Rock outfit Clutch are one of the finest ever exponents of their craft, laying down repeated slabs of musical gold that differ enough from the previous album to showcase their musical diversity within what has increasingly become a limited genre.
They have consistently pushed the boundaries of rock/hard rock and turned their music into a trial by fire with rock being the common denominator.
Following the overwhelming success of 2018's Book Of Bad Decisions, Clutch are ready to unveil their latest masterpiece Sunrise On Slaughter Beach on September 16, with drummer Jean Paul Gaster sitting down with HEAVY to discuss what to expect.
"It's the latest of many records we've made," he began. "We've been a band now for 31 years, so making new records for us is part of what we do. I will say that the thing that makes this record different than the previous ones is that we are very much a live band and we like to play these new ideas on stage before we actually record them. It's very much a testing ground for us so as a drummer when we have a new idea I will put it on stage and I can tell immediately if the tempo is where it needs to be. I know if the swing is where it needs to be. So all this information goes into making what the record will be when we actually get into the studio. We were not afforded that opportunity this time. We had to rely on our instincts and I think we experimented a lot more in the studio than we would have had we been able to put these songs on the stage."
We ask if that's a good thing, to which Gaster replied, "I think in the end it is. It made for a very different record. It's certainly a different record than I thought it was going to be. When we started the writing process I had this idea of what the record might sound like... we never have a band meeting that says okay, we're gonna make a blues record this time, we just get together and jam. I had an idea what I thought it was going to be, but in the end the record really was quite different. It's a moodier record than I anticipated and I think dynamically there's further range than I thought there would be."
In the full innterview, Jean talks more about the songs on Sunrise On Slaughter Beach, the singles released and how they represent the album, the diversity within Clutch's music, using female back ups for the first time on this album, how Sunrise On Slaughter Beach differs musically to Book Of Bad Decisions, future touring plans and more.