While the previous singles of have each revealed different sides of THE DOGS‘ album, “Reality Is a Failure” points towards the reflective corner of the Trauma Junkie universe. With its hypnotic drive, soaring melodies, and a chorus that refuses to let go, the song balances hopelessness, dark humour, and the growing feeling that reality itself has simply stopped working. The result is one of the album’s most atmospheric and distinctive tracks.
The very first thing frontman Kristopher Schau told the promo department here at Indie was that, when it came to marketing, only LIM mattered to him. This made absolutely no sense to us, and when we asked what he meant, we received nothing but this remarkably brief email in return:
“Less is more”
We haven’t heard from him since. We therefore assume this means that “Reality Is a Failure” will be the final single from the upcoming album Trauma Junkie, although we can’t say that with any real certainty. What we are fairly certain about, however, is that this is Tommy (Reite)’s song, and that it’s also him whistling at the very beginning. That man really knows how to write songs!!!
Trauma Junkie will be released on September 18.
ABOUT The Dogs are the Oslo-based band where only one member is actually from Oslo.
A punk rock band that believes they play soul and garage rock. In short, a band that has no idea who they are or what they’re doing. This confusion has however resulted in a total of 12 albums, countless Norwegian tours, unusual one-off events such as opening for Bruce Springsteen, and musical contributions to the new Harry Hole series on Netflix. In other words, they are well prepared for the Alzheimer’s they all have coming.
Confusingly enough, all signs are still pointing upward for the “Oslo band” in the autumn of their lives.
THE DOGS: Vocals – Kristopher Schau Guitar – Mads Martinsen Bass – Tommy Reite Drums – Henrik Odde Gustavsen Percussion – Kenneth Simonsen Keys – Stefan Höglin
On July 17, The Dogs released “Politics Find You”, the fourth single from their upcoming album “Trauma Junkie”.
While the first singles showcased different sides of the album’s raw energy, “Politics Find You” slows things down and gives the melodies more room to breathe. The result is a dark, melancholic rock ballad. Featuring a massive outro and one of the album’s most reflective moments, the song reveals a side of The Dogs that rarely gets this much space.
As always, we asked the songwriter (in this case Kristopher Schau) to give us a few pointers about the song. What it’s about, why he wrote it, and so on. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much we could actually use, so we’ll just share his response in its entirety:
“This was the first time I actually ‘threatened’ the rest of the band, as I recall. The moment I’d finished the verse melody and lyrics, I sent them the voice memo and told them they had until the end of the day to decide whether it belonged in The Dogs. Otherwise, I’d take the song somewhere else. I don’t think I’ve ever been happier with the combination of melody and lyrics. Of course, it was impossible to recreate that feeling in the studio, so it’s a shame no one will ever hear the demo. Hell of a nice outro too, if you ask me.”
The new album “Trauma Junkie” is releasing September 18.
ABOUT The Dogs are the Oslo-based band where only one member is actually from Oslo.
A punk rock band that believes they play soul and garage rock. In short, a band that has no idea who they are or what they’re doing. This confusion has however resulted in a total of 12 albums, countless Norwegian tours, unusual one-off events such as opening for Bruce Springsteen, and musical contributions to the new Harry Hole series on Netflix. In other words, they are well prepared for the Alzheimer’s they all have coming.
Confusingly enough, all signs are still pointing upward for the “Oslo band” in the autumn of their lives.
Vocals – Kristopher Schau Guitar – Mads Martinsen Bass – Tommy Reite Drums – Henrik Odde Gustavsen Percussion – Kenneth Simonsen Keys – Stefan Höglin
The Dogs return with their new single “Fuck’Em”, an intense, filthy and uncompromising taste of the upcoming album “Trauma Junkie”, set for release on September 18.
With a riff that kicks in doors from the very first second and a sound that refuses to give the listener a moment to breathe, the band continues to cultivate the raw and unfiltered energy that has made them one of Norway’s most notorious live acts.
