Dog Race: London’s dark pop puzzlers are piecing together their own reality

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In a quiet London rehearsal space, Dog Race are piecing together puzzles. Not the cardboard kind that gathers dust on your nan’s coffee table, but the kind that emerges from sleepless nights and relentless questioning, from the space between who we are and who we’re expected to be. Their debut EP ‘Return The Day’ arrives like a fever dream captured on tape – urgent, unsettling, and impossible to look away from.

The five-piece band, now fully settled in London after years of exhausting commutes from Bedford, have been crafting their distinctively dark sound for the better part of a decade. “First song we wrote together was seven years ago in Jed’s living room, and oh god, I can’t even bring myself to think about it; it was awful,” vocalist Katie Healy recalls with a laugh, describing how they used that early attempt to “lure” their current guitarist Jimbo into the fold.

The journey from their Bedfordshire origins to the capital’s pulsing heart wasn’t just geographical; it was transformative. As Katie explains, “Honestly, the car journeys home after rehearsing in London broke us, so we all officially live in London now, which is where the rest of the Dogs were based.” This convergence in the capital has allowed the band – completed by Katie’s brother Jed on drums, Will Macnab on bass, and Dillon handling synth and keys – to forge something more cohesive, more intentional.

Those unassuming beginnings seem like ancient history now. The band have evolved into something far more formidable, their sound a dark amalgamation of influences that spans decades and continents. Their musical DNA draws deeply from the wellspring of German experimental music, with Katie noting their inspiration from pioneering artists: “We’ve taken a lot of inspiration from German artists such as Kraftwerk, Klaus Nomi and Xmal Deutschland. I’m naturally drawn to that kind of music because of how leftfield and dark it was, yet it still feels ahead of its time, even decades later. There’s a real sense of resistance and urgency in their work, of course, shaped by the history they were living through. That context adds so much weight and meaning to the sound, which is something I find really impactful and inspiring.”

The contemporary threads in their tapestry are equally crucial. Will Macnab points to modern influences that help shape their creative process: “We’ve also taken a lot of inspiration from current electronic/dance artists such as Sextile and Boy Harsher. Just the drum rhythms really help create foundations for demos, and then we can strip those out and put something that feels more like us once the other ideas have formed.”

‘Return The Day’ emerges as a statement of intent, an EP that refuses to play by conventional rules. It’s a debut that feels both carefully considered and thrillingly raw. “We just followed what felt the most honest,” Will explains about their approach to curating the tracks. “Some songs came together quickly; others we spent months pulling apart and rebuilding. We’ve never wanted to be a band that’s considered ‘accessible’; I think there’s plenty out there in the world that anyone can listen to, so we wanted the EP to push ourselves further than we felt comfortable going, whether that be emotionally, the weirdness of our sound, or even just our playing abilities.”

The EP’s thematic core emerged organically through the writing process, reflecting personal struggles and broader social observations. “I don’t think I necessarily enjoy writing about my mental health,” Katie reflects, “but it’s definitely been the main focus of this EP, and it’s just what’s been coming out naturally. I’ve found that themes surrounding social issues, reality TV, and my relationships are really useful lenses for expressing how I’m feeling. They let me explore personal emotions without always being super direct and on the nose, which can make the songwriting feel a bit more playful or creative, even when the subject matter is a little dark.”

The band’s unconventional approach to songwriting has become their signature, a method that embraces complexity rather than shying away from it. “I think we learnt that we’re not going to be conventional songwriters like other artists and bands that we look up to, and that is okay; we treat our songwriting almost like a puzzle,” Katie shares. This approach manifests in the EP’s intricate arrangements, where post-punk urgency collides with electronic experimentation and gothic atmosphere.

It represents something more fundamental for Will: “This EP is about confidently introducing Dog Race into the world. It’s about showing what we can do, how we can approach writing in different styles and laying out our identity. Thematically, I don’t think we came into the EP with a grand plan, but it was more like each track slowly revealed as we went. But a lot of it came from a place of exhaustion, of feeling stuck in cycles.”

The band’s plans reflect their commitment to organic growth and artistic integrity. Currently, as Katie notes, “it’s heads down to write as many songs as possible for hopefully a debut album one day.” Their summer schedule is packed with “lots of European festivals,” culminating in their London headline show at The Lexington on 17th September – milestones that seemed impossible during those early days in Jed’s living room.

Looking ahead, Dog Race’s ambitions are focused on artistic fulfilment rather than TikTok views or Spotify streams. “Success to me is releasing a debut album that we are super proud of and getting to play gigs and festivals with artists that inspire us to write better music,” Katie explains. “We’re not driven by statistics or playing these huge venues that I know other artists dream of; I understand why. I don’t think our music sits in the mainstream space to see success like a lot of the population would envision, but I think we’re all happy with that!”

Will adds his own perspective on success, one that speaks to the band’s measured approach to growth: “To me, success started off as one radio play, then it was playing one European show and releasing a vinyl. I think we’re all surprised at the opportunities we’ve been offered and are taking them each day at a time. I’m not sure I’ve figured out what the next goal would be.”

Dog Race offer authenticity and creativity in the face of exhaustion, and light in the darkness of modern existence. As they continue to evolve and expand their sonic palette, they’re creating something that transcends the sum of its parts: a testament to the power of following your instincts.

Dog Race’s EP ‘Return The Day’ is out now.