CLOUT!
What do you generally associate with a Clout? Having one too many, getting a bit lairy, potentially insulting someone and then learning a deserved lesson about life? Maybe if you’re on the ball, how about the latest up-and-coming electro band?
Or, in this case, both. Starting off in Southend, band member Grant Armour will tell you that he’s accustomed to throwing the odd clout or two. “Yeah, I did. It was just like my mate though. We were just kind of fighting and he kneed me in the mouth so…I punched him in the face and then we didn’t speak for like an hour or so. We made up, so it’s fine”.
Despite the occasional spat, the story of Clout! seems to start off quite typical. Four years ago a couple of friends from Southend made music in their garage with a love for experimenting with different sounds, a mix of everything from synths to, as Grant tells us, “I think we used like pots and pans for ‘Maxwell’s O’”. Houseware aside the band then developed when they started putting on their own night in their hometown, drawing their inspiration from bands such as Ethiopiques and Gang Starr (the band took their name from the Gang Starr song ‘Speak Ya Clout’). But there’s much more to Clout! than who can sucker punch the hardest.
With their own manifesto and a particular onus on no-one having a specific role in the band (that’s right, not even the lead singer can claim those perks anymore), Clout! are a little bit different. “We don’t really have a lead singer, it’s a really collaborative project, so everybody’s an equal part. We just wanted to do it so people know what we’re about and hopefully encourage people to start their own DIY groups.”
So what do you put on the C.V. if you’re not the lead singer? “I don’t know,” he laughs. “We all kind of swap instruments and stuff – I don’t know if we’re particularly good at any of them. I guess it’s like a Jack-of-all-trades, master of none.” But maybe don’t agree with them on this one, or you might get your face punched in.
Words by Anna Conrad
Where: Southend-/London
What: Electro, synthy new-wave
Unique Fact: When their original saxophonist left they recruited band member Jordan’s identical twin brother William, who had to learn to play the sax in two weeks.
Get 3 songs: ‘Maxwell’s O’, ‘The Pre Party’, ‘The Dodo Riddim’
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This article appears in the October issue of Clash Magazine, find out more about the issue and how to subscribe HERE.
