...más Vamanos Vamanos up exercises as far away from anyone that could possibly hear me, because it’s a little bit goofy. Then if I’m feeling tired I might do a couple jumping jacks, but it’s very half-assed. Because sometimes you feel like you aren’t really into it, but 9 times out of 10 when I go out on stage there is an immediate adrena- Neil Fallon of veteran rockers, Clutch, talks lacrosse, line rush when you realize there are a whole bunch of people staring at you waiting for you road trips and of course, facial hair. to impress them. That usually is the kick in the pants that one needs. As far as the band AO: Are you ready for this thing? AO: Sticking with the sports theme. Athletes as a whole, since we all write a different set- are inspired by music, pre-game, get pumped list individually each night, 10-min before the NF: Yeah. up music. Do you have any example of any show, sometimes we will get together and athletes that are inspired by your music or use kinda do the pre-game heads up if there are your music in that way? any surprises on the set-list that we need to AO: You need any preamble or instructions keep an eye out for. Dan and Tim spent a or are you just going to wing it? NF: There is a pitcher of the Baltimore Ori- good deal of time playing their guitars warm- oles that walked out to the mound last year to ing up. Jean-Paul, he plays the drums all day, NF: I’m just going to wing it, that’s when the our song “The Mob Goes Wild.” There was a so I think he is constantly in a state of being magic happens. basketball player for the Kings that was a big warmed up. fan of the band, Scott Pollard. He played for AO: All right, first question. You grew up in, the Celtics last year. AO: The time that and the whole band is from Maryland, which I have spent with is a pretty big lacrosse hot spot. Did you ev- Is there anything that you do to get you you guys, Jean- ery play and what do you know about the AO: ready for “game time”. Before a show, any Paul is constant- game? rituals? ly hitting his pads back stage. NF: I played a bit in high school but not on I switch into my stage a high school team. It was just playground NF: clothes which is not a sequin lacrosse and other than that I know that you jacket, it’s just the stinky clothes should always play with an athletic cup. That from the night before that I don’t is kind of what got me out of the whole scene. like to wear during the day. I Getting beamed once was enough to make try to do a couple vocal warm- me, ah, loose interest and pick up skating for the rest of summer. February ‘09 Mag Lax The MCLA 64 NF: And that’s also first thing in the morning NF: Ha. Did we think you were a super fan Group songs are more jammy and maybe on the bus or in hotel and he’ll be in the room boy? No, not really. I think we were a bit jad- not as restricted to the traditional rock-n-roll next to me and I’ll hear his metronome going. ed, because of one of the not so great things arrangement. Sonically it’s not as distorted, And he’ll do that in the morning and then set about the digital age is that everybody and his Tim’s guitar sound is cleaner. We are getting up the kit later on. I’ll do some stretching ex- brother is either a video director or a record in the process of writing the next Clutch re- ercises once in a while especially if the night producer. We had some experiences in the cord and I’m going through some riffs that I before was a bit over-indulgent. past with a lot of talk and no follow up. So set aside that I knew would be Clutch riffs, it took us a while to warm up to it, but then because they have that vocal friendly sound AO: You mentioned the bus. A lot of teams we realized you actually knew what you were to it. I really don’t know until I write the words in the MCLA travel by bus to away games. talking about so we were cool with it. for it. It’s a good way to exercise ourselves in Do you have any tips for fighting boredom two different ways. We know how to write a on the bus? AO: So you were fooled. rock song but it’s also fun to do other things, but we don’t want to completely dilute the two approaches by trying to kill two birds with one I think we are pretty fortunate to be living Yea. Ha. NF: NF: stone. in the age we are now with things likes ipods, iphones, PSPs, books, but nothing fights boredom better AO: You guys have been around for around than sleep. It took me a while 16-17 years now, and the Clutch sound has to work up the courage to do been very dynamic, you started out with a little it, sometimes when I’m on a hard-core, metal, punk sound to it, and then a plane, the night shade eye little 90s metal, some southern rock, and then patch and one of those little some blues mixed in. I like that you change neck pillows and ear plugs it up. Do you start out planning to make it a look ridiculous but the sensory new record sound a certain way or do you deprivation will put you right to wing it? sleep. NF: We completely wing it. I think that is the AO: It seems like a lot of fun part of writing music. You don’t know what people know your music be- to expect. Personally, I don’t say I’m going to fore they know who you are. write a certain type of riff or write a certain When I ask someone if they type of lyric. Over 17 years people change, know Clutch, they usually say and we are collective and that is going to no. But if I ask if they know a change because of the people. I can’t image particular song, they say ‘oh trying to do the same thing year after year af- yea I know that song.’ Is that what you set out ter year; I think it would be depressing. If that Are you happy with it? to do, music first, image second? Or did it just AO: means some people get bummed out, that’s happen like that? fine, but I’d rather do that and be honest about NF: Yea I’m stoked. Knowing that it was not what we are doing than do something that we always the best conditions and I’m sure that know is already proven. NF: I think we’ve never really been most videos you have to adapt on the fly to too terribly concerned with image. stuff, but I think it is a really honest repre- When we were on big labels in the AO: All the time I’ve spent with you guys you sentation of the band, where it was like the 90s they always pushed to have our have always seem very friendly with each oth- show. It was also a learning experience. I’m photo in the record or what have er, very democratic. There are so many bands sure you noticed that we aren’t hams with the you. Hind-sight, if I had to do it all that dismember because of ego or creative camera and it took us a real long time to get over again, I would even make us control, how do you guys keep that stuff in used to it. Everybody would be crackin’ up more anonymous. I thought the check? Do you really like each other? and as soon someone walked in with a cam- way Pink Floyd and Tool played it era all of a sudden it was like stock brokers was cool. Any of those dudes, well NF: [Laughing] Yea we really like each other. talking about top secret financial situations. maybe not Pink Floyd anymore, It’s a lot like brothers, we all really like each You were pretty good at carrying the camera but it would be easy for them to other like a family, sure we fight and sure there like a purse or something. walk down the street. Not that we might be a stretch of time when somebody suffer from the burden of super star- isn’t getting along with another guy, but we all dom. Image, I think is much more AO: I snuck up on Dan one time and I know that’s going to be water under the bridge cool in an artistic creative way as op- thought he was going to go through the ceil- down the road. We’ve got a good thing going posed to what the band is physically ing. He was headed to the super market for and it would be foolish to poison the well, be- supposed to represent, because I some kind of Odwalla super Juice and I had cause of something trivial.