This past Thursday, Glasgow welcomed Maryland rockers Clutch for the third-from-last date on their almost month-long Fortune Tellers Make a Killing Nowadays Europe and UK tour. Supported by openers Bokassa and 1000Mods, the very nearly sold-out O2 Academy was in for a night of face-melting, genre-bending hard rock with a smorgasbord of tasty influences including funk, blues, stoner, punk and metal. 

Originally set to Celebrate 30 years of their self-titled debut album on this run of shows, the decision was made to mix it up by performing a different set-list every night, giving die-hard’s a unique experience at each gig and an opportunity to tick a few more songs off their ‘seen live’ lists. In Glasgow they delivered exactly what was promised, a variety of tracks spanning their 34 year career including lesser-played Ghost and Army of Bono from their 2004 album Blast Tyrant and one new track that we’ll get to later.  

I was really looking forward to finally experiencing these much-loved rock’n’roll titans first-hand after several failed attempts over the years. Could Neil Fallon’s signature vocals really be as delicious in real life?

As 9.30pm hit, the smoke machine flooded the stage with a blue haze and ‘We Need Some Money’ by Chuck Brown + the Soul Searchers played, signalling it was time. Opening with Big News 1, The Mob Goes Wild and Army of Bono, the first numbers were all a bit of a blur while I was in photographer-mode, but event with a time-limited job to do, I found myself briefly dropping my camera to join the crowd in being entranced by JP Gaster’s mesmerizing drum solo; a bold move so early on, it set the tone that Clutch weren’t there to mess around. This show was about the music, nothing else needed. – A sentiment mirrored in their stage set-up; no mic stands, no distractions, drinks kept neatly at the side, minimal wedges, just a backdrop, 4 musicians and a couple of pedals. One of the cleanest stages I’ve seen. When you sound like Clutch, you don’t need anything else. 

Even enigmatic front-man Neil Fallon could be easily over-looked, clad head-to-toe in casual, all-black attire. The quiet confidence of a man who knows his voice says it all. Like gravelly velvet, ranging from soul-stirring depths to effortless, soaring highs, the crowd hung on each word, and yes, he sounds every bit as fantastic as I’d hoped.

With such a clean stage, Neil freely moved around like a man possessed, barely stopping in any one place for a moment, like it was his mission for every single person in the crowd feel like he was singing directly to them and them alone. 

Much like the calm, coolness of the band, there was no doubt the crowd were having a fantastic night but again, there was an assured, relaxed feel to it all. No one was on show, everyone just feeling the music in their own way, it didn’t have to be flashy because it was infinitely authentic. 

‘As they say in Texas, Fuck Yea!’ called Fallon as he grabbed his guitar and the band launched into A Quick Death in Texas, it’s swaggering bass-line- performed by Dan Maines-  combined the warm yellow-orange stage lights starting to hot things up. 

Cypress Grove really got the crowd dancing with chunky riffs and an opportunity to enjoy the range of Neil’s spectacular vocals, delivered so casually as the crowd sang along. 

All good things must come to an end and after a punchy rendition of bluesy favourite, The Regulator, the white stage lights came on and the band left as a couple of the audience decided this was prime crowd-surfing time. It didn’t take long for the applause to morph in the rhythmic beat that signals ‘we want more’. I was braced, waiting for the part that Scottish crowds do best, but things got a little too quiet and for a beat I started to wonder if it was going to happen…

Then sure enough, ONE MORE CHOON, ONE MORE CHOON! (That’s ‘tune’ for readers south of the wall)

The applause was thunderous as Neil played the opening bars of Electric Worry, a sea of arms thrown up in the air, tap’s aff, air guitars in hand and the moshers finally came out to play as a pit opened up in the middle of the crowd. Neil appeared in his element, slipping back into puppet-master roll, weaving as many stories with his hands as his voice, with no unwilling participants in this crowd. At top speed the band fired into the closing track of the night, their popular cover of Credence Clearwater Revival’s Fortunate Son. 

We were all fortunate to share in this celebration of the decades-long career of Stoner Rock Stalwarts, Clutch. 4 guys on a stage, who with understated cool and confidence, blew the roof off. They don’t need anything more than their instruments and their skill to put on an impeccable, transcendental, genre-defying show.