Sawtooth Witch is Making a Scene

May 30, 2026

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Making a Scene Presents an Interview with Sawtooth Witch

Sawtooth Witch was born out of restlessness and the open road. After years of crisscrossing the country with a string of bands, multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Pat “Doc” Dougherty found himself chasing something he couldn’t quite name — a sound that lived somewhere between the genres he’d spent a lifetime soaking in. He found the missing piece when he reconnected with old friend and collaborator Haley Fleming, whose fiddle playing carried the ghost of Appalachian hollers and the grit of a late-night juke joint in equal measure. Together, they started building something that didn’t fit neatly into any box — and that was exactly the point.

The duo sharpened their edge the old-fashioned way, playing every tavern, dive bar, and roadhouse they could find up and down Highway 61, the storied corridor that gave American roots music its backbone. Night after night, the songs took shape — a raw, soulful collision of hill-country blues, cosmic country, and traces of hypnotic, pulse-driven house music that no one saw coming but everyone felt on the dance floor. It’s the kind of sound that dares you to define it, then slips out of reach the moment you try.

That fearless energy has landed Sawtooth Witch on stages alongside some of the most respected names in American music, including Joan Baez, Tom Morello, Maggie Rogers, Cedric Burnside, Charlie Parr, Alan Sparhawk (of Low), Davy Knowles, Rhys Chatham, John McCutcheon, Bob Log III, and Arrested Development, among many others. Whether opening for legends or headlining their own sweat-soaked sets, the band delivers with an intensity that leaves rooms buzzing long after the last note fades.

Their debut album, The Chariot, was recorded by Holly Hansen at Salon Sonics in Minneapolis and mixed by Nat Harvie, capturing the duo’s live-wire chemistry with a fidelity that honors the raw spirit of the performances. In 2025, the lead single “The Hustle” was named Best New Music by MSP Magazine, RACKET, and 89.3 The Current — a trifecta of Twin Cities tastemakers recognizing what audiences along Highway 61 already knew: Sawtooth Witch is the real deal.

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