Clutch

The Maryland riff wizards walk us through the gear they use to shake fillings and melt faces…

- Maryland Riff

Whether you believe in a higher power or not, seeing Clutch in full flight in a live setting is an almost religious experience for those lucky enough to be in the audience. Theirs is a sonic purity unlike any other, a monolithic blues groove that resonates deep within the soul like a lost language that laid dormant in our minds over centuries of evolution. Singer/guitarist Neil Fallon and main axeman Tim Sult offer TG a rare glimpse of the guitars, amps and pedalboards that help them recognise their musical truth…

NEIL FALLON
GIBSON ES-335

1 “This is on loan from Gibson, straight off the shelf. I have one at home, but I refuse to put it in the hands of baggage handlers. Gibson was kind enough to provide guitars, though sadly I have to give them back. I started playing these because Les Pauls, even if I don’t play much during a set, tend to mess with my neck. After a while, I feel like I’m getting corkscrewed! The 335s don’t make a huge difference, but I like how the fretboards fly like an SG. I love the sensation of this thing vibrating against my beer belly. It’s also great to play it unplugged when I’m practising.”

GIBSON

LES PAUL SPECIAL

2 “This has a wider neck than the 335 does, which makes it easier for fingerpicking on songs like Regulator, Gravel Road, Electric Worry… I can get my gorilla fingers in between the strings. The wider the neck, the better it is for slide and fingers. You have more real estate, they’re a little more delicate for the right hand. It has stock P-90s and a Dungeons & Dragons modification, which doesn’t actually do anything, [the 20-sided die tone knob] I got it drilled in there for shits and giggles.”

FENDER SUPER REVERB