CLUTCH @ Club Xtreme - Cameron Park, CA 1998...also on the bill were SEVENDUST & STUCK MOJO http://pro-rock.com Though each of Clutch's albums is marked by its own distinct and cohesive sound, the band's musical style may be said to have migrated from metallic hardcore punk to hard rock over the course of its career, with strong blues influences becoming more prominent in later years. As vocalist/guitarist Neil Fallon notes, "We've been really conscious of the blues over the last couple of years, and you have to admit that the blues really is the source of all rock and roll. I think it's important to go to the source to find that inspiration."[1]
Clutch's lyrics, at first angry and serious in tone, had by the time of 1993's Transnational Speedway League become characterized by intelligence, wordplay, and often humor (although comedy is not usually the focus). Their songs make frequent reference to history, mythology, popular culture, and religion—for example, "I Have the Body of John Wilkes Booth", from their self-titled album, tells the story of a fisherman who discovers the corpse of Lincoln's assassin in the Susquehanna River, and Jam Room's "Release the Kraken" inserts a hero called "Useless the Younger" into the movie Clash of the Titans. At other times the lyrics contain some very surreal imagery, as in this quote from Robot Hive/Exodus's "Burning Beard": "Every time I look out my window/ same three dogs looking back at me. Every time I open my windows/ cranes fly in to terrorize me."
Formed in 1991, Clutch built a local following through constant gigging, and after just one 7" single (the classic Earache release "Passive Restraints") Clutch was signed by EastWest Records. Their debut LP, Transnational Speedway League, followed in 1993. A self-titled album appeared two years later and afforded Clutch some mainstream exposure. They jumped to the larger Columbia label for 1998's Elephant Riders, and many thought the group might join their sonic cousins Korn and Deftones in the alternative metal winner's circle. That didn't quite happen. But it didn't matter, because a quality fan base continued to thrive for Clutch.
Pure Rock Fury appeared in 2001. The title track was initially released as the first single from the band's Atlantic debut. However, the Program Director for North Carolina Rock station, WXQR (Rock 105), Brian Rickman, suggested that the label switch singles to another track from the album: "Careful With That Mic". Atlantic did so and Clutch was afforded a surprise hit single. The follow-up tracks, "Immortal" and "Open Up The Border" were also well received by American Rock stations.
The similarly uncompromising Blast Tyrant came three years later as their first for DRT Records. Again, the band enjoyed more Rock radio airplay thanks to the single "The Mob Goes Wild" (with a video directed by Bam Margera).
Their seventh full-length, Robot Hive/Exodus, followed in 2005 and featured the first lineup change since the early '90s, the addition of organist Mick Schauer. Among Clutch's numerous side releases were a groove-based album (2000's Jam Room), as well as Live at the Googolplex and the rarities record Slow Hole to China, both issued in 2003. Also issued in 2005, Pitchfork & Lost Needles combined Clutch's 1991 Pitchfork 7" with unreleased demos and early tracks.
In the fall of 2006, the band hit the studio with producer Joe Barresi (Kyuss, Melvins, Tool) to record their next album; the resulting From Beale Street to Oblivion appeared in March 2007. While the band has not recovered their previous radio airplay with subsequent releases, Clutch have accumulated a devoted cult following. This following has been cultivated by an ambitious touring schedule; the band has often performed more than 100 shows per year. In fact, a 30-plus-date U.S. tour has been scheduled for early 2007, with a European tour following that.
As of January 24, 2007, the track "Electric Worry" can be streamed online.
The album was leaked onto the internet in early March. Critical reaction to the album has been overwhelmingly positive: the influential magazine Metal Hammer called it a future classic, the best album the group has ever produced, and easily a front runner for album of the year.
[edit] Members
* Neil Fallon -- vocals, guitar, harmonica
* Tim Sult -- guitar
* Dan Maines -- bass guitar
* Jean-Paul Gaster -- drums
* Mick Schauer -- organ
[edit] Trivia and other info
* Clutch fans often refer to themselves as "gearheads", in reference to the fact that a clutch is a transmission component.
* In 1997, "Escape From the Prison Planet" appeared in the movie Escape From L.A..
* Clutch tracks have appeared in three video games:
o In 2003, "Impetus" found its way onto the soundtrack for Tony Hawk's Underground.
o In 2004, "Immortal" was featured in, Hitman: Contracts.
o In 2006, "10001110101" could be played on a jukebox at the start of Prey.
* In their 2005 album Robot Hive / Exodus, Clutch pays homage to the Canadian rock band Rush in the song "10001110101". The song makes references to the song "2112 Part II: The Temples of Syrinx" from the 1976 album 2112 and has a similar chorus to Rush's song "The Body Electric" from the 1984 album Grace Under Pressure to which the lyrics are "1001001".
* Clutch has also contributed 2 songs, "The Mob Goes Wild" and "Careful With That Mic...", to the extreme mountain biking movie series New World Disorder.
[edit] Other projects
In the late 1990s, Clutch and its sibling project The Bakerton Group (an instrumental blues band composed of Clutch members Maines, Sult, Gaster, and Schauer) formed an independent record label, River Road Records, to release their own music. River Road does not sign any other artists. To date, The Bakerton Group has only released one 3-track EP, Space Guitars, which is available to download for free from Clutch's official website. http://capitalchaos.net
Tags: clutch rock metal southern thrash punk blues
