Bob Zaod
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Any Clutch fans here?
- Thread starter Fireproof
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Fireproof
Shredder
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I waited way too long. Loved Neil’s style and energy!
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I so loved the Middle East - the food and all of the stages. I spent a lot of time there in the '90s - around the same time I was living around the corner from the Rat, and wearing a hole through the Transnational Speedway CD in their jukebox most nights.I dig ‘em and while you generally always know what you’re going to get with a Clutch album, there’s still some variation in there to not be too one-dimensional. Saw them in Boston in the 00’s, I mostly remember arguing with my best friend over why he punched me in the balls in the middle of their set. We were both shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitfaced; hahahaha the Middle East in Boston has two bars, facing each other, it’s the only time I’ve ever been cut off at a bar before, so I just went to the opposite bar and started drinking there. I did have a pitcher of beer taken away from me one other time, but only because I was drinking straight out of it and wouldn’t use a cup.
I lost track of Clutch for a while, but a friend (who counts them as his favorite band) dragged me out to see them maybe 5 years ago. Good show.
I really liked their last album (very different in terms of production):
...so I'm looking forward to hearing this new one (which, so far, sounds similar in a lot of ways.)
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The Middle East is awesome just because of the history of that place, but loading in and dealing with the hollow stage is a f*cking nightmare. They still have the original steps that were put in in like 1840 where you have to load in
Carrying trap cases and 4x12’s down those stairs when they’re covered in that dirty ass slush/ice while scraping your elbows on the walls that are 3 feet apart as you drop down a 75 degree angle staircase with steps that are about 8” deep…..but it’s the Middle East! 
That’s the only place I’ve ever gotten pissed at a sound guy; my guitarists then used to run a JCM2000 full stack, he had a Power Brake on it but just kept it turned all the way up and of course it was stupid loud, the monitor guy just assumed I’d need my vocals blaring but also added the snare to my monitors, it was like a million ice picks slamming my ears. I actually asked over the mic between songs if he could come back and turn me down but when he didn’t show up I think I tried flipping a monitor over to face the opposite direction, but ended up saying ‘f*ck it” and just got down on the floor.
Both these pics were from that gig-
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Damn, I haven't seen that room in 25+ years. I never performed there - was always in the audience. This is the basement, correct? There used to be a smaller stage behind the restaurant as well, and a third stage - smaller still - at the corner bar also owned by the Middle East. For all I know they've sold that off by now. It's probably an Apple Store or something.The Middle East is awesome just because of the history of that place, but loading in and dealing with the hollow stage is a f*cking nightmare. They still have the original steps that were put in in like 1840 where you have to load in
That’s the only place I’ve ever gotten pissed at a sound guy; my guitarists then used to run a JCM2000 full stack, he had a Power Brake on it but just kept it turned all the way up and of course it was stupid loud, the monitor guy just assumed I’d need my vocals blaring but also added the snare to my monitors, it was like a million ice picks slamming my ears. I actually asked over the mic between songs if he could come back and turn me down but when he didn’t show up I think I tried flipping a monitor over to face the opposite direction, but ended up saying ‘f*ck it” and just got down on the floor.
Both these pics were from that gig-
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You, sir, have led a blessed life.
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Why have we never talked about that first Clutch cd before?
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Damn, I haven't seen that room in 25+ years. I never performed there - was always in the audience. This is the basement, correct? There used to be a smaller stage behind the restaurant as well, and a third stage - smaller still - at the corner bar also owned by the Middle East. For all I know they've sold that off by now. It's probably an Apple Store or something.
You, sir, have led a blessed life.
Yep, that was in the basement. This was in ‘07-‘08, they still had the stage upstairs but it was reserved for acoustic/solo acts. The third stage I believe turned into a separate bar, TT The Bears, unless I’m thinking of another spot…and yeah, really small stage. I think it now actually is a Starbucks or something
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Never "in context", I suppose? My exposure to Clutch began and more or less ended with that album, so even though I listened to it A LOT at the time, it was kind of ancient history for me. It wasn't until I made this "new" friend (of about 8 years now, LOL) that I became aware of their massive discography. And I've really only sampled a bit of it since. (Because, you know, I'm super busy listening to the first 6 Black Sabbath albums to make sure I haven't missed anything.)
