The Elephant Riders [ECD] by Clutch (CD, Apr-1998, Columbia USA)

This is long overdue...it's been ten years now since "The Elephant Riders" hit the stands, and certainly these remarks will sound dated and uninformed. Yet they must be given voice sooner or later and sooner is probably best. As of this writing, my favorite Clutch release is "Transnational Speedway League," their first full-length album. Yet I would consider this one the keystone of their ouvre. It does have several flaws, none of them worth enumerating here since they can be corrected easily enough in the listener's mind. For me, it elucidates their role in the plane of rock music, insofar as this plane, constitutiong a network of travelling bands, can be likened to an immense circus. Each act in the world of rock & roll today belongs to a certain type; some are clowns, some contortionists, others fire-breathers, lion-tamers, knife-throwers or tightrope walkers (this last group making up perhaps the bulk of performers under the bigtop). Clutch are none of these. Perennially difficult to pin down, they make music that is thunderously loud, boyishly energetic and frequently abrasive, but never quite "macho". All the staples of American heavy metal can be found in their music--in concert, they have nevertheless acquired a jam band's reputation, coming to associate themselves with the colorful marijuana-Zen aspects of that scene. They are, therefore, the elephant riders in this circus. It's a big, muscular beast they're sitting on, and what they do may be dangerous, but they don't scowl about it. It's all just an act. Observe songs such as "Green Buckets," in which a lonely man splices warns an unnamed woman of barbarian invasions and food rationing while ostensibly inviting her to dinner. It sounds silly now, of course, but just wait 'til you hear how they pull it off!

This item was received promptly after purchase. The cd arrived as described and was purchased to add to my collection of cd's by this artist. I love this band and would recommend this cd to anyone who likes heavy music with a little blues and southern rock influence. Not their best in my opinion, but still a great album.