Way back in 93 I was 16 and music was (and still is) my boyfriend. I went through the journey of learning my roots of classic rock that is Bad Company and Zepplin, to discovering the anger and political commentary that was the metal gods of Metallic and Overkill. From there, I was introduced to the punk rock of Fugazi and Minor Threat and eventually discovered the local hardcore scene and fell in love with bands like Madball, Sick of it All and Leeway. My girl and I would go to shows basically every weekend and have a good time listening to these bands play their hearts out.
One such evening we were at Studio One and some random band takes the stage. The singer introduced themselves and they tore into their first song with a vengeance. The sound was unlike anything I had heard at this time, heavy rhythm guitar setting the pace throbbing and thumping into my spirit. And then I heard the singer say this line“HariKari with a combine come dancing with me” and I lost myself. Straight up frenzy!!! The lyrics to “Shogun Named Marcus” are some of the best wordsmithing I had heard up until this point in my short life.
A few of the reasons Clutch became and always will be one of my all time favorite bands is that in the 23 years I have been listening to them, the sound has evolved as these musicians grew up from the hillbilly hardcore I first fell in love with to the amazing jam band they are today. Each and every song tells a story not just a personal tale, but a tale from history or a story that they need to tell.
If you watch The Walking Dead “Regulator” may sound familiar to you. They used the song for the episode Nebraska. I love this song because it is about the passing of time and looking back on life with a smidge of regret.
“Soapmakers“ is another story that the band tells. This song transports me into the backwood Appalachian hills filled with magic and wisdom of it’s residents.
Whenever they are in town, I go see them. There is nothing like a Clutch show and I have the pleasure and luck to living in their home state and seeing them at the 9:30 club. Neil Fallon – the singer, is a true showman. He isn’t flamboyant, however, he is one of those dudes that has charisma +5. They play mostly clubs and festivals – no arena rock here, which I am grateful for. In a club you can get up close and personal. The sound doesn’t travel very far to reach your ear. Each time I have seen them (and it has been at least 23 times) they sound tight and you can tell that they are having fun up there. There is nothing like being in a crowd of die-hard fans signing along. It gives me goosebumps thinking about it!
Check out those links.. let me know what you think….