I love weird music. But how do you define weirdness? You don’t usually define it, you just know it when you hear it and Primus take weirdness to new and unusual levels. First of all, what is Primus? The answer to that is simple: Primus is a band. A trio, in fact. What kind of music do they play? That is a much more difficult question to answer. If I had to guess? Psychedelic Funk Rock with a lemon twist and a dash of Metal. They’ve had highs (Pork Soda) and lows (Antipop) and continue to stride forward, unabashedly bouncing, shredding and pounding their way through all known catastrophe and calamity. They’ve tasted popularity, been the idol of millions and yet have managed to maintain their creative soul and unique personality. This is no small feat in this age of manufactured pop and arena rock bullshit. When asked what kind of band Primus is I simply say “Primus” because that’s what they are.
They’re not a Metal band (though they’re heavier and thrashier than Metallica when called upon) and they’re not funk (but Bootsy Collins is probably green with envy at Les Claypool’s thumping bass lines.) They can play both these genres and many more, but their sound remains simply Primus. The setup is not all that unique. A guitar, some drums and a bass with vocals splashed here and there. What’s so special about that? What’s special is the players. Tim Alexander’s drumming is fierce, precise and sharp as a tack. In terms of capability behind the kit, he’s up there with drummers like Danny Carey of TooL and Dale Crover of the Melvins, though his style is nothing like either of those two. Larry Lalonde’s guitar can go from funky tweaks to metallic crunches to Zappa-esque soloing madness in the space of a second. His style takes it’s cues from all of the aforementioned (Funk, Metal, Zappa) and combines numerous playing techniques to form his left of center riffage. The center of Primus’s music, though, is, without doubt, Les Claypool’s bass. Not content to sit in the background, the sound jumps up and grabs you by the throat. It bounces, it thumps, it rumbles and it pops, once you’ve heard it you will always know it and it will always be a part of you. It is this sound that defines Primus more then anything else. Great as Lalonde and Alexander are, they will always be over shadowed by Claypool and his incredible bass work. The music that these three men create is certainly weird, but it is Les Claypool’s nasally voice and genuinely bizarre lyrics that give Primus songs their character. And they’re filled with characters. It’s as if Claypool lives on another planet and comes by from time to time to let us all know what’s going on there.
Professor Nutbutter, John The Fisherman, Tommy The Cat: All of these characters have surfaced at one time or another in Claypool’s music, each one bringing an odd tale or adventure to spice up the mix. Primus hasn’t recorded new material since 2003 and all of their members are involved in numerous side projects. Claypool is an accomplished solo artist and performs with various ensembles of his friends and allies, Lalonde just recently finished a stint with Serj Tankian’s band, The F.C.C. (Flying Cunts of Chaos) and Alexander has his Fata Morgana project, in which things take a very dark turn. Despite these busy schedules, Primus re-unites here and there to tour. These tours often take the structured music of their records into new and unexplored regions of jams, to great success. Primus doesn’t kick out the jams; it builds them up into colossi, mountains of music and oceans of sound that they then navigate like intrepid explorers. Is Primus weird? Definitely. Do they sound like any other band out there? Probably not. Does Les Claypool get carpal tunnel? Almost certainly. Should you listen to them? Yes, yes and yes.
Discography:
-Frizzle Fry-
Year: 1990
Primus’s first (Not counting the live album, Suck On This), most thrashing album. Still finding their sound on this one, but that doesn’t detract from it. Features the ripping “John The Fisherman,” an excellent stoner jam in the form of “Harold of the Rocks” and the metal tinged “Too Many Puppies.”
-Sailing The Seas of Cheese-
Year: 1991
The second, the one where they best and most clearly defined their sound that all the other albums would spring from. Considered to be their most fun album by some. Features a Tom Waits collaboration in “Tommy The Cat”, the speed slap bass of “Is It Luck?”, the anti-military anthem of “Sgt. Baker” and (my personal favorite) the smashingly barbequed riffage of “Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweakers.”
-Miscellaneous Debris-
Year: 1992
A collection of covers and the first album to feature Claypool’s six string Rainbow Bass. Reveals some of Claypool’s influences. Some of them are kind of surprising. Features twisted takes on the XTC classic “Making Plans for Nigel” and Pink Floyd’s “Have A Cigar.”
-Pork Soda-
Year: 1993
Their darkest, most alienating album. But possibly their best? Features one of their most well known songs: “My Name is Mud” with it’s distinctive bass rumblings as well as the sinking ship sounds of “Mr. Krinkle,” the sludgy funeral dirge of “Bob” and the hilarious nudity of “Nature Boy.”
-Tales from The Punchbowl-
Year: 1995
Their most Psychedelic album. This album was the last to feature Tim Alexander before his departure (he will return). Features their most well known song: “Wynonna’s Big Brown Beaver” with it’s ridiculous lyrics as well as the propellant shredder “Prof. Nutbutter’s House of Treats,” the hillbilly banjo of “De Anza Jig” and the tweaked out acid jam of “Over The Electric Grapevine.”
-Brown Album-
Year: 1997
The beginning of the Brain era. New drummer Brain joins after Alexander’s departure. The sound of the Brown Album is difficult to characterize. It sounds… well… brown and that’s not really a color I would want to associate with Primus. The band rarely, if ever, plays songs from this album live, mostly due to Alexander having returned at this point, but also just because they don’t seem to like it very much. Features what is possibly the only acoustic Primus song in “Over The Falls” and the jerky “Shake Hands With Beef.”
-Rhinoplasty-
Year: 1998
A second collection of covers. Not as good as Misc. Debris and doesn’t really have anything you terribly need. Features a pretty straight take on Metallica’s “The Thing That Should Not Be” and XTC’s “Scissor Man.”
-Antipop-
Year: 1999
Their weakest album. No doubt. The second of the Brain era. It should be noted, I think, that the weakness was not due to Brain’s joining the band, even though he helped the two weakest albums into being. Rather, it was just that these two albums took more experimental directions and for the most part those experiments were less than successful. The band never plays songs from this album live. It’s not all bad though. This is Primus’s most collaborative album. Tom Waits makes an appearance, as does Stewart Copeland, Tom Morello. Sadly, this album also features the Fred Durst produced “Lacquer Head” easily Primus’s weakest moment and worst collaboration idea. Claypool has gone on to regret this. The album doesn’t really feature any standout tracks. If I had to pick though? The Tom Waits collaboration “Coattails of a Deadman,” the Stewart Copeland produced “Dirty Drowning Man” and the epic “Eclectic Electric.”
-Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People-
Year: 2003
Just an EP, but it singled a return to greatness. Alexander returned as drummer, and it sounded as If he’d never been away. Better than the Brown Album and Antipop combined. It’s only real weakness? Only five tracks. The band hasn’t returned to the studio since this was released. Features the perplexing “The Last Superpower AKA Rapscallion” and the sorrowful “Mary The Ice Cube.”
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