Maryland rock band Clutch will release its 14th studio album, “Wasted Lands,” on Jan. 22, 2027, via its own Weathermaker Music. A variety of pre-order bundles are available here, and the music video for the title track can be seen below.
Written and recorded at its longtime Frederick, Maryland, base, the Doom Saloon, “Wasted Lands” reunites Clutch with producer Machine for the first time since 2015’s “Psychic Warfare.”
“The inspiration for the lyrics in ‘Wasted Lands’ came about when it was brought to my attention that someone had been dragging my name on Facebook (weird, right?),” frontman Neil Fallon said. “Apparently, I had reneged on a free T-shirt and dinner. I think it was a prize in a pay to play contest. Not to overstate the obvious, but it was a load of horse hockey. Many people tried to explain to this person that it was not me and that they had been hustled. But they simply would not believe it. So I thought, screw it, no half-measures. You want a monster? Let’s give you one.”
Beneath Fallon’s lyrical story-craft, Jean-Paul Gaster, Dan Maines and Tim Sult lock into a classic-Clutch, riff-driven groove featuring an intentional and strategically placed bass-drum hit from Gaster. One he knew would make the live crowd go wild.
“There’s a part where Neil says, ‘Vegetable, mineral, man, or beast.’ And I put a bass drum on, ‘man or beast,’ and Machine thought that was kind of weird,” Gaster said. “He was like, ‘Man, you’re covering up the vocal!’ And I said, ‘No, that bass drum is gonna make the crowd go nuts, I guarantee it.’ And it does, because there’s nothing more exciting than having a big bass drum slam through a PA, and Neil singing a vocal on top of it. I mean, I get goosebumps from that, you know?”
Across “Wasted Lands,” Clutch keeps its riff-heavy foundations intact while making room for a sharper melodic streak. Tracks including “Colorado Fuel and Iron,” “Stage Fright” and “Loaf and Jug” build their weight around chord progressions as much as individual riffs. “Beware the Fever” brings banjo onto a Clutch record for the first time, using a rough demo played by Fallon and recorded by Gaster during a writing session. Despite several attempts to re-record the performance, nothing quite came close so the original recording is what went on the record.
Fallon’s lyrics open in the rubble of the Georgia Guidestones on “The Drifter Returns” and close beneath an exploding star on “The Message is Clear.” The route between them runs through Colorado’s Highway 50, abandoned company towns, corporate appetites, creature-feature horror and deep space.
“Exploded monuments, haunted coal towns, robber barons, time cops, a chestburster, 15 tons of antimatter and a creature called Neil Patrick Fallon,” the band said. “‘Wasted Lands’ came from one clear intention: write a great rock record that will make fans go nuts when they hear these songs live, while leaving enough space in the creative process to follow the unexpected turns that keep Clutch exciting to us and our fans after 35 years together.”
“Wasted Lands” track listing:
- The Drifter Returns
- Stage Fright
- Loaf ‘N Jug
- High Class Action Lawsuit
- Chestburster
- Beware the Fever
- Wound Collector
- Colorado Fuel and Iron
- Streets Are His
- The Green Skull
- Wasted Lands
- The Message Is Clear
Clutch has assembled an extensive variety of physical pre-order items. The standard black vinyl edition, cassette and standard CD will be available everywhere, alongside the following exclusive editions:
- Red vinyl, exclusive to clutchmerch.com
- Red CD, exclusive to clutchmerch.com
- Yellow Smoke vinyl, exclusive to US independent retail
- Green Smoke vinyl, exclusive to Amazon.com
- Sea Blue Smoke vinyl, exclusive to TalkShopLive
- Blue vinyl, available internationally through HMV in the UK, JBL in Germany, FNAC in France and JB in Australia
U.S. fans will have the opportunity to experience some of the new material from “Wasted Lands” for the first time when the band head out on its 16-date U.S. headline tour in October 2026 with support from Slomosa and Blood Vulture. Tickets are available from clutchmerch.com
Clutch tour dates:
With Slomosa and Blood Vulture
Fri, Oct 16 | Charlotte, NC | The Fillmore Charlotte
Sat, Oct 17 | North Myrtle Beach, SC | House of Blues
Sun, Oct 18 | Jacksonville, FL | FIVE
Tue, Oct 20 | Tampa, FL | The Ritz Ybor
Thu, Oct 22 | New Orleans, LA | House of Blues|
Fri, Oct 23 | Robinsonville, MS | Bluesville at Horseshoe Tunica
Sun, Oct 25 | Fayetteville, AR | Ozark Music Hall
Tue, Oct 27 | West Des Moines, IA | Val Air Ballroom
Wed, Oct 28 | Green Bay, WI | EPIC Event Center *Date changed
Fri, Oct 30 | East Moline, IL | The Rust Belt
Sat, Oct 31 | Cincinnati, OH | The Andrew J Brady Music Center
Sun, Nov 1 | Fort Wayne, IN | The Clyde Theatre
Tue, Nov 3 | South Burlington, VT | Higher Ground
Thu, Nov 5 | Hampton Beach, NH | Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
Fri, Nov 6 | Wilkes-Barre, PA | F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts
Sat, Nov 7 | Norfolk, VA | The NorVa
Australia 2027 with Corrosion of Conformity
Sat, Jan 23 | Perth | Metropolis Fremantle
Mon, Jan 25 | Brisbane | Eatons Hill Hotel
Wed, Jan 27 | Sydney | Enmore Theatre
Fri, Jan 29 | Melbourne | Forum Theatre
Sat, Jan 30 | Adelaide | Froth & Fury Festival
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