In a city obsessed with speed and visibility, Dog Saints are carving out a slower, smarter path, building momentum between lectures, lessons, and late-night rehearsals.
Guitar riffs echoing through the room, accompanied by angelic notes, Dog Saints hypnotised their audience at their gig at the Old Blue Last.
The band are no strangers to the London indie scene and have played throughout London’s grassroots venues. Despite only having four released singles on Spotify, Dog Saints have been able to amass a following of 15,800 on Spotify so far.
The band is comprised of five members: Will Goltz (guitar, vocals), Hafiz Nazhri (currently inactive guitar, vocals), Angus Timmons (bass, vocals), Harry Quantrill (drums), and Maitiú Martin (guitar).
For the current line-up, balancing university life, employment, and the commitments of being in a band has been an amalgamation of both chaotic yet strangely liberating.
With members studying everything from psychology and anthropology to international history, Russian, music production and behavioural science, it goes without saying that the Dog Saints are dedicated to their studies.
While most emerging artists are expected to put everything else down and focus primarily on music, the band have other plans, portraying how it’s possible to grow sonically whilst also not neglecting their other commitments towards work and education.
However, what may seem like a distraction from their musical career could be what sets them apart from the rest of the scene.
Recalling the mental toll of looming deadlines whilst having to schedule practice, Martin expressed the difficulty of it all: “It’s so difficult, having to do a ten thousand word weekly blog, it is so annoying.” His bandmate, Timmons, didn’t share the sentiment: “It’s so easy, because you don’t have to do any work at UAL.”
Whilst everyone poked fun at Martin for his disdain at juggling everything, Goltz told me about yearning to be back in education. “I miss that feeling. Easy. It’s awesome.”
Now working full-time as a teaching assistant at a school, he finds it was much simpler when he was back at university. “Well, I’m the only one with a full-time job, and it used to be way easier to rehearse when we were at school because we could do it on all the off times at the studio when no one else was rehearsing.”
When asked about how they coordinate times for rehearsals and performances when all members have additional priorities and obligations other than their music, it appears that being in the bustling city of London has prioritised the practice of structure for the band.
No longer being able to bank on rehearsals between lectures, “It’s basically weekends or bust,” Goltz exclaimed. “I’ll try to line it up with my holidays and stuff, but I set the pace for now.”
Maintaining cohesion under these conditions requires patience and perspective. With members spread across different schedules and even different countries at times, the band have decided not to take unavailability personally.
With Martin going back to Ireland for the holidays, the band has to take a break from rehearsals and performances: “You have to try really hard to not to get mad at people when they aren’t available”
Despite the trials and tribulations of being a young adult in London, it is not all bad; Dog Saints have had amazing opportunities for their music career.
One of which was recording their latest single, “Wrestlevania”, at a studio for the first time. After playing a show alongside Northampton trio Thistle, bassist and vocalist Judwyn Rushton offered to produce a few singles for free, with Quantrill recalling recording the drums in the corridor of the home studio whilst the mic was on the floor above.
Looking back to the summer of 2024, front man Will Goltz also mentioned the amazing opportunity where they had supported their American cohorts They Are Gutting A Body Of Water (TAGABOW) and Horse of Jumper of Love. “We are already really lucky, we played a lot of shows and some of whom were with my genuine heroes.”
In those moments, the band had noticed the attitudes and work ethics displayed by TAGABOW and Horse Jumper of Love: “Those guys work really hard outside of the bands they are in.”
“The drums were so loud, the whole house was shaking”
Quantrill
Dog Saints themselves portray the same beliefs: “What came with it was the realisation that if you want to make music that you want to make, you have to not be beholden to trying to make money from it.”
Juggling education, employment and a musical career is no easy task; however, the band follow through with due diligence. They make music for the love of art and not for a materialistic end goal.
There’s something quietly defiant about Dog Saints. In an industry where virality can be mistaken for essence and significance, where most artists prioritise social media and have whole teams to ensure maximum visibility, Dog Saints’ approach when it comes to navigating social media as a band differs.
“I think we are all in agreement with social media that it’s important to not lose sight of who you are,” Quantrill told me.
Within the space there is a lot of pressure for artists to put themselves out there, but the band agree on posting on social media organically. “We’re not scheduling any weekly posts. If someone records one of our sets and we think it looks good, then were proud to put it out there.”
They explained how they are currently dependent on Instagram for promotion, and despite not promoting on TikTok, their music found its way there. “Our song ‘Collar went semi viral in a strange way, but I attribute that to Will writing such bangers and earworms rather than any deliberate attempts on our behalf to blow up.”
Their songs don’t rush to explain themselves; they linger. What essentially started off as a modest Midwest emo solo project, born partly out of necessity, the founder and lead singer Will Goltz initially chose the genre’s specific tunings because he did not yet know how to play the guitar.
When asked about the process they have for creating new songs, lyricism is what sets the thematic direction for Goltz.
He mentioned the change in his lyrics compared to when he was still in education. “It’s funny, when I was a uni student, and my life was pretty good and I really didn’t have to work all the time, I felt like a loser for writing sad songs. I was like this is probably the best my life was ever going to get, and whatever.”
The existential crisis that comes with being sat at a library for eight hours was the driving force for Dog Saints’ earlier singles. However, the band has since undergone a significant sonic transformation.
They have traded those early “scuffed” beginnings for a heavier, “new gaze” and slow core sound, heavily influenced by the post-hardcore scene in Philadelphia.
Coupled with Goltz’s full-time job, the lyricism seems less sad and more about Goltz’s relationship with God. However, the band had mischievously agreed that album three would be about hustling.
When asked about what the band envision for the future of Dog Saints, they collectively agreed that an album was in order. Hopes of touring the States and Europe are another prospect they would like to pursue. “I like to be a band where I could have a normal job and then tour once a year,” Goltz confessed.
However, Timmons had a more specific request: “I think my dream is to be able to tour, but have enough money that we can shower when we’re on tour and not have to sleep on people’s floor.” He and Martin summed the band up as “Streamlined, efficient, maximising shareholder value.”
With talks about a PlayStation possibly being brought with them for their future tours, Dog Saints hopes the main message people take away from their music is encouraging others to “Tell your friends you love them.”
The band continue with shows and rehearsals in preparation for what 2026 holds, with the next one set at the George Tavern for Independent Venue Week on January 27, 2026.
All images by Muna Farah.