Clinic Q&A

I did a short (but pretty interesting) Q&A with Clinic (MySpace) over at Anthem Online.

Check it out and download a couple tunes while you're at it ("Thor" is a b-side from the forthcoming Do It! release; "Free Not Free" is the first single off said LP).

Do It! sounds like your poppiest effort yet to me. You seem to incorporate more digestible and straightforward pop hooks into your otherwise minimalist, gritty psych-pop/post-punk aesthetic ("Free Not Free," "Memories"). Were you deliberately trying to make something a little subtler and accessible for this album?

Yes definitely. We felt it was time to change. I love pop music so it was inspiring to make it more melodic and mellow. It also in a weird way makes the LP more extreme, to have those sharp cut-ups between melody and a raw sound.

I'm curious about the album artwork and visual component that you've applied to Do It! The cover illustration is more playful; you're now wearing Hawaiian T-shirts instead of Freemason getups -- any concept behind these alterations and developments?

It all went hand in hand with the music being brighter. There's more humor and yes, a playful piss-take side to Do It! and the artwork etc. I much prefer it, if that side is brought out.

Clinic - Thor

Clinic - Free Not Free