After a year of heavy touring, Maryland rock stalwarts Clutch are finally preparing to lay down tracks for their fourteenth studio album. In a new interview with the U.K.’s Metal Hammer magazine, vocalist Neil Fallon provided a concrete timeline for the band’s return to the studio, targeting the first quarter of 2026 to begin recording the follow-up to 2022’s Sunrise On Slaughter Beach.
Fallon revealed that while the band had started the creative process earlier in the year, the demands of the road forced a pause.
“We did begin a pre-production and writing session earlier this year, but then we went back out on tour,” Fallon explained to Metal Hammer. “There will be another writing session in January, and the plan is to record in late January or early February.”
Despite the firm recording schedule, fans shouldn’t expect an immediate release. Fallon noted the logistical realities of modern vinyl manufacturing and the freedom that comes with the band running their own label, Weathermaker Music.
“Nowadays, from finishing a record to mastering takes up to six months. And the great thing about being our own record label is that if it doesn’t feel right to put it out at that time, we won’t. We’d rather wait and make it as good as it can be,” he said. “There are a number of songs in the can, but I’m not going to predict when it might be released.”
When asked about the quality of the new material, the frontman was candid about the challenges of maintaining a high standard deep into a three-decade career.
“Every year it gets harder and harder to come up with stuff, because you already have these existing records, but… yeah. We know that [as an album] it’ll be alright.”
For this upcoming project, Clutch has pivoted from initial plans to work with producer Tom Dalgety. Instead, they have reunited with Grammy-winning producer Gene “Machine” Freeman, a fan-favorite collaborator who helmed the band’s acclaimed albums Blast Tyrant (2004), Earth Rocker (2013), and Psychic Warfare (2015).
Before the new music arrives, Clutch will hit the road again this spring for a massive co-headlining trek with Corrosion of Conformity, featuring support from JD Pinkus.
“Suffer No Evil U.S. Tour 2026” Dates:
- April 9 – Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
- April 11 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium
- April 12 – Rochester, NY – Kodak Center Theater
- April 14 – Chesterfield, MO – The Factory
- April 15 – Lexington, KY – Manchester Music Hall
- April 17 – Kansas City, MO – VooDoo Lounge at Harrah’s
- April 18 – Sioux City, IA – Anthem at Hard Rock Sioux City
- April 19 – Sioux Falls, SD – The District
- April 21 – Grand Junction, CO – Mesa Theater
- April 23 – Boise, ID – Treefort Music Hall
- April 24 – Reno, NV – Cargo Concert Hall
- April 27 – Albuquerque, NM – El Rey Theater
- April 28 – Midland, TX – The Horseshoe
- April 29 – San Antonio, TX – The Aztec Theatre
- May 1 – Pensacola, FL – Vinyl Music Hall
- May 2 – Chattanooga, TN – The Signal
- May 3 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
