The Norwegian-based Slomosa are bringing their brand of rock, dubbed “tundra rock,” to the United States in early spring. Support will be announced soon, and tickets are available at slomosamusic.com!
3/26 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
3/27 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
3/28 – Washington, DC – Pearl Street Warehouse
3/29 – Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall
3/31 – Greensboro, NC – Hangar 1819
4/1 – Asheville, NC – Eulogy
4/2 – Atlanta, GA – Purgatory at The Masquerade
4/3 – Nashville, TN – The Blue Room
4/6 – Dallas, TX – Club Dada
4/7 – Austin, TX – Brushy Street Commons
4/9 – Phoenix, AZ – The Rebel Lounge
4/10 – Los Angeles, CA – The Roxy Theatre
4/11 – San Francisco, CA – Bottom of the Hill
4/12 – Sacramento, CA – Harlow’s
4/14 – Portland, OR – McMenamins Mission Theater
4/15 – Seattle, WA – Tractor Tavern
4/17 – Boise, ID – Neurolux
4/18 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court
4/20 – Colorado Springs, CO – Black Sheep
4/21 – Denver, CO – Marquis Theater
4/23 – Kansas City, MO – The Record Bar
4/24 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry
4/25 – Chicago, IL – Cobra Lounge
4/26 – Detroit, MI – El Club
4/28 – Toronto, ON – The Garrison
4/29 – East Pittsburgh, PA – Preserving Underground
Rock/metal quartet Clutch has announced the dates for the first North American leg of their Full Ahead Flank Tour! This early summer run will feature special guests Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown and Nate Bergman. Tickets are available at clutchmerch.com!
6/6 – Montreal, QC – MTELUS
6/7 – Pickering, ON – The Arena at Pickering Casino Resort
Celtic punk ensemble Flogging Molly has announced the Road to Rebellion Tour, a 13-date run leading up to the annual Shamrock Rebellion, which takes place March 15th through 17th. The Aggrolites and Slaughterhouse will be with Flogging Molly for the duration while Me First and the Gimme Gimmes will be the additional special guest at Shamrock Rebellion. Tickets and VIP are available now at floggingmolly.com!
2/24 – St. Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live
2/25 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues
2/26 – Charleston, SC – Charleston Music Hall
2/28 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
3/1 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa
3/2 – Richmond, VA – The National
3/4 – Chattanooga, TN – The Signal
3/5 – Huntsville, AL – Mars Music Hall
3/7 – Oklahoma City, OK – Diamond Ballroom
3/8 – Houston, TX – House of Blues
3/9 – San Antonio, TX – The Aztec Theatre
3/11 – Albuquerque, NM – Revel Entertainment Center
3/12 – Tucson, AZ – The Rialto Theatre
3/15 – Las Vegas, NV – Pearl Concert Theater, Palms Casino Resort*
Alt-metal outfit Helmet is hitting the road in 2025 to celebrate 30 years of their third studio album, Betty. The tour kicks off February 19th in Fort Worth, Texas, and features support from Slomosa and War on Women. Tickets and VIP available at helmetmusic.com!
2/19 – Fort Worth, TX – Tulips FTW
2/22 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
2/23 – Austin, TX – Mohawk
2/26 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater
2/27 – Pomona, CA – The Glass House
2/28 – Los Angeles, CA – The Regent Theater
3/1 – Oakland, CA – Crybaby
3/2 – Roseville, CA – Goldfield Trading Post
3/4 – Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
3/5 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile
3/6 – Boise, ID – Shrine Social Club
3/8 – Denver, CO – The Oriental Theater
3/9 – Lawrence, KS – The Bottleneck
3/10 – Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theater
3/11 – Madison, WI – Majestic Theatre
3/12 – Chicago, IL – Cobra Lounge
3/14 – Columbus, OH – Skully’s
3/15 – Mechanicsburg, PA – Lovedraft’s Brewing Co.
Nonpoint will be playing a handful of shows in January 2025, celebrating the 20th anniversary of To The Pain and the 25th anniversary of Statement. With special guests Crobot and Heartsick, this month-long run kicks off January 10th in Lakewood, Ohio. Tickets and VIP are now on sale at nonpoint.com!
1/10 – Lakewood, OH – The Roxy
1/11 – Pittsburgh, PA – Preserving Underground
1/12 – Louisville, KY – Mercury Ballroom
1/14 – Greensboro, NC – Hangar 1819
1/15 – North Chattanooga, TN – Barrelhouse Ballroom
1/17 – St. Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live
1/18 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Culture Room
1/19 – Orlando, FL – The Beacham
1/21 – Greenville, SC – Radio Room
1/22 – Virginia Beach, VA – Elevation 27
1/23 – Fredericksburg, VA – Hard Times Cafe/Four Mile Fork
This summer, experimental/prog rock legends Primus are sharing the stage with fellow prog outfit Coheed and Cambria. There will be various special guests depending on the city. That list includes Guerilla Toss, Too Many Zooz, Fishbone, Fantastic Negrito, and All Them Witches.
Hard rockers Clutch are hitting the road this spring with special guests Blacktop Mojo and The Native Howl. The New World Samurai Tour kicks off April 26th in Richmond, Virginia, and wraps on May 19th in Columbus, Ohio. Tickets are available at clutchmerch.com!
