Many of us like a good guitar riff and when you’re in that mood, few bands do that groovy rock better than America’s Clutch. ‘Psychic Warfare’ is their eleventh studio record, so is there any fuel left in the tank to give fans what they want?
On the scene since the early nineties, fans of good old straight ahead rock music will be familiar with their work. They’ve churned out a multitude of albums in that time and the band members are still only in their early to mid-forties. Of course, such longevity raises its own problems; how do you keep the creativity and freshness going? Well, if ‘Psychic Warfare’ is anything to go by there was certainly enough for a new album and probably a lot more for the future.
‘Psychic Warfare’ is the 11th studio album that Clutch have released.
Though technically the second track on the album (the first, ‘The Affidavit‘, is thirty seconds of background chatter and dialogue), ‘X-ray visions’ grabs you by the scruff of the neck and gets your blood pumping with a rhythm that lets you know they mean business straight away. The pace doesn’t let up with ‘Firebirds‘ and the two songs are perfect soundtracks to get your pulse racing and put fire in your belly.
Dropping things down a touch with ‘A Quick Death In Texas‘ allows Clutch to show off their bluesy leanings with a very groovy riff that’ll get you nodding your head. Getting into the middle of the album, it’s becoming clear that regardless of whether they want to be full on and in your face or taking a step back, they certainly haven’t lost their touch in creating riffs that make you sit up and take notice. You can be on your sofa with your hi-fi system on, listening to Spotify on the bus or have the album on in the car and you’ll find yourself nodding along with what’s on offer.
Getting into the second half of the record and things really drop down to an epic, bluesy lament in ‘Our Lady Of Electric Light‘. It puts you in mind of a tale told set in a dusty small town in a western film, but with a more modern soundtrack. Things soon get back to business as usual though with ‘Noble Savage‘, followed by the swinging rhythms of ‘Behold The Collosus‘ and ‘Decapitation Blues‘. Album closer ‘Son Of Virginia‘ is somewhat of a departure from the rest of the album with a more mellow feel, but still with all the aforementioned groove and bluesy guitar licks. After a couple of minutes, the loud and fun approach comes back into play and a heavy riff sees out the album.
There aren’t many people I know that don’t like a bit of fuzzy guitar in their music collection and sometimes this only extends to fairly accessible bands like Foo Fighters. However, if you have more than a passing interest in music that’s a little bit rockier, you’ll be missing out if you don’t give ‘Psychic Warfare’ a spin. It’s well produced and it’s been put together by a band who knows what they’re doing and looks likely to keep on doing it for a good few years yet. Neil Fallon’s growly vocals are the perfect lead to Tim Sult, Dan Mains and Jean Paul-Gaster’s raucous rhythm section and every quarter of the band feels like a well-oiled, efficient machine. Get ready to flex your neck muscles, Clutch want you to rock!
8/10
Author – Steve, Bristol store
Check out ‘X-Ray Visions‘ below, please note that this video may not be appropriate for younger audiences.
