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Visions of yetis, wing-sprouting blacksnakes and elephants driven by
Civil War soldiers may all seem like by-products of an intense
hallucinogen, but for the members of Clutch, these surreal images
converge with pummeling hard rock on a warped journey into American
folklore on their aptly titled third album, The Elephant Riders.
"The Elephant Riders is, for lack of a better phrase, historical fiction,"
says Neil Fallon, the groups prime lyricist and vocalist. "Initially, I
wanted to create a whole alternate nineteenth century where war is
waged with airships and elephants. I quickly realized that this scenario
was way too large." The imaginative 26-year-old's outlandish narratives
have become as much of a Clutch staple as their lofty, sinuous brand
of rock'n'roll.
Dubbed "the Charles Dickens of hardcore" by his fellow bandmates,
Fallon created pastoral Southern communes on "The Soapmakers,"
envisioned holiday wishes gone awry on "Wishbone" and waited for his
"Ship of Gold" to come in. These references to the past are largely
influenced by the group's collective move to a rural home near Harper's
Ferry, WV. "I had never considered myself a history buff, but living in
that house forced history upon me," says Fallon of the former
plantation. "All of a sudden I was living in a home that had been witness
to all but a few years of American history."
Clutch, which is rounded out by drummer Jean Paul Gaster, guitarist
Tim SuIt and bassist Dan Maines, have stayed true to their small-town
roots since forming in Germantown MD shortly after graduating from
high school in 1991. One year later, they unleashed the critically
acclaimed three-song EP, Passive Restraints (for indie label Earache),
an explosive summary of their early--and raw--abrasive sound. Shortly
after, they moved to EastWest/Elektra Records and followed up with a
proper debut, Transnational Speedway League, all the while gaining a
reputation as a ferocious live band on tours with everyone from Pantera
to Marilyn Manson.
Still, it wasn't until releasing their 1995 self-titled album that Clutch
shed their hardcore skin and ascended into a whole other musical
realm. Christened "stoner rock" by some, their sound married creeping,
down-tuned guitar chords with whirling rhythms and Fallon's ominous
verses. The song "Spacegrass," about cruising the in a ‘73 Dodge
Swinger, was deemed an anthem to light up to. Despite the allusion to
marijuana, the band hesitates to advocate their green muse. "I would
never tell someone to do this [pot]," says Gaster. "Everybody's got to
figure out all those things for themselves. I've always believed that
drugs should be legalized. I've thought that a long time." Supporting the
cause. Clutch performed last year's MASS CANN Freedom Rally in
Boston.
In the three-year break between records, Clutch toured constantly,
were dropped by their record label (but quickly found a new home at
Columbia) and recruited legendary producer Jack Douglas (Patti Smith,
Cheap Trick) for The Elephant Riders. So how do they feel about their
latest creation? "On the last album, we didn't concentrate so much on
songs as we did really just try to set different tones," Gaster explains. "I
think we really got good at doing that. Now we've taken those tones
and made them into songs. The whole thing swings a lot more than it
ever has."
"It's the opposite of minimalist," adds Maines. "We're taking the
maximalist approach."
Clutch's sentiments towards re-envisioning the past seem to ripple
beyond both their lyrical inspirations and live performances into a
completely separate dimension where neither the listener nor the band
is in control. "The performance," Fallon declares, "turns from us playing
the music to the music playing us."
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