“Let’s have a party,” said singer Neil Fallon with a grin as Clutch took the stage for the first of two nights in Melbourne. The huge response from the sell-out crowd suggested many were already in party mode, and no wonder.
Rocking blues thump-rock duo King of the North had earlier thundered out a quick-fire set, one of their last shows before taking a break to record the follow up to their breakthrough debut album Sound the Underground.
KOTN were followed by Australian rock royalty Cosmic Psychos, who had some technical problems. “I patched this lead up about ten years ago, now I think its properly fucked,” said bassist/singer Ross Knight, as he tossed said lead side of stage. Killing time, the band made repeated jokes about the statues at the Forum having no cocks. Despite sourcing a new lead, the fuzz and crackle continued, but the trio didn’t let it get in the way of delivering their pioneering, high-octane and hilarious brew of in your face entertainment. Grungy number Better Not Bitter (with the vocal refrain “Fuckin bullshit mate”), Come On Cunt and Dead in A Ditch went down a treat.
By the time Clutch’s epic naval artillery banner was lowered, the mostly male crowd was well lubricated and in a jovial mood. Clutch started with two of the faster songs from new album Psychic Warfare – the single X-Ray Visions and Firebirds! The set was dominated by newer material, featuring seven songs from Psychic Warfare and four from previous album Earth Rocker. Old favourite Burning Beard was given an offbeat reworking, with drummer JP Gaster showcasing his jazzy skills.
Clutch switched between rollicking tracks like Pure Rock Fury and slower bluesy ballads like The Regulator, and their cover of Gravel Road featuring Fallon on guitar. Neil Fallon was at his best without the constraint of the guitar, prowling the stage and preaching his extensive lexis with wide eyes and erratic hands gestures. His machine gun attack on the microphone made his voice more like a percussion instrument.
The other three band members just got it done. Guitarist Tim Sult and bassist Dan Maines kept their heads down and soldiered through difficult tempo changes. Clutch also hit some technical snags, but their professionalism (forged over 25 years) showed why they maintain such a devoted following.
Clutch finished with heavy hitter The Mob Goes Wild and a mash up of Electric Worry and One Eyed Dollar. These brought the house down, but also made you think of what they’d missed from earlier albums. As Fallon said goodbye he invited everyone to the following night’s show at the Corner and promised an entirely different set.
LOVED: Seeing Clutch sell out the Forum.
HATED: The audience and the bands being distracted by technical issues.
DRANK: $9 Lashes tins.
BY JAMES RIDLEY
