Clutch gave fans a double dose of good news this month with the announcement of new tour dates and a new album.
Loudwire reports the Maryland rockers will hit the studio for pre-production next month and then begin work on a new disc in January.
Coming off 2012's Earth Rocker, frontman Neil Fallon discussed the band's musical direction.
"The best thing is just following your gut," he said. "I think if we tried to make 'Earth Rocker 2,' it would be D.O.A. But then again, you don't wanna completely abandon it."
"We started writing for the next album pretty quickly. So it does bear a lot of similarities to 'Earth Rocker,' just because we're coming off the heels of that album. If we'd waited five years, I'm sure it would be a different story."
Fallon also explained how recording will fit in with a string of new tour dates:
"We've got this September run that's kind of anchored with these Riot Fests and a festival at the end of it in Baltimore," he said. "And then we'll take October, November and December off to finish up writing and pre-production. And then we'll do a run from Christmas to New Year's to mid-January out to Texas, where we plan to record it. And then we'll record in January and February and probably the beginning of March, take a little bit of time off, and [get] back out on the road."
Here are said dates:
09/26: Norfolk, VA @ The NorVA
09/27: Carroll Park, MD @ Carroll Park (Shindig Music Festival)
12/27: Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's
12/28: Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues Cleveland
12/29: Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom
12/30: Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
01/03: Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage Atlanta
01/04: Lake Buena Vista, FL @ House of Blues Orlando
01/06: New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues New Orleans
01/07: Houston, TX @ House of Blues Houston
01/08: Dallas, TX @ House of Blues Dallas
01/09: Tulsa, OK @ Cain's Ballroom
01/10: Austin, TX @ Emo's
