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The Northern California avant-rock trio Primus provides a shining example for bands who want to succeed on their own terms. Fusing the skittering rhythmic attack of progressive-metal bands like Rush, the groove of funk and hippie rock, and the eccentricity of such experimental artists as Frank Zappa, the Residents, and Captain Beefheart, Primus has followed its own musical calling to large-scale industry success. Fronted by bassist-vocalist Les Claypool, who can produce thousands of bizarre tones on his instrument and almost as many cartoonish characters with his voice, Primus has journeyed from the underground to the headlining spot at the 1993 Lollapalooza music festival, arguably the nation’s most important alternative rock tour. Joe Gore of Guitar Player cited guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde’s description of the group’s sound as "progressive freak-out music"; Gore also noted what he called "the Primus paradox: if your music is really uncommercial, you can sell a ton of records."

Like LaLonde, Claypool grew up in the northern California town of El Sobrante. "I was raised in the land of

Budweiser," he quipped to Rolling Stone’s Michael Azerrad. Having been raised in a working-class family—his father and grandfather both worked as mechanics—helped form Claypool’s worldview but also sharpened his resolve to escape his hometown’s oppressive normalcy. "I would have blasted out one way or another," he insisted. His mother told Azerrad that Les "was a bouncing boy. He used to like to jump in his jumpy chair. I think that’s where he got the strength in his legs. I never saw anybody who could jump as well as he did in that jumpy chair."

Cartoons and Fusion
Claypool’s mother also remembered that her son "liked to watch TV a lot. I think that’s where he got a lot of ideas. He’d sit there on his little tiny plastic motorcycle that he had and watch cartoons." Les acquired his first bass at age 13; "I pulled weeds to pay for it," he told Guitar Player. He recalled to Rolling Stone that he "sat in front of the television and noodled" after first hearing hard-rock guitarist Ted Nugent.

In the ensuing years, his eclecticism alienated most of the single-minded rock players around him. On the one hand, Claypool worshipped the bassist and leader of Rush—"If it wasn’t for Geddy Lee," he has declared, "I probably wouldn’t be playing bass"—but also adored funk pioneer Larry Graham, the bottom end of the psychedelic soul-rock band Sly and the Family Stone.

He was equally enamored of jazz and fusion masters like Stanley Clarke. Claypool found a kindred spirit in LaLonde, who joined his art-metal project Blind Illusion. LaLonde—who learned much of his technique at the feet of guitar guru Joe Satriani—also played in a "satanic" metal band called the Possessed as a teenager.

Claypool further honed his chops in "biker bars" as bassist for an R & B cover troupe called the Tommy Crank Band. "It was four sets a night, up to five nights a week—that’s how I learned discipline and how to actually groove," he explained to Guitar Player’s Gore. After that, in 1984, he assembled the first version of Primus—initially called Primate—with guitarist Todd Huth and a drum machine. The group gathered a following over the next few years, and Claypool’s do-it-yourself ethic extended to buying a printing press and making T-shirts for his and his friends’ bands. Drummer Tim "Herb" Alexander finally stuck, replacing Jay Lane, but the day after Claypool asked Alexander to join the group, Huth quit.

Suck on This
For a moment, Claypool thought his claim to fame would be as the bassist for the up-and-coming (and later superstar) metal group Metallica. Original bassist Cliff Burton had been killed in a bus accident, and as a childhood friend of guitarist Kirk Hammett, Claypool got a chance to audition for the spot; but his affinity for R & B acts like the Isley Brothers scared the headbangers off. Eventually, he recruited LaLonde to take Huth’s place in a revamped Primus. The group was two-thirds new, but LaLonde undertook the arduous task of learning all of Huth’s parts and then participating in a live recording that became the first Primus album, Suck on This. Released in 1989 on the group’s own Prawn Song label, it was financed with $3,000 borrowed from Claypool’s father. "The three of us had a chemistry that sounded like Primus," the bassist recalled in Rolling Stone, "but it was different than before. I was nervous as hell the first show we did, but our original fans accepted us."

