American dogcore

DüClaü’s bone-chilling agenda to liberate local canines, enslave humanity, and rock Tulsa

DüClaü is a band of dogs. They play songs about dogs, for dogs.

The three band members, Tick Fullblood (bass), [No Name] (bass), and Rufus (drums) share vocal duties. (It’s rumored that these are actually pseudonyms for real-life humans Jacob Fuller, Andrew Noga, and Joshua Gifford, respectively, but DüClaü wouldn’t go on record to confirm this.) Tick’s crooning, Danzig-esque swagger, [No Name]’s unhinged shouts and yelps, and Rufus’ hard-nosed vocal bombast culminate in a fever pitch of howling, dog-conscious angst.

With two bassists and a drummer, their instrumentation is a thick morass of twin bass grooves locked into chunky, cowbell-forward drum beats. Their sound evokes the chaotic, mid-tempo punk maelstrom of Flipper on the one hand, and the red-blooded, meat-and-potatoes classic rock of UFO on the other. But unlike traditional rock bands, DüClaü’s low-frequency “dogcore” sound contains no guitar, perhaps due to the unique hearing sensitivities of their canine comrades.

“We’ve created these sounds humans can hear that tricks them into what we want them to do,” Rufus said, his eyes gleaming with vengeance.

Lyrically, DüClaü’s songs are convicted, bizarre commentaries on the trials and tribulations of dog life. “I Just Wanna Get Out,” for example, is an anguished, aching look at a dog’s desire to run, to sniff around, and to play. The song’s title is screamed over and over before culminating in a plea to the protagonist’s slothful captor: “I know you just want to sit on your ass / but come with me ‘cause we’ll go have a blast.”

To speak candidly with the members of DüClaü is to plunge snout-first into a dizzying rabbit hole of intrigue—from the band’s extraterrestrial origins on Planet Outside, to their arch enemy The Mailman, to their opinions on cats, the joys of sticks and birds, and more. This dense lyrical universe is connected by a spine of radical, dog-positive politics and collective scorn for the human race.

“Humans are inherently evil. Dogs are a superior species,” said Fullblood.

“We’re not resting until all humans are on leashes, sleeping in the rain, eating from bowls on the ground, drinking out of toilets,” he continued. “Well—we’ll share the toilets.”

It’s hard to tell how much of DüClaü’s militancy is driven by politics, and how much is influenced by traumatic past experiences.

“I was once with a human friend of mine. It was a turning point. He had a ball in his hand, and pretended to throw it, and I ran. There was no ball. I came back and. . .” Fullblood’s voice broke off.

After collecting himself, he continued. “He’d had the ball in his hand the whole time.”  Fullblood’s story hinted at countless dog years of hurt. “Deception. Humans are liars. They’re vile creatures.”

With an air of malicious glee, Rufus explained that mesmerizing human audiences turns the tables on a centuries-old power dynamic. “I mean, they think it’s fun when they throw the ball. But we’re making them go get the ball. It’s fun for us.”

DüClaü will call a temporary truce with humans on Sept. 19 at Soundpony, as they team with local shelters to hold a special fundraiser to aid the adoption of local dogs. Starting at 5 p.m., attendees can enter their own dogs to compete in a pageant, culminating in the announcement of a Best in Show winner. Categories and prizes will be announced on the day of the event.

Visitors won’t be able to take home a pooch at the event, but a cash donation will be awarded to a local shelter of the winner’s choosing. The competition will be followed by a performance by the band at 11 p.m. Donations are encouraged but not required for admission.

“We’re trying to free our fellow soldiers in the fight,” said Fullblood. “They’re euthanizing almost 50 animals a day in Tulsa.”

After a few moments of mournful howling, the band elaborated.

“We hope to get some adoptions to humans, because that’s the only way to get [dogs] out of the cages,” said Rufus. “That’s when we hope to get more communication to our brethren via those humans, via our songs. Once we get our album released, we’ll have some hidden tracks that will speak to the animals subliminally.”

DüClaü are intense, spontaneous, and passionate. But more importantly, they are very good boys.

“As long as there are dogs sleeping outside on a leash, there will be DüClaü to fight for them,” said Youngblood.

Best in Show Shelter Benefit & Dog Pageant
Wednesday, Sept. 19, 5 p.m.
Soundpony Bar | 409 N. Main St.
Check out DüClaü’s tunes on Bandcamp: duclau.bandcamp.com