We’ll let the man behind this furious little monster of a track, Kristopher Schau, explain it himself: “What I like best about this one is definitely the ugly-as-hell main riff at the start and Henrik’s drums. It became so wonderfully uncomfortable and messy right from the first second. No rest. Straight into anxious, high pulse territory. What I absolutely like the least, though, is that it now, obviously, has to be added to the live set for the autumn tour. This is going to mean A LOT of high-frequency screaming for an old geezer! The budget for Dent and Ricola alone is going to destroy the band economy halfway through the tour. And of course, I’m also worried that the chorus lyrics are unfortunately so SoMe-friendly that they’ll end up being used for all kinds of internet bullshit. Other than that, very pleased.”
The album “Trauma Junkie” will be released on September 18.
ABOUT The Dogs are the Oslo-based band where only one member is actually from Oslo. A punk rock band that believes they play soul and garage rock. In short, a band that has no idea who they are or what they’re doing. This confusion has however resulted in a total of 12 albums, countless Norwegian tours, unusual one-off events such as opening for Bruce Springsteen, and musical contributions to the new Harry Hole series on Netflix. In other words, they are well prepared for the Alzheimer’s they all have coming.
Confusingly enough, all signs are still pointing upward for the “Oslo band” in the autumn of their lives.
THE DOGS: Vocals – Kristopher Schau Guitar – Mads Martinsen Bass – Tommy Reite Drums – Henrik Odde Gustavsen Percussion – Kenneth Simonsen Keys – Stefan Höglin
Oslo rock outfit THE DOGS return with their second single of 2026, “Close Is Just Another Name for Nothing”. Following their first release earlier this year, the band continues to lean into their signature mix of sharp-edged attitude, dark humor, and uncomfortable honesty.
We asked Kristopher Schau to say a few words about what the song was about, and unfortunately received only this rather uncooperative response:
“No.”
We then asked him to elaborate on why he didn’t want to say anything about the song’s content, and got this in return:
“Because I’m not a child.”
When asked what that had to do with anything, he dismissed it with:
“A child often thinks it’s strategically smart to over-explain their song in an attempt to get played on P3. Since everyone else is doing it, because they’ve heard it’s good ‘content’ to show they’re in touch with their ‘feelings’ and might therefore be a good interview subject because they’re so ‘human’ and ‘relatable,’ the child feels like they have to do the same. I’m 55 years old, my hearing is going, and I’m at the age where there are always piss stains at the front of my underwear. I don’t want to be on P3, so no.”
Indie would like to apologize for the bad vibes, and has taken steps to ensure a new single will be released in a month to wash away whatever this was.
ABOUT The Dogs are the Oslo-based band where only one member is actually from Oslo.
A punk rock band that believes they play soul and garage rock. In short, a band that has no idea who they are or what they’re doing. This confusion has however resulted in a total of 12 albums, countless Norwegian tours, unusual one-off events such as opening for Bruce Springsteen, and musical contributions to the new Harry Hole series on Netflix. In other words, they are well prepared for the Alzheimer’s they all have coming.
Confusingly enough, all signs are still pointing upward for the “Oslo band” in the autumn of their lives.
THE DOGS: Vocals – Kristopher Schau Guitar – Mads Martinsen Bass – Tommy Reite Drums – Henrik Odde Gustavsen Percussion – Kenneth Simonsen Keys – Stefan Höglin
The Dogs are finally back with new music. March 20, 2026, “Back to Fucking” was released. The long-awaited follow-up, and not least, a public redemption after the band’s previous musical misstep.
The Dogs apologize: “On our previous album, we were unfortunately so thick-headed that we released the single ‘I’m Done with Fucking, I Just Wanna Dance’. We sincerely apologize for this. It was a lie, and we take full responsibility. We hope you agree that we have already served our punishment. The fear of actually having to dance, something we neither want nor are capable of, resulted in The Dogs not daring to tour or release music for well over a year. This difficult period has been thoroughly covered by KK, Nettavisen, TikTok, and Dagbladet, and we feel no need to comment further. With the song ‘Back to Fucking’, we therefore aim to finally put this matter to rest, once and for all, by once again apologizing for this blunder.”
ABOUT The Dogs are the Oslo-based band where only one member is actually from Oslo.
A punk rock band that believes they play soul and garage rock. In short, a band that has no idea who they are or what they’re doing. This confusion has however resulted in a total of 12 albums, countless Norwegian tours, unusual one-off events such as opening for Bruce Springsteen, and musical contributions to the new Harry Hole series on Netflix. In other words, they are well prepared for the Alzheimer’s they all have coming.
