by Brittney Corridean
photos courtesy of Dan Winters
‘Tis the season for indoor concerts (though the weather outside has been less than frightful lately) and we all have our favorite venues in mind. If the Electric Factory is at the top of your list, then plan to see the Maryland based rock band Clutch on Monday, December 28th.
Psychic Warfare, the band’s most recent album, was released this past October. It peaked not only at #11 on Billboard’s Top 200 chart, but also made it all the way to #1 on the Top Rock and Top Hard Rock charts. For a band that has been consistently releasing albums since 1993, this was quite a feat.
“It was really a huge milestone for us,” says Clutch’s bassist, Dan Maines. “There was a bit of pressure. We knew we had to do something big after Earth Rocker (2013).” Expectations were high and the band really wanted to expand on their sound and creativity.
“We wanted the album to be a bit more diverse. Earth Rocker had a clear objective, which was just straight ahead rocker,” explains Maines. “We wanted to have more of a diverse representation, so Psychic Warfare is more melodic with funkier tunes.”
Over the past two decades Clutch has really evolved. It all started when then (and still current band mates) met in school in our neighboring state, Maryland. Drummer Jean-Paul Gaster and lead guitarist Tim Sult were involved in the schools music extracurricular such as the band and jazz ensemble. A lot of times they just got together and jammed in Gaster’s basement.
“I actually was playing the guitar,” says Maines. “I didn’t know a thing about the bass, so it was a huge learning experience for me.”
When they first started out, goals weren’t that big. In fact, they just thought about booking a few shows. Once Clutch started to perform live and they discovered how much they enjoyed the rush, everything else just took off from there.
“We just decided now was the time to do something. Over time, we made a lot of friendships and hired someone to manage our day to day. Obviously, we still have a lot to learn and in today’s music biz climate, it’s constantly changing.”
We all know how true that is. Independent labels sprouting up and platforms like Youtube and bandcamp allow for much more than bands were offered just a few years ago. Clutch originally started out playing for some major labels and had both good and bad experiences. The band went on to record with an indie label. It didn’t turn out so great. So, in 2008 when they were no longer on a label strong fan base, they decided to bring Weathermaker Music, their own label, into fruition.
As far as current touring goes to support their albums, the band’s upcoming DC show at the trendy 9:30 Club is sold out! They will however, be hitting up several music festivals later in the spring of 2016 such as Northern Invasion and Rock Fest.
“The best thing about festivals is being able to play in front of so many people. Also, there is a little less pressure since they’re are more bands,” says Maines. “It definitely gives us a chance to play for new people.”
Clutch has also frequented Philadelphia and loves coming here to play (though I’m sure they say that about most tour stops, right guys?). “Whenever we perform in Philadelphia, it’s always an energetic crowd. Electric Factory is one of our favorite venues to play [when in town]; It’s sort of a tradition of great shows.”
Tickets are still available for their 12/28 show at the Electric Factory with Crobot, Valkyrie, and Kingsnake.
