Prized possessions: Toadies’ Clark Vogeler on the raw power and bittersweet legacy of 'The Charmer'

Signal and Noise PHX: Embracing the Toadies

On May 1, 2026, when The Charmer by Toadies dropped, a heart-shaped void was filled for a few reasons. For one thing, it was definitely time for a new Toadies record. If you’re a fan of the band, you understand, and if you’re not, I implore you to check it out posthaste. On the flip side, the late Steve Albini recorded The Charmer in the last months of his life.

As the band comes to Phoenix for the first time since 2017 — when they played a rockin’, sold-out show at the Crescent Ballroom supporting their LP, The Lower Side of Uptown — I caught up with guitarist Clark Vogeler to talk about recording with Albini and what keeps the band going as they embark on a busy touring schedule this year.

Before getting to Clark, though, I think it is important to point out that this is a band you should not sleep on. I did, for years, but at the insistence of my wife and my old bandmate/friend, Eric Guthrie, I took the plunge into Toadies back in 2013 or so and have never regretted it. Sadly, I thought they might have been a one-hit-wonder kind of band, and while I like the song “Possum Kingdom” a lot, I’ve been burned too many times by bands that have a really good song on the radio.

Not rocking the boat (but learning to row) Vogeler joined the band as the lead guitar player in 1996 after “Possum Kingdom” (which is off 1994’s excellent Rubberneck record) had already come out. When you join an established band, the last thing you want to do is rock the boat.

“Well, it’s funny, when I first joined the band, my primary objective was not to get in Vaden’s way. I don’t wanna be the guy that ruins the Toadies,” says Vogeler of his bandmate and OG Toadies leader, Vaden Todd Lewis.

Over the last 30 years, though, things have changed, and Vogeler’s impact on the band is apparent. He notes that the writing process has evolved from Lewis writing everything top-to-bottom in the early days to a more collaborative experience now.

“Over time, I have learned more and more what makes a Toadies song, and so, especially after a tour when we’ve been playing Toadies songs every day, I come home, and my hands kind of naturally do Toadies stuff,” Vogeler explains. “It is really strange because it messes with your imposter syndrome, right? You’re always thinking, ‘Well, that’s the guy that writes the good stuff. I’m just kind of back here making stuff up, trying to copy it.’ But what happens is when he puts words on it, and we all play it together, it sounds like a legitimate Toadies song, and my imposter syndrome is having a hard time staying alive when that happens.”

A perfect example of this collaborative evolution is the track “I Wanted to Be Everywhere.” Much of the album was pieced together during the pandemic by sending files back and forth. For that song, their drummer recorded a bizarre, voice-note rhythm on his phone in a 10-beat count and sent it over. Vogeler dropped it into his software, tracked a riff over it, and passed it to Lewis. Two days later, a complete song was born.

Inside Electrical Audio with Albini The opportunity to record The Charmer with the legendary Steve Albini at Electrical Audio in Chicago was a bucket-list experience for the band. They independently financed the project so they could spend a full four weeks in the studio. The result is a spectacular-sounding record that carries the unmistakable, raw, sonic footprint of Albini’s engineering style.

Tragically, Albini passed away just months after the sessions concluded, making this album a bittersweet milestone as one of his final recordings. To ensure the record stayed true to its pure vision, Albini’s close friend and Shellac bandmate, Bob Weston, stepped in to master the album at his Chicago mastering studio.

Vogeler remembers Albini with immense fondness.

“He was super warm and smart and hilarious and all those things people say, but more than you hear, Steve Albini was a really warm person and supportive in the studio,” Vogeler recalls. “So when we left there, we were just on top of the world. We loved the way the record sounded. We just couldn’t wait for people to hear it. He passed several months later, and it just broke our hearts. We were hoping to go back and do more there, but as it is, we just feel incredibly lucky to have had the opportunity to go in there and make this record with him.”

Before they wrapped up, Albini even gifted the band a pre-release copy of the final Shellac record, telling them he was only sharing it with friends and family—a gesture that left a lasting impact on the band.

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