Confusingly enough, all signs are still pointing upward for the “Oslo band” in the autumn of their lives.
THE DOGS: Vocals – Kristopher Schau Guitar – Mads Martinsen Bass – Tommy Reite Drums – Henrik Odde Gustavsen Percussion – Kenneth Simonsen Keys – Stefan Höglin
Underground punk legends THE DOGS have unleashed a video for their new single ‘Under The Coast’ that was co-written with and features fellow rock ‘n’ roller Frank Meyer (The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs,James Williamson & The Pink Hearts) on guest vocals and guitar. The socially conscious, topical song is available now through Chicanery Chick Records/Die Laughing Records on all digital formats and the video compliments the song itself. The track deals with the chaos and dissonance of modern times.
“Somebody call for help cuz there’s panic in the air A troubled sense of unease that is tangible and there, So real you think you can taste it so loud it rings a bell, Your 2020 vision can’t prepare you for this hell.”
“Frank and I go way back,” says THE DOGS front man Loren Molinare. “His band The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs and THE DOGS have been in the trenches of the rock ‘n’ roll wars for years together, playing cutthroat gigs side by side. We had always talked about collaborating on a song one day. Then right at the beginning of the pandemic, Frank texted me and asked if I was recording at home at all. I told him just had a few riffs in my phone, but I’d send them over. Next thig I knew he took them into GarageBand and wrote a full realized song around all my parts! And it was a really strong song.”
‘’Tension runs like ripples in the sea of your demise, Creating waves of dissonance that shadow like the tides, The eyes in back of skulls keep the watcher on his board, But he is watching who when the visitors on shore and he wants a little more?”
“Loren sent me these killer riffs that had a punk thing going on but also had this power-pop meets surf rock twang to ‘em,” adds Meyer, “and since society was just starting to fall apart with the pandemic and riots, I started writing about that. But I wanted the vibe to be kind of happy like ‘Hey, the world’s falling apart around us and the apocalypse is near, so let’s head to the beach and surf!’ Sort of a west coast punk rock take on Prince’s ‘1999’ in a way.”
“Let’s raise a glass and make a toast, Let’s celebrate and prepare the roast, With the waves that come crashing down You think you’re lost but then you’re found, Can you hear the sound? Under the coast”
So Molinare took the demo to THE DOGS — bassist Mary Kay and drummer Tony Matteucci – to work it up and all the trio gathered at Pawnshop Studios with producer Richard Duguay to cut the tracks, sending Meyer the mixes to record his vocals from his home studio since Southern California was on lockdown at the time.
Bassist Mary Kay says, “it’s a strange time and Loren and Frank did a great job of capturing the tension and hypocrisy in the air these days.”
“This feeling overtakes you like the writing on the wall, Tragedy masks the humor of your imminent downfall, The pretty things will fade away like your slowly turning looks, The words you say won’t be forgotten like pages in a book.”
“As soon as Loren mentioned doing a video, I had this idea of project images over the band members, sort of like a ‘60s go-go dancing’ flick meets David Lynch-style art film. The images needed to move along fast and match the song too, so they needed to reference both the SoCal happy-sunny beach vibe plus the violent underbelly of modern city life and the politics that keep us all paranoid. So basically, it’s a sunshine apocalypse!”
Front man Loren said we booked a soundstage to shoot the video but then I tested positive for COVID-19 and went into a 14-day self-isolation. We asked Frank with his film directing background if there was a way to shoot the video under the COVID restrictions and he knocked it out of the park with his concept.
Formed in Lansing, Michigan in 1968, THE DOGS started as proto-punk band playing alongside The Stooges, MC5, and KISS before eventually moving to Los Angeles in 1976 and joining the ranks of the emerging west coast punk scene. The trio’s appeared on the Killed By Death compilation and the notorious “Slash Your Face” 7” single cemented the band’s way-ahead-of-it’s-time status. After a breakup, the band reformed to release the 2000 Compilation Fed Up album Suburban Nightmare on Dionysus Records and have been going strong ever since.
Die Laughing Records will also issue ‘Under The Coast’ on vinyl later this year as the B-side to The Dogs’ previous digi-single ‘Welcome to the Revolution.’
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