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| MSJ:
Can you catch the readers up on the history of the band? |
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The four of us formed Clutch in 92. We have toured and made records since then. |
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| MSJ: How were you guys chosen for the Motorhead tour? |
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I like to think it's cause Lemmy likes us. |
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| MSJ: What has the reception been like considering Motorhead fans are pretty hardcore? |
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Opening for Motorhead was no chore. Their fans appreciate rock n roll with no frills. |
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| MSJ: I've noticed that the set list changes a lot. How do you go about picking a set list? |
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We take turns making a new set list every night. Dan makes the first, I take second then Neil and Tim last. Then we repeat until the tour ends. |
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| MSJ: If you weren't involved in music what do you think you'd be doing? |
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Maybe I would be a chef. I was a welder once. That sucked. |
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| MSJ: How did the name of the group originate? |
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We liked short one word names like Helmet, Prong and Fugazi. It was going to be Clutch or Belt. Clutch is the better name. |
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| MSJ: Who would you see as your musical influences? |
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Bad Brains, Elvin Jones, King Tubby, Wino. |
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| MSJ: What's ahead for you? |
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More touring and making new songs. We will record a new album this winter. |
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| MSJ: I know artists hate to have their music pigeonholed or labeled, but how would you describe your music? |
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Rock n Roll |
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| MSJ: Are there musicians with whom you would like to play with in the future? |
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I met Skeric the other night at a Garage a Trios show. They jammed. |
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| MSJ: Do you think that illegal downloading of music is a help or hindrance to the careers of musicians? |
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Thankfully most of our fans are dedicated enough to buy the record either in CD form or off iTunes. |
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| MSJ: In a related question, how do you feel about fans recording shows and trading them? |
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Fine by me. We are a live band first. |
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| MSJ: If you were in charge of assembling a music festival and wanted it to be the ultimate one from your point of view who would be playing? |
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Bad Brains, Dr John, Chuck Brown and the Soul Searchers, Kamchatka, and Mastodon. I would pick these bands because the music is good and they are all still alive. |
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| MSJ: What was the last CD you bought and/or what have you been listening to lately? |
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Garage a Trios. |
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| MSJ: Have you read any good books lately? |
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Currently reading Cormac McCarthy's Sutree. |
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| MSJ: What about the last concert you attended for your enjoyment? |
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Garage a Trios...before that was Sonny Fortune. |
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| MSJ: Do you have a musical “guilty pleasure?” |
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I don't feel guilty about anything I listen to. |
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| MSJ: What has been your biggest Spinal Tap moment? |
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More than once I could not find the stage. |
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| MSJ: If you could sit down to dinner with any three people, living or dead, for food and conversation, with whom would you be dining? |
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Thelonius Monk, Baby Dodds and Jimi Hendrix. |
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| MSJ: What would be on the menu? |
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My wife would make her Cajun dirty rice. I would serve Blue Label Chimay. |
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| MSJ: Are there any closing thoughts you would like to get out there? |
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We are collaborating with New Belgium Brewery on a beer. We brew next week. The style will be a strong dark sour ale. It will knock your socks off. |
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| MSJ: This interview is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2011 Volume 3 at lulu.com/strangesound. |
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