Spotlight on our band of the month: Scratchattic!

At Distrolution Merch, we don't just work with underground rock or metal bands. The proof is with Scratchattic, an essential trip-hop group from the Lille music scene.

To learn more about the band's latest news, we invite you to check out our new interview!

Hi, Scratchattic! Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! Can you quickly introduce your band to our readers?

Certainly! We're two guys from Lille in sound control. On one side, Davio, beatmaker, arranger, sound tinkerer, and exceptional composer. On the other, Sharky, DJ and jack-of-all-trades :). Since 2017, we've been taking maximum pleasure in composing together (not very useless information to understand the music we make (laughs) but we wanted to say it)! Style-wise, we're somewhere between trip-hop, hip-hop, and dub (to keep it simple and quick, knowing that we know nothing about horse riding!). There are also plenty of varied influences in the background (jazz, reggae...) and of course scratch (because we still struggle to tie our shoelaces!) (laughs).

How do you manage your band in such a particular context?

Adaptation is the key word! There's no real magic recipe... (unfortunately) so you have to know how to bounce back and be proactive. It wasn't easy at first, especially during the first lockdown, where we had to deal with (emotionally) all the cancellations one by one... but we quickly pulled ourselves together! Like many bands, we refocused on digital tools, streams and videos, which are "covid-safe". We made some fun videos and also played several live streams. And then, all the date cancellations finally allowed us to free up time to manage the release of our first vinyl, a blessing in disguise!!

After your first EP, "Gears in Motion", released in 2018, you're back two years later with a second EP, "The Wild Scope". Can you introduce this second EP in a few words?

"The Wild Scope" was carefully thought out! We wanted to release something that truly represents us, which is why we took our time to create a real synergy between all the tracks. The result is a 6-track EP in which we poured our hearts and souls! Each track is designed as an invitation to travel, to meditate, a return to our roots. We tried to put as few barriers as possible to avoid blocking ourselves in the creative process. You can find dreamy hip-hop in some tracks like "Mind exploration" but also more electronic influences, especially in the tracks "Into the wild" and "Getaway".

And of course, we've surrounded ourselves well again, with super talented musicians: Arnaud Eurin on sitar, Nathanaël Mass on guitar, Robin Charbonnier on ney, and Dj Smoz on a very stylish scratch session!

Comparing these two releases, and with hindsight, how much has your sound evolved in two years?

Looking back, it's true that there's been a nice evolution since our beginnings! Now, we don't hesitate to step out of our comfort zone. Even if we remain attached to the 90 bpm hip-hop vibe, we also take a lot of pleasure in exploring other tempos and styles. We've also evolved quite a bit in our way of working and creating together. We experiment with new sound combinations. We don't necessarily use our machines the same way as we did at the beginning. We really give ourselves more freedom, and it shows in our new compositions.

How does your composition process usually unfold?

Our way of creating is a bit different from a classic acoustic band. Creation and recording happen simultaneously. There are always several stages of work. Often, Davio starts by proposing an initial ambiance on which we come to tinker with samples and different sounds. We record, we test, we remove, we modify, we re-record, we re-test... and so on until we get the vibe and atmosphere that makes us excited! On some productions, we also record many musicians that we sample to enhance our compositions. We love the groove and authenticity that comes out when we record musicians :) and it's always a thrill to create with them!

In parallel, Davio composes the beats and melodic themes. And Sharky takes care of the scratch parts. Then, we spend a lot of time together refining the arrangements of the tracks to get the best possible result. And finally, Davio takes care of mixing all our multi-tracks.

You decided to combine your 2 EPs on a double vinyl album, "Wild Motions". Where did this idea come from?

The primary idea was to imagine a continuity with our first project. Initially, we didn't necessarily think about combining the two EPs on the same medium, but when we started to imagine our first vinyl, the union of the two EPs immediately appeared as obvious. Firstly, because we thought it was a cool concept, and secondly because it made sense from a sonic point of view. This was followed by absolutely magnificent work with the Lille artist Bleeken to imagine together the extension of our visual, and thus allow us to perfectly assemble the covers of our 2 EPs on the vinyl artwork!

You called on us for the creation of your merchandise (T-shirts, CDs, vinyl, stickers, goodies...). Can you talk about your experience with Distrolution Merch?

It was terrible! (laughs)
Obviously, that's a joke! This is the second time we've worked with Distrolution Merch for the design of our merch, and honestly, we're not disappointed at all! One of the main points that encouraged us to renew the experience is the availability! Seb and Greg were present by our side throughout the process to support us, help us, check our visuals, advise us... When you're a young band like us and you're discovering the workings of physical reproduction, it's really comforting to have someone to reassure you, advise you, and prevent you from doing anything silly! As for the rest, the quality is there and the prices are affordable, so why deprive ourselves.

In general, is there a merch item that you give particular importance to? If so, which one and why?

Basically, we would tend to say vinyl because it's really a super object. The audio quality is top-notch and the specific grain of vinyl really brings a lot of warmth to the productions. In any case, if we had to choose between CD and Vinyl, on our side, there's no question, it would be: Vinyl! Now, if we broaden a bit, the must-have merch item remains stickers! So practical and effective :). You can make all kinds of them, big ones, round ones, multicolored ones, textured ones... It's the kind of goodie that's very easy to give to people around you, it always pleases, it's practical for making your project known, and it's also really financially accessible! The best!

To conclude this interview, can we talk about your future projects?

We can :) even if we don't hide from you that with Covid and the resulting health measures, it has quite disrupted our plans... Especially when it comes to live performances... We can still give you some info since you're so nice :). Currently, we're working on a new alternative musical nap show for which we've mainly composed new tracks! The tracks are more dreamy than usual, sometimes meditative, designed to stimulate imagination and plunge listeners into a waking dream. At the same time, we never stop composing! We hope to release a new album in 2021 and we're preparing some little surprises until then, like for example, the upcoming release of our first music video :) But we're counting on you not to spread the information, it's a secret!