‘I am always impressed that people invest in the things we put out,’ Daveed Diggs laughs, telling us that hip-hop trio clipping. only work in the heady, conceptual way they do ‘because it’s the only way we know how. We would probably rather not if there was a choice.’ If one thing is immediately obvious when chatting to clipping., it is that these three are doing exactly what they want, and you are either in or out.

A self-described ‘weirdo indie-rap outfit’ they combine the exhilarating Diggs (now a successful actor who starred in the original run of Hamilton) with the exploratory and often downright menacing production of Jonathan Snipes and William Hutson. Friends since college, Snipes recalls how it initially started in their free time. ‘We had all been doing stuff with commercial aspirations, and this was really a side project.’ However, their first mixtape gained traction and soon they were signed to indie label Sub Pop, with whom they’ve released four full-length albums so far.  

In late 2019, clipping. released There Existed An Addiction To Blood and planned on following it with Visions Of Bodies Being Burned in early 2020. However, when everything abruptly closed up shop due to the pandemic, they released it into a very different world in Halloween season. ‘It just didn’t feel like we were putting an album out,’ Diggs says. Without the immediate feedback of press tours and live shows, the group felt like they were releasing their first project all over again, ‘just balling something up and throwing it into the internet, to see if anything comes back at you.’ 

^{Picture: Damien Maloney}

Of course, their fans responded in kind, tuning in for some thrilling remote live shows and delving into the album’s myriad references. Considering the titles of their albums, and songs such as ‘He Dead’ and ‘Blood Of The Fang’, it’s probably not surprising that this group have a strong affinity to horror. We talk about that genre’s ability to grip and shock whilst still getting across important social commentary, something the band have never shied away from. ‘Horror is inherently political,’ Snipes elaborates. ‘It’s asking you, what are the anxieties of a particular time? What figures are seen as monstrous to people in that time?’

Through Snipes and Hutson’s confrontational production and Diggs’ sharp lyricism, their music is shot through with biting anti-racist, anti-patriarchal and anti-colonial politics. After such troubled times, and so long away from the stage, the band are excited to be back on the road. Their show in Glasgow will be their first one in three years, and when asked what people can expect from the show, they laugh. ‘Guess we’ll find out, and you’ll be the first people to know!’ insists Hutson. What is certain is that this weirdo-indie-rap outfit will do exactly what they want to do, and it’s thrilling to see them at work.  

SWG3, Glasgow, Wednesday 21 September; Fabric, London, Thursday 17 November; Belgrave Musical Hall, Leeds, Friday 18 November.