FU MANCHU play Troubadour Feb. 9 and The Casbah Feb. 10; photo James Christopher
Clone Of The Universe marks a new chapter for the “fuzz rock” pioneers as they mix the straight ahead blistering rock with unexpected time shifts, featuring tracks like the roaring cuts “Don’t Panic” and “(I’ve Been) Hexed” and the dynamically complex “Clone of the Universe” and “Slower Than Light.” The centerpiece of the album is “IL Mostro Atomico,” an 18 minute 8 second, side long epic featuring a special guest performance by Alex Lifeson, guitarist and songwriter of the legendary band RUSH. Heavier than anything they’ve ever done and broken into 4 distinct sections, it’s new ground for a band that’s been pushing the boundaries of “fuzz and wah” since its formation in 1990.
FU MANCHU; photo James Christopher
The album was recorded and produced by FU MANCHU and Jim Monroe at The Racket Room in Santa Ana, CA, as well as additional recording with Andrew Giacumakis at SUSSTUDIO in Simi Valley, CA, and will be released worldwide for streaming and on vinyl and CD on the band’s own AT THE DOJO label via Cargo Distribution. FU MANCHU is Scott Hill (vocals, guitar), Bob Balch (Guitars), Brad Davis (Bass) and Scott Reeder (Drums and Percussion).
FU MANCHU; photo James Christopher
Speaking with Billboard.com, founding guitarist Scott Hill says, “Our song ‘Clone Of The Universe’ was the last song written for the new record. We had about 13 songs ready to choose from, and about 3 weeks before we were to go into the studio we wrote that song.
“We record all of our songs on cassette 4-track and we had the first part of the song arranged/recorded but we still needed an ending to the song. On one of the final days of practice before going into the studio at the end of practice as we were packing up our gear, our drummer, Scott Reeder, was doing these fast drum beats/rolls and I thought it sounded great and as soon as I got home I still had his drumming in my head and I wrote the ending riffs to his drum beat.”
FU MANCHU will kick off their world tour in support of Clone of the Universe with two album release shows next month at Troubadour in Los Angeles Feb 9 and at The Casbah in San Diego Feb 10, which will be followed by a European and U.S. headline tour.