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TT's was a different place - maybe a block in the other direction. That Starbucks is probably what used to be the little bar/dining room I was referring to. (Though who knows, maybe TT's moved into this space for a short while, too?) It was on the same block/side as the Middle East "proper", maybe two doors down, on the corner. It would have become prime real estate by circa 2000, and a Starbucks infestation wouldn't surprise me at all. I remember driving through Kenmore square about 5 years after high-tailing it out of Boston, and seeing how BU had bought up everything and sucked all the character out of the place... ugh.Yep, that was in the basement. This was in ‘07-‘08, they still had the stage upstairs but it was reserved for acoustic/solo acts. The third stage I believe turned into a separate bar, TT The Bears, unless I’m thinking of another spot…and yeah, really small stage. I think it now actually is a Starbucks or something
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That album is still my fave. The rest of their stuff is too jammy and spaced out or RAAAAAAAAWK for me. Speedway is this great mixture of noise rock and metal without being too much of either. It's a killer record.
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No argument here. I think it tends to be the rule rather than the exception, that a band's debut album is their most definitive.
That said, I actually really like the production and arrangements (a pretentious way of saying, "there are synths" LOL) on Book of Bad Decisions. It sounds a whole lot like a Pro Tools in-the-box album, which some of my muso friends have criticized, but I don't mind it. Sometimes a little cartoonish ear candy can serve a song well. Lord knows if you prefer your Clutch raw, there's already plenty of that to be found elsewhere.
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P.S. I actually saw Aerosmith play a "surprise" concert there in 95 or so. (I wasn't terribly impressed, but then I never was a fan.) Best shows I saw in that room were probably Bentmen. You've likely heard of them - rotating troupe of Boston locals who put on conceptual shows once or twice a year. I think there might be a NYC "chapter" as well. They were terrifying LOL.Yep, that was in the basement. This was in ‘07-‘08, they still had the stage upstairs but it was reserved for acoustic/solo acts. The third stage I believe turned into a separate bar, TT The Bears, unless I’m thinking of another spot…and yeah, really small stage. I think it now actually is a Starbucks or something
Fireproof
Shredder
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I’ll have to go back and listen to that one completely. It’s been a while!!
Bob Zaod
Rock Star
- Messages
- 2,872
The Middle East is awesome just because of the history of that place, but loading in and dealing with the hollow stage is a f*cking nightmare. They still have the original steps that were put in in like 1840 where you have to load in
That’s the only place I’ve ever gotten pissed at a sound guy; my guitarists then used to run a JCM2000 full stack, he had a Power Brake on it but just kept it turned all the way up and of course it was stupid loud, the monitor guy just assumed I’d need my vocals blaring but also added the snare to my monitors, it was like a million ice picks slamming my ears. I actually asked over the mic between songs if he could come back and turn me down but when he didn’t show up I think I tried flipping a monitor over to face the opposite direction, but ended up saying ‘f*ck it” and just got down on the floor.
Both these pics were from that gig-
View attachment 1207
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Of all the time I spent in Boston going to shows, hanging out and playing some shows there I never went to the Middle East. I mean I could have at some point but I dont remember it LOL. Paradise, Channel, Rat, Axis and City, Narcissus, TT's, Club 409 I think the last two were in Fitchburg but my memory is fuzzy. I was heavily into Toxic Narcotic and some of the other brutal bands. Cardinal Sin? One band with a big guy singer named Glenn but can't remember their name. Stompbox and Gang Green who both had some brief success. I know I jammed with the bass player in Murphy's Law at some point who I think ended up with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones.
Some of my memories from there blend with my time in the Tampa Bay area because I was such a drunkard back then.
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