Dogs of War
by Teri Barr
March 2015
Madison's Dogs of War on the cover of Maximum Ink for March 2015
Imagine a band, and all five of its members bringing different skills, styles, and goals to the project. It would sound like a fusion of hip-hop, rap, metal, rock, and blues. And its name would be—Dogs of War. This Madison-based group is a year in the making, but the individuals have been part of the scene with various well-known acts. Yet, Dogs of War is the one already being called cool, unique, bridging divides, and destined for something bigger. One of its founders, Dexter “Tefman” Patterson, took time to answer a few of my questions, including why it can be good to flaunt your differences, and how the band’s efforts can’t be defined.
Maximum Ink: This new project brings together some broad talents. Can you tell us more about Dogs of War?
Dexter “Tefman” Patterson: Well, w’s so great about the Dogs of War is the diversity in our musical backgrounds.Vincent “Samhain Bane” Spruill and I are the two emcees for the band. We are also the co-founders of the award-winning veteran hip-hop group The L.O.S.T S.O.U.L.S. There’s also Anthony Salas on Guitar/Lead Vocals, David Payne on drums, and Dustin “D” Harmon on bass. They are incredibly skilled and bring rock, punk, heavy metal, and more as their influences.
MI: So your differences are a strong point?
DP: We were all eager to try something new. Bane and I have always wanted to be in a live band—partly for the challenge—but also for the potential to cross over to new fans, and genres with our music. The other guys in the band had the urge to step into the hip-hop world, so it was a perfect match. We have since created a new sound I believe has the potential to reach more fans than any of us could’ve ever imagined when we met a year ago.
MI: How would you describe the Dogs of War sound?
DP: The question is still hard to answer. All I can say is we are a true hybrid band. We blend hip-hop, rock, punk, and metal in a very creative way. We try to cater to the best of all of our band members, and the end results have been awesome.
MI: And some of those results are already on an EP, but any other plans in the works?
DP: We are working on our 2nd EP, which we plan to release early this summer. We’re also
filming three official music videos to accompany the EP release. We’ll probably release a full-length album later because we all know there is a ton of people in our city that haven’t heard of Dogs of War, and we hope to change that soon.
MI: You’re still a fairly new group as Dogs of War, but you must be proud of all you’ve already accomplished?
DP: What makes me proud is the fact we have five guys that all have a true dedication to the band as a whole. We set monthly goals not only for the band but also as individuals, and we hold each other accountable to those goals. I have never been a part of a team in the music world this efficient. These guys get me excited to work!
MI: Can you share some of those goals with us?
DP: The biggest goal we have is to be the best we can be as a band. Honestly, it might sound cliché, but it’s the truth. We are all great at what we do as individuals, but we want to be great as a unit. And we want to keep making good music together.
MI: Finally, one of my favorite questions, is there anything we may be surprised to learn about Dogs of War?
DP: A cool thing we do is Dustin records all of our practices. So, not only do we use those recordings to learn the new material, but we savor the classic pieces of comedy and entertainment that happens to emerge from the process. We keep all the bloopers, blunders, and silly outtakes. Nothing is better than laughing at yourself over a shot of whiskey and a beer when you finish a new song.
Oh, and get ready. We will also be sharing some of those exclusive moments with our fans in the near future on our social platforms.
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