CLAMM are a young Australian trio that formed in 2019 and have built up a reputation in their home of Melbourne for their ripping live performances. They’re bringing that to fruition with their debut album, Beseech Me, which arrives on April 9 through Meat Machine. Ahead of that they’ve shared the lead single and video “Keystone Pols”, saying:
“‘Keystone Pols’ is a song with simple lyrics but quite an ominous undertone. It is written from the perspective of some sort of authoritarian figure. It highlights the relentless power and oppression that governmental bodies seem to have over society. Its title references 1910’s silent film ‘Keystone Kops’ featuring humorously incompetent policemen.”
With razor guitars underpinned by wind-tunnel fury in the rhythm section, CLAMM make no stumbles as they introduce themselves to a wider audience. The inspiration for “Keystone Pols” might be a humorous movie, but you get the distinct feeling that CLAMM do not find police incompetence funny at all – in fact it sounds like they find authority scary, and would like to tear apart any crooked or biased officers that cross their path. If “Keystone Pols” were to soundtrack a new version of Keystone Cops, it would be an explosively scuzzy action movie with plenty of scuffles and even more manic energy than the original – a hell of a lot of macabre fun, basically.
Watch the video for “Keystone Pols” by Oscar O’shea below, or listen to it on streaming platforms.
CLAMM’s debut album Beseech Me is out on April 9 through Meat Machine. Find the band on Facebook, Bandcamp and Instagram.
