Off the back of a UK tour and the success of last year's breakthrough single ‘Feral’, Dublin act Scattered Ashes are back with new single 'Battles' today.

‘Battles’ serves as a follow-up to the band’s energetic breakout singles ‘Feral’ and 'This New Will', which w championereed by the likes of Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music and Rodney Bingenheimer of Sirius XM.

Opening with a wall of guitar noise and vocals echoing The Smiths, TV People and Joy Division, 'Battles' is an urgent take on the frustrations and seemingly inescapable pull of addiction.

The quartet's latest offering demands the listener's attention from the offset with catchy hook before moving into a lyrical discussion of the hardships and self-sabotaging that sadly go hand-in-hand with addiction. The track rounds off with intricate percussion sections from drummer Cillian Shiel.

Frontman Rob Dalton described the thought process behind 'Battles', noting that it speaks "of the dire consequences" of addiction.

"Lost in its throes, you begin to shed your own humanity becoming a slave to both desire and the chaos that accompanies it. Redemption can seem further and further away as you even become unrecognisable to yourself. Despite this, the song put’s a spotlight on ‘the Good Samaritan’ who refuses to leave the narrator’s side despite the trail of destruction in their wake...'Battles' is a sombre meditation on despair and fragility in a finite world, as well as man’s capacity for change."

“A story of sorrow, a story of shame, broken and hollow, can’t remember my name…”

"The song casts a rather acute spotlight on the shame associated with addiction and the long road to recovery," Dalton notes. "It has been an issue for the band in the past, but one that bound us together in a lot of ways."

The Irish alternative outfit shared their first release, ‘Parallel Lines’, via-Fatal Vision Records in May 2020 to deserved fanfare.

October 2021 single ‘Slow Motion’, recorded with Fontaines D.C. producer Daniel Doherty, further cemented their potential. The quartet’s sound ranges in influence from brutalism to punk. The riveting new band match aggressive sonic textures with a strict sense of space, created by urgent guitar stylings and powerful vocals.

Listen to 'Battles' below.