Review by Tobias on June 15, 2001.

I'm beginning to think that every album that is absolutely phenomenal takes a few close listens for the listener to even understand that fact.

It happened to me with In Flames' Clayman, Pantera's Vulgar Display, a few Iron Maiden albums, and all Tool. It happened again with Clutch's Pure Rock Fury. As a long time fan of Clutch, I was hoping for no less. Satiation is a wonderful thing.

When I first got the album, I was a little irritated because it felt like there were maybe three good songs, my favorite being probably the heaviest thickest sounding one, Immortal. Of course, despite my disappointment I was infatuated with this song, roaring it out in my head all day long.

Come a few more close listens later, I realized that this album wasn't just riddled with greatness, it was bloody built with the stuff! Mean tracks blasted out by the manliest of men like Open Up The Border, Sinkemlow, and Frankensteinalong with the testosterone injected artistic uniqueness of wild tracks like Drink To The Dead and Red Horse Rainbow that only Clutch can do have me thoroughly pumped with… well, not to be a dork but… Pure Rock Fury.

Tim Sult, the crunching six-stringer for Clutch, isn't just a guitarist, he's a major part of the music's backbone. With Jean Paul Gaster gleefully beating precision mindedly on his thunder-pots and Dan Maines thumping his bass strings with a paradoxical finesse that should be a French food, Tim Sult is the utter completion of this musical trinity. The man with the wheel, Neil Fallon, who sports balls big enough to take on Phil Anselmo, is driving this ride with muscle-bound passion.

I'd like to take a moment to let you all know that I've decided there should be a law that every bar in the world should play Drink To The Dead at midnight, and everyone must have a full stein in hand while singing along with happy drunken tears for their lost ones. Make it so.

Call it what you like, stoner metal, space metal, stoner rock, big ass guitar music, but the fact here is you've never heard anything like it and it will rock the living daylights out of ya. Although Elephant Riders is probably the perfect starters album for Clutch, and as outstanding as it was, there is something a little more advanced… and perhaps more insane about Pure Rock Fury.

Bottom Line: This album… this band, will rock your bones to dust.They might even revive you just to do it again. This is genius in its most masculine form.

Rating: 10 of 10