Dublin post-hardcore-ish types BATS are under no such illusions. As singer/guitarist Rupert Morris explained to  me, science is still under attack from the right and the left, and it’s apathy that allows the likes of (famed Young Earth Creationist) Kent Hovind and Mike Huckabee to avert young eyes from unnecessary distractions like reason and truth. “One of the main aims of BATS[...]is to  fight against the rise in popularity of anti-science and pseudo-science like astrology, homeopathy, faith healing, psychics and other new age/old age practices." The band's name, no less, is a homage to the animal that opponents of evolution often declare to be too complex to have come about by "chance."

Morris and his bandmates- guitarists Conor McIntyre and Craig Potterton, bassist Timmy Moran and drummer Noel Anderson- went so far as to devote the opening track of their EP Cruel Sea Scientist (review here) to the good Dr. Hovind. ‘Death To Kent Hovind’ is incredible on many, many levels, but the chorus shout of “the bats will destroy you / the facts will destroy you” must surely rank as one of the most uncomebackable putdowns ever meted out on these shores. Their debut full-length was recorded with producer Kurt Ballou (Converge) in Salem, Massachusetts, and it’s hard to imagine a more fitting environment than the site of western history’s most infamous witch trials. The album, Red In Tooth & Claw, derives its title from Lord Tennyson’s proto-natural selection poem ‘In Memoriam A.H.H.’

Red, Tooth & Claw is scheduled for release on August 31 on DIY label the Richter Collective. The album will be launched on August 29 with a gig at Dublin’s Andrew’s Lane Theatre. Tickets are €10, with support from Adebisi Shank and Jogging.

http://www.myspace.com/leatherbeatsfeather

Sputnikmusic: Who are you and how did you get here?

Rupert Morris. About 4 billion years ago the first replicating cell divided and embarked on a long evolutionary journey, growing and improving via the mechanism of natural selection, until one day in 1981 my mum and dad had a ride and I was born 9 months later.

When and where did the band form?

The band formed sometime in 2006. I met Conor at college; we both studied film in Dun Laoghaire. He was in a band with Timmy and Noel called Martha Washington. He asked Craig and me if we’d like to jam and we began playing together in Noel’s back garden shed. It progressed from there until BATS was formed.

Cruel Sea Scientist is littered with evolutionary biology references, from titles like ‘Atom & Eve’ to the creationist-bashing ‘Death to Kent Hovind’: are you genuine scientists or just evolution fanatics?

We’re genuine science appreciators, enthusiasts and promoters. One of the main aims of BATS, for me anyway, is to promote science and fight against the decline in interest in science and rise in popularity of anti-science and pseudo-science like astrology, homeopathy, faith healing, psychics and other new age/old age practices.

More importantly, have you heard about the boy who taught himself to echolocate?

I have not heard about him. Pray tell me more.

[Californian Ben Underwood lost his eyes to cancer at the age of three, and gradually taught himself to “see” via echolocation- the method used by bats to navigate their surroundings using sound. He died in January of 2009 from a recurrence of the same cancer that took his eyes. Watch the five-part BBC special on Ben here.]

Wishing death on Young Earth Creationists is a tough act to follow. Where have gone lyrically since ‘Death To Kent Hovind’?

I’ve extended into some new realms certainly. There’s more physics on the album, and some chemistry; a good bit of sex too. I’ve touched on Gamma Ray Bursts, burning witches, prehistoric marine reptiles, carbon, Napoleonic naval warfare, the American purity movement, temporal lobe epilepsy... to name but a few.

Listening to the EP, I hear lots of US punk and metal influences, but, correct me if I‘m wrong, I also detect a strong Redneck Manifesto vibe in the jazzier, more layered guitar lines. Am I mental?

You’re not mental but you’re not quite right either. We certainly love Rednecks but we would more influenced by bands like Don Caballero, who must have had an influence on Rednecks, and other bands like The Murder of Rosa Luxemburg.

Kurt Ballou is kind of a big deal. Did you seek him out or did he contact you?

We sought him out. We were actually amazed by the options we had. We emailed lots of producers and all of them said they’d love to do it. We’re absolutely thrilled to have done it with Kurt. I don’t think any heavy band today can claim they’re not either directly or indirectly influenced by Converge. They’re monoliths.

Did you have any other names in mind?

We also really wanted to do it with Andrew Schneider. He’s produced some of our favourite albums from bands like Daughters, Cave In and Keelhaul. It was a toss-up but in the end we went with Kurt. We’ll do album 2 with Andrew!

How did the recording sessions go?

Recording was a fantastic experience. Salem is a weird place, a strange mixture of commercialised witch culture and unnecessary death remembered. I think it had a really positive effect on the mood and tone of the album. Just to be out of our element, so far away from home.

Working with Kurt Ballou must be an education in itself- what was it like?

Kurt was great. Took some time to crack him, he’s a man of few words, but we definitely won him over with our Irish charm. He has an amazing Chihuahua called Geezer Butler. I thought I hated Chihuahuas before I met that dog. It certainly was an education though. Just seeing how he did it was really interesting. He really spent a lot of time crafting a sound for each of us. He also threw his two cents in during times of uncertainty, and that really helped a lot. He himself said he wasn’t really producing because we already had a definite set of songs formed, but he definitely affected certain parts.

Are there any guest spots on the CD, or is it just the five of you?

Just the five of us. I’ve wanted to get Roy Duffy (ex-Vimanas) on a track doing some guest vocals for a while now but alas... geography.

Have you decided on a release date as of yet?

The album’s being released on the 31st of August in Ireland and the UK, with the Dublin Launch on the 29th in Andrew’s Lane Theatre with Adebisi Shank and Jogging. There’ll be a free digital single available in the next week or two.

I recall there being plans to release a split EP with Fist Fite last Halloween; plans that were ultimately shelved in favour of recording the album. How did that association come about, and will those songs ever see the light of day?

We played with them last year and got on like a house on fire. It just didn’t work out I’m afraid. However we still really want to do it and we’re planning on hopefully releasing it with one of the album tracks on it plus two surprise gems sometime after the album. We’re also planning on releasing a remix version of the album with remixes by Sarsparilla, George Brennan from Deep Burial, Lakker and Jape for starters!

What other influences have the band incorporated over the past year or so, intellectually?

Intellectually I’d say a good deal of physics, what with CERN and all, and many areas of popular science in general. The opening track is called ‘Higgs Boson Particle’ and is about the elusive particle that has never been detected before but physicists have inferred its existence through mathermatics. One of the many aims of CERN is to find the little fucker. I’ve been reading an amazing book from the ‘60s on Sea Serpents. They’ve therefore undulated their way onto the album in the song ‘The Cruel Sea’.

What records have been doing the rounds on the BATS turntable recently?

A lot of electronica and hip-hop. We’re all loving the new Zombi- ‘Spirit Animal’; ‘Saint Dymphna’- the new Gang Gang Dance; the new Max Tundra album; new Animal Collective; Past Lives; Racebannon; ‘TV loves you back’ by Restiform Bodies is incredible; and of course.... Lady GaGa.

What are the plans for after the album release?

From September 10th we’ll be heading over to the UK for a short tour with Blakfish, and then we’ll be touring the rest of Ireland at the end of September.

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