich Buckley
Sounds like
Italics - Spoken wordNormal - Rapped - Scratch
Bold - Screamed - Rich BuckleyYo, I bet you ain't never heard punk rap hit like this though...Waking up just to pop a pill, it's my medicine
While you're out there committing murder for venison
I'm owning these streets, cos you know I'm the denizen
And right now I'm lighting up your block just like Edison
Pulling out of another royal flush, is this poker?
You're not Batman, kid, but I'm still the joker
Find a girl, take her in and then cloak her
Sucking that blood, cos they call me Bram Stoker
Don't call me an artist, I just try to keep it real
Can't we take down the liars who just want to cop a feel?
Spinning so much lies to hide what's real
Feeling so dizzy like I live on a ferris wheel
No! You can't wear me down!
Sold! I'll take you to town!
Gold! You can't wear no crown!
No! You can't wear me down!Brick Lane, Soho, fuck, get me out of Shoreditch
It's not edgy mate, you just found a cure for the itch
Mixing champagne with grunge, you stuck up bitch
While we all struggle you live without a hitch
Truth of the matter, whatever bends will just break
Might as well grab your ankles, get ready to take
A world that always smells of paint is just fake
Burying blemishes and trying to hide every mistake
You tell me I fight the system out of jealousy
But if that's true then why'd they all follow me?
I'm just spitting the truth, and yeah it's all heresy
But at the end of the day it's my legacy!
No! You can't wear me down!
Sold! I'll take you to town!
Gold! You can't wear no crown!
No! You can't wear me down!Put down your weapons and just lift a biro
Breathing fire, righting wrongs, call me Spyro
You'll never know what it's like to live off a giro
Debts heading out of control on a spiral
This is my story, this is my rage
This is my quest to find a new age
This is my chance to forge a new start
Spreading my message to rip things apart
Gags and blindfolds won't help you find silence
Fifty shades of fire, stoke the flames, get more violence
Occupy Wall Street, make the stock floors irrelevant
Overthrow it all, let's start again and experiment
No! You can't wear me down!
Sold! I'll take you to town!
Gold! You can't wear no crown!
No! You can't wear me down! 