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Clutch is three decades into their career and showing no signs of slowing down. But what’s their secret recipe for long-term success? In a recent interview with Full Metal Jackie, Clutch frontman Neil Fallon discussed the band’s unique songwriting process, upcoming music, and their place in the broader rock landscape.
Fallon reflected on how the band develops songs through jamming together, but not every idea makes the final cut, reflecting on the joy of spontaneous moments in songwriting (via Loudwire): “Sometimes I think the best songs are the ones that wrote themselves the fastest. They seem to kind of fall out of the sky, especially when you’ve got four people trying to think as one brain. Sometimes you can get synchronicity and sometimes you get friction. But I think that the satisfying thing is when you have that kind of eureka or aha moment when you realize “Oh, this is what the song is about.” It could be incredibly frustrating, but I think that’s what anyone who does something creative understands – that when you look back at it, especially when you see someone singing along or playing air guitar from something you did years ago, that never gets old”
Fallon also revealed that the band is in the early stages of writing and demoing for a new album, with hopes to hit the studio in early 2025: “We’ve started the writing process. We’ve done a little pre-production, which is just basically making demos. And we’ll do that again after we finish the tour with Rival Sons in October and December and kind of keep doing that and hopefully record early to mid-spring, I’m guessing. That would hopefully put an album out by the last quarter of 2025. That sounds like it’s far away, but I think that’s going to come up a lot quicker than we realize.”
The conversation touched on Clutch‘s evolution as a band, particularly how Fallon‘s songwriting has been shaped by his exposure to different music genres over the years. Reflecting on his early years with the band, he said: “I was 19 when I started with these guys. And when you’re that age, you kind of have a very narrow view of music. You’re only like this and only like that. But having been in it all these years and being exposed to so many different kinds of music, I like to think I’ve come to appreciate all sorts of genres and things that I never would have thought I listened to 30 years ago. I think you realize you could listen to everything 24 hours a day, and you still only scratch the surface of music that humanity has made. So I think I’ve become more philosophical about it, that I feel blessed to participate in this conversation.”
Fallon also discussed revisiting Clutch‘s debut album, Transnational Speedway League, which has been remastered and released on vinyl: “I know I can sing a lot better than I used to. I was just kind of throwing it over the fence to see where it landed. And most of those lyrics were written the day before we tracked them. It sounds like a different person to me, both in the delivery and the lyrics.”
In discussing the longevity of bands like Aerosmith and The Rolling Stones, Fallon acknowledged how vital it is for musicians to stay healthy: “When you’re in your 20s and 30s, you think you’re unstoppable. But music is a physical thing, and if you don’t have your health, you can’t really deliver the music, whether it be singing or playing drums. You can do your best and sometimes fate deals bands and artists an awful hand despite their best efforts. So I think we’re very lucky. But you can alter the odds a little bit if you take care of yourself. Going out to the bar after the show isn’t nearly as appealing as it was in 1997. I like to put on my shorts and go to bed, and that’s okay because I’d like to do it the next day.”
“That’s one thing I’ve learned is the voice, you gotta treat it with kid gloves. I could probably come across as very antisocial. It’s just that I don’t feel like talking after screaming for an hour and a half. The minute that we’re finished with the set is thinking, “Okay, now let’s do it again tomorrow and do all the right things that will get you to that tomorrow.” If that means a pair of sweatpants and watching Breaking Bad, so be it.”