4/26 – Richmond, VA – The National
4/27 – Wilmington, DE – The Queen
4/29 – Bloomington, IL – The Castle Theatre
5/1 – Colorado Springs, CO – Black Sheep
5/2 – Estes Park, CO – The Stanley Hotel Concert Hall
5/3 – Estes Park, CO – The Stanley Hotel Concert Hall
5/4 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up Aspen
5/5 – Grand Junction, CO – Mesa Theater
5/7 – Lubbock, TX – The Garden
5/9 – Pelham, TN – The Caverns
5/10 – Columbia, SC – The Senate
5/11 – Daytona Beach, FL – Welcome to Rockville 2024*
Clay Soldiers hail from the UK and blend elements of alternative, grunge, and stoner rock in their music. Formed in 2020, the band consists of vocalist/guitarist Leon, bassist Stu, and drummer Pablo. They have already seen a few notable achievements, including 16,000+ all-time streams across the various services and listeners in forty different countries.
I recently chatted with Clay Soldiers about their backgrounds in music, influences, playing live, and their debut EP, Life After Death.
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First and foremost, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule for this interview. Let’s start with the story behind the band’s name. I always find those interesting.
Stu: Initially, we were talking about Greek mythology and we were looking for names along the lines of mythological beasts and history. However, Leon states that “Clay Soldiers” came from the idea that people are molded in terms of their way of thinking, their resilience – they are not as strong as they think they are and are made to believe they are invincible.
Clay Soldiers’ sound encompasses multiple styles. Who are the band’s influences?
Stu: Our biggest influences are the bands and sounds of the 90s, such as Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Queens of the Stone Age, and Faith No More. We also take inspiration from classic rock, like Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, and lately we’ve drawn from some newer bands on the scene, particularly our friends in Dunes, The Grudge, and High Desert Queen, in terms of their performance and style.
So, if you don’t mind, can you tell me how you got started in music? What made you decide this is what you wanted to do?
Stu: We have always been interested in music in a big way. However, truly thinking about it, we lived through the 80s and 90s, where the music was an inspirational element in our lives. So, seeing bands that had grown considerably from the late 80s to the mid-90s and beyond, it was something that we had always felt that it wasn’t out of reach to do. It was a case of finding the instrument that we could share the rocking vibes with and over time, learning what it means to write songs, what it means to write from the heart through our own lived experiences that listeners can relate to.
And now, y’all have released your debut EP, Life After Death, and have garnered some well-deserved attention with it. Can you tell me a little about the writing and recording process? From where did y’all draw inspiration?
Stu: We tried to make music to reflect life experiences and take to heart how the lyrics can resonate to a wider audience. We wanted to write in a more thoughtful way and build connections with people as they find they can relate to it.
In terms of the recording, we often lay down all our demo stems on an app called Bandlab. It is a piece of software that really helped us to lay out and structure our ideas for the EP. The artwork was an awesome piece hand-painted by UK tattoo artist Jeep Bluezone (who is originally from Thailand). Initially, it was painted on canvas, then she offered to let us use it for the EP cover. We felt the image reflected every song on the EP, which is all about death and recovery – hence the name ‘Life After Death’. In other words, the day the world halts and then we start again.
On a personal level, what’s your favorite song on the EP?
Leon: All songs are very meaningful. If there was one overall song, I would choose “Ghost,” as that is the most epic sounding song.
Stu: I would choose “Ghost,” as it was one of the first tracks we actually wrote by accident and became one of our most evolved tracks. It has quite a cinematic, epic sound to it.
Pablo: “Ghost” for me.
I saw that you guys just played a show with Elkapath, Doomicidal, and At War With the Sun.What is your favorite thing about playing live?
Stu: That was a great show. Our favourite thing about playing live is seeing people enjoying and sharing the moments with us where the music is creating a positive atmosphere like no other. In that moment, we are family!
And on the topic of playing live, how is playing live and writing music in the studio connected? When you write, do you think about how it will translate in a live performance?
Stu: Everything we do in the studio is connected to live shows because everything we work for in the studio, it all comes to a conclusion in live shows. We want everyone to get a first glance of our music. For new fans who are seeing us for the first time, it is about how we can connect to those people and make new friends. For existing fans, it is showing how our music evolves and the fans grow with us.
What is next for Clay Soldiers? I saw y’all hinting at new music on Facebook (I say hopefully).
Stu: Social media is a massive tool, definitely, and it is helping us to reach more people and all around the world. New music is constantly coming, new songs and new forms of composition are there, and we are taking all different styles to create our own way to make music.
What do you feel is the ultimate goal for the band?
Stu: The goal is to keep growing, musically and as a band. To be able to perform regularly. It is not about being famous but is about being original and offering something to people where they can identify. We are now at a stage where we are building a brand and we invite everyone to the opportunity to get involved and be a part of that process.
Is there any message you’d like to give your fans, old and new?
Stu: We would wholeheartedly like to say a massive thanks with much love and respect for all the love and support everyone has shown us. Absolutely everyone is welcome to come and see us, no-one should be left out, regardless of pronoun, gender, sex, where you are from, etc. We just want everyone to be united in the moment, take care of each other and enjoy good times again! All we ask is just come and support local artists, local music! Keep the dream alive!
And a fun question I always ask, just to wrap this up: what would your dream concert lineup be? Clay Soldiers and…?
Stu: Dream lineup… to play an international open air festival, with bands who would love to play with Clay Soldiers! We would also absolutely love to be on the same lineup as the bands which have inspired us from the start of our musical inception, such as Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, Pixies, Smashing Pumpkins, Queens Of The Stone Age, Foo Fighters. Would be nice!
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Clay Soldiers are on a steady upward trajectory, earning new fans and followers with every released single and live show. They bring the best of rock in everything they do. From what I’ve seen, the band will be giving us a taste of their darker, heavier side with their new music. Be sure to find them on Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, etc., and check them out! Here is the track that the trio voted as their favorite from Life After Death.
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