AMG Review of Strange Cousins from the West

Jason Lymangrover
All Music Guide

The first Clutch studio release in over two years, Strange Cousins from the West is their ninth studio effort; their second recorded with producer J. Robbins at his Magpie Cage Studio in Baltimore, MD; and their first original studio release on their self-owned label, Weathermaker Music. If you're familiar with Clutch at this point in the band's career (after almost 20 years), there aren't too many surprises; it's another album filled with greasy, bluesy, down-home stoner rock. One slight variation this time around is that keyboardist Mick Schauer isn't on board -- bassist Dan Maines, drummer Jean-Paul Gaster, guitarist Tim Sult, and vocalist/guitarist Neil Fallon recorded as a four-piece -- and the lack of a Hammond organ and the stripped-down production give the album a rawer, more organic, and more spatial feel. This leaves more room for the beefy bass tone and delirious lyrics ("Anthrax, ham radio...and liquor!") to shine, but because the grooves are a touch slower and more restrained, Strange Cousins from the West is a step down from their last three albums, From Beale Street to Oblivion, Robot Hive: Exodus, and Blast Tyrant. Even if it's a little less lively, it's still pretty typical Clutch: always heavy, always solid, and ideal background music for driving a semi-truck through a swamp.