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Imagine
our solar system as a barnyard dance. You sneak off for
a
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cold beer and you stand there on
Pluto, the last planet, as the ritual unfolds before you.
A great fire burns from the center. Planets circle the fire,
one ring outside the next, nine deep with moons to spare.
Solar flares and asteroids pass between the dancers like
drunken kids. Distant pulsars roar like warring cousins.
You listen and each planet's sound is unique. Some rotate
slowly – others are fast. Some drift in harmony and others
wage sonic battle. The cosmic rotations emit notes, beats,
and songs. Humphrey Bogart's voice booms across deep space:
"Stop it, you know what I want to hear." The celestial hoedown
is renewed – a new Clutch record is born. Clutch has officially
released six studio records, assorted EPs, outtakes, 7"s
and a live record over its long career, and the band's discography
includes hundreds of songs, extends to other projects such
as the Bakerton Group, and includes guest appearances on
other records, one-off cover songs and side projects, and
the thousands of bootlegs that circulate from their live
concerts. Clutch is less a band than a vast compendium of
styles and experiments. Attentive listeners will sometimes
hear Led Zeppelin in their songs and instrumentations, while
others will recognize the dynamics of John Coltrane, the
eccentricity of Frank Zappa, the blues-soul of Elmore James,
or the lyrical invention of Chuck D. But the Clutch sound
is never derivative; Clutch is an encyclopedia of musical
styles, and they burn every page down into gold. It's sonic
alchemy. The band's most recent studio effort is "Blast
Tyrant" (2004). It is the sixth full-length Clutch record
to date. Pre-production was done mostly at drummer Jean
Paul Gaster's home studio in Maryland, while basic tracking
was recorded between Water Music and the Machine Shop (Hoboken,
NJ). "Blast Tyrant" is also the band's first album for DRT
Records. Blast Tyrant is the first Clutch studio record
since "Pure Rock Fury" (2001). Dedicated fans will recognize
that Blast Tyrant is perhaps closest to continuing the musical
precedent set by their self-released fourth album "Jam Room"
(1999). The songs alternate between compact form and elaborate
instrumental sections. The songs are also diverse in styles,
throwing unexpected beats and melodies at the listener.
The record's eccentric full title - "Blast Tyrant's Atlas
Of The Invisible World Including Illustrations Of Strange
Beasts And Phantasms" – sprawls out like the title of their
debut full-length, while it's semi-conceptual narrative
may remind some of "Elephant Riders". But concepts are always
loose when it comes to Clutch music. High and low, short
and long, city and country, sound waves and light years
– Clutch continues to escape definition and comparison.
"Blast Tyrant" also features new instrumentations, such
as acoustic guitars (on "Ghost" and "The Regulator"). These
can now be added to their musical experiments with astrolabes,
go-go beats, cowbells, harmonica, fiddles, alembics, and
other strange devices. There are also some keyboard sections
on the record, and this marks a return to an instrument
that was used to different effect when they last employed
it on their second, self-titled
record (1995). Clutch has passed the three years since their
last record where they passed the ten years before that:
on the road. Their most recent tours have included Deftones,
System Of A Down, Biohazard, and Corrosion Of Conformity
in the US, and they toured Japan and Europe with Spiritual
Beggars. The list stretches back over the 1990's like a
comet's tail: Slayer, Marilyn Manson, Pantera, Monster Magnet,
Prong, Sepultura. Clutch shows are the stuff of legend and
the band has performed everywhere from college bars to sold-out
arenas. They continue their proud tradition as a great live
act that brings fans of various styles together under a
single roof. And their fans return, from one show to the
next, and one year to the next, for over one decade, to
hear the musical experiment known as Clutch. Twelve years
strong, six albums deep, and almost two thousand concerts
old, Clutch holds its unique course across the musical universe.
www.pro-rock.com
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