photos by Dante Torrieri
“…a hefty beast in length and sonic heaviness…” – Decibel Magazine
Decibel Magazine is hosting an exclusive premiere of “Clamfight” by South New Jersey/Philly sludge metal quartet CLAMFIGHT, found on the band’s impending fourth album, Clamfight.
Clamfight was recorded by Steve Poponi and Matt Weber at The Gradwell House in Haddon Heights, New Jersey where it was also mixed by Poponi and Dave Downham and mastered by Dave Downham, and the album’s cover art and layout was handled by Morgan E Russell. The record features guest vocals on “Brodgar” by Sam Marandola and on “Clamfight” by Stephen Murphy and JJ Koczan.
CLAMFIGHT drummer/vocalist Andy Martin reveals with the self-titled new single, “The lyrics and theme for ‘Clamfight’ spun out of a night that Sean and I spent fishing in Jersey. Fishing was dead and since we’re both in our 40s, we ended up talking all night about our dads and how hard it is to watch your parents age. That conversation and the solace I found on the water became the starting point for the lyrics to ‘Clamfight’ but the overarching theme of the song became how lucky we are to still be playing together. We’ve gone from teens doing donuts and occasionally fighting outside of the 7-11 to guys with careers and families of our own. I wrote this song as a tribute to Joel, Louis, and Sean, because I love them, and am incredibly grateful for our thirty years of friendship. But because I can’t just be like ‘gosh I love my best friends,’ I managed to squeeze in some digs at our regrettable 1990s nu-metal fashion choices, like my cornrows and Louis’ tongue rings.
“Despite ‘Clamfight’ being such a personal song, we want a broader sound, so we enlisted some good friends to expand the vocal pallette. JJ Koczan of Maegashira and The Obelisk fame has supported us from our earliest days grinding it out in pre-gentrification Asbury Park and Steve Murphy from Kings Destroy and Uppercut is like our big brother. We played a million shows with Kings Destroy, and JJ facilitated that relationship and is also really close with them, so having the two of them on this song was really special for us.”
Decibel writes, “In the great tradition of bands naming songs after themselves, off of albums named after themselves, comes ‘Clamfight,’ a new song from New Jersey sludge crew CLAMFIGHT, off their upcoming album Clamfight. The sludgy tune is a hefty beast in length and sonic heaviness, but also in its emotional weight and celebration of friendship.”
Dig into Decibel Magazine’s online portal to stream CLAMFIGHT’s Clamfight single “Clamfight” RIGHT HERE.
Clamfight will be self-released digitally and on CD on May 16th. Find reorders at Bandcamp where “The Oar” and “Brodgar” are streaming HERE.
CLAMFIGHT is also booking regional tour dates and live events supporting the new album. They will play Brooklyn on June 20th and a benefit show for their late friend Steve Poponi in Philadelphia on June 21st. A record release show and additional dates are also in the works. Watch for updates to post alongside additional previews of the album over the weeks ahead.
CLAMFIGHT Live:
5/31/2025 Kung Fu Necktie – Philadelphia, PA *record release show w/ God Called In Sick, Dirt Pile
6/20/2025 Goldsounds – Brooklyn, NY w/ Hollow Leg, Florist, End Of Hope
6/21/2025 Poponipalooza ’25: D.I.L.F.@ Underground Arts – Philadelphia, PA [tickets]
The members of CLAMFIGHT are childhood friends who played their first show together in the Fall of 2005. The band’s lineup has remained the same ever since, with bassist Louis Koble, guitarists Joel Harris and Sean McKee, and drummer/vocalist Andy Martin. Over the past twenty years, the band has played shows along the entire East Coast and beyond, having shared a lot of laughs and shenanigans as well as loss and heartache together along the way. Having released three albums to date – Vol. I in 2010, I vs. The Glacier in 2013, and III in 2018 – the band now presents their most somber yet victorious record yet with Clamfight.
CLAMFIGHT began work on album number four right as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold. With only drum tracks finished the weekend before the lockdowns began, the sudden downtime gave the band the opportunity to broaden their sound. With their longtime friend, mentor, and producer Steve Poponi, the band expanded the sonic range of the new material and brought more dynamics and intricacy to the seven new songs.
The pandemic also changed the record lyrically and thematically. Lyrically, Clamfight became a sort of diary or memoir, but not about masks and temperature checks at the grocery store, but about how the love and friendship between the band helped get them all through those dark times. If there’s a central theme to Clamfight it’s that life is short and precious, but that the people around you – the people that you love and that love you back – are the ones that make it worth savoring.
https://clamfight.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/Clamfight
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