CLAMM bring their riveting new setup to the The Shacklewell Arms.

By lloydbolton52 on June 30, 2025

The rising Australian punks' new lineup is energetic, loud and unrefined in all the right ways.

Words: Sam Schlipalius

Since their 2022 show at the Shacklewell Arms and their visit to MOTH Club mid-2024, CLAMM have well and truly embedded themselves into the current Australian punk scene, alongside the likes of similar groups like CIVIC and STIFF RICHARDS. In May, ahead of their highly anticipated third album, 'Serious Acts', CLAMM returned to the Shacklewell with a tenacity and power that has attracted fans over their five years as a band.

The Aussie outfit kicked off their set with new track 'More Serious Acts' from their newly released album. The song is powered by raw, punchy vocals and a rhythm section built on repetitive and simple yet powerfully effective drums and bass. This simplicity allowed guitarist and frontman Jack Summers to control the sombre and uneasy feeling of the track with his guitar, which sliced through the bass-heavy sound with a chaotic and metallic tone. Lyrical snatches like "Taxation of a natural resource" and "you're tryna be ripped off and spat out" take clear aim at unchecked government powers and the common unethical practices that enrage the Australian general public every day. With the track totaling nearly seven minutes, CLAMM well and truly warmed the crowd up and excited onlookers with a small taste of what's to come from their new album, and the rest of the set.

For a band that's encountered some different structural changes, they looked effortlessly competent and made it obvious that they've found their footing since parting ways with previous bass player and vocalist Maisie Everett. Since then, Stella Rennex has firmly established her place with CLAMM, harnessing her experience gained from working with iconic Melbourne bands, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and O.R.B., for whom she has played sax on tracks like 'Astroturf' and 'Space Between The Planets'.

Despite the set consisting of mostly new post-Everett songs, CLAMM didn't hold back from playing crowd favourites 'Keystone Pols' and 'Bit Much' from their previous albums 'Beseech Me' and 'Care'.

This was a band with genuine relevance and urgency bringing a set riddled with headbangers and raw power. The new form of CLAMM is something to look out for.