Long before LaLonde and Alexander joined the band, Claypool explained to Rolling Stone, the group’s fans had begun chanting "You Suck" as an honorific at their shows. "People would follow us around telling us how cool we were, and we’d be like ‘Nah, we suck.’ It evolved, and then it became good marketing. We’d go down the street, and someone will yell, ‘You suck,’ and I’ll say ‘Oh, thank you very much,’ which freaks out whoever’s with you.’" Soon "Primus Sucks" appeared on T-shirts and became a de rigeur slogan on the Bay Area music scene. The group’s sound—which caught the attention of critics during the ascent of metal/funk hybrids like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Faith No More—began to be categorized as "funk-rock," though Alexander despised funk and Claypool has always protested that real funk doesn’t sound anything like his band.

In any event, Claypoo’s busy, percussive bass lines crisscrossed Alexander’s tight beats and allowed LaLonde—whose guitar idols are sainted rock experimentalists Frank Zappa and Jerry Garcia—to explore, rather than merely hold down, the group’s songs. Claypool’s lyrics tend to be loopy character studies, often sung in voices that critics have frequently compared to cartoon voice-over wizard Mel Blanc. Claypool told Musician that he tended at first to write "statement" songs, but ultimately, he revealed, "[I] found that’s not me, to preach social ideas as music. I’m putting down observations, and sometimes it may just be crap."

Signed With Major Label
Following the cult success of Suck on This, the band signed with noted independent label Caroline Records, which reissued their debut and released the follow-up, 1990’s Frizzle Fry, produced by Primus’s 19-year-old friend Matt Winegar. "The Northern California thrashfunk trio recaptures the anarchic spontaneity of their debut (the high-energy, low-budget Suck on This)," opined Guitar Player, "but with tighter performances and better production." The review praised the "visceral punch" of LaLonde’s "angular lines" and noted that Claypool "hammers out dense but groovy lines that flesh out the bony trio texture." The band toured exhaustively in support of the album and soon landed a deal with a major label, Interscope, a joint venture with Atlantic Records.

In 1991 Claypool and company released Sailing the Seas of Cheese, a further refinement of their sound. "In many ways the more metallic, undulating Frizzle Fry is a better document of the ugliness and energy that is Primus," reflected Musician’s Matt Resnicoff, "though Cheese’s pristine presentation captures its own space in a world where saying something sucks is like a love tap." Guitar Player marveled at the group’s eclecticism: "These avant-headbangers combine speed metal energy, funkoid groove, and art-rock quirkiness (imagine Metallica, Rush, and the Chili Peppers liquified in a blender)." Cheese included the rampaging and irresistible single "Tommy the Cat," which featured a cameo vocal by gravelly voiced singer-songwriter Tom Waits and was selected for the soundtrack to the film Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, in which Primus briefly appeared. Cheese went gold in April of 1993.

Also in 1993—in some sense the band’s breakthrough year—Primus received widespread public attention when they were named headliner of the Lollapalooza rock festival. This assignment helped their new album, Pork Soda, debut at Number Seven on the Billboard pop chart, a previously unheard-of feat for such an unconventional band. In a feature on Lollapalooza, Entertainment Weekly insisted, "There’s no resisting the frenetic danceability" of the trio’s "P-Funk meets Captain Beefheart set," adding, "If this band could write a melody—or, God forbid, a power ballad—it would rule the entire planet."

Entertainment Weekly called Pork Soda "a musical hiccup—a gnarly, funkadelic mix of metal and art rock highlighted by Claypool’s slaphappy bass lines and carnival-barker voice." Rolling Stone deemed the album "a weird, whimsical grab bag." Pork Soda featured the romps "My Name Is Mud" and "Mr. Krinkle," both of which spawned grotesque, surrealistic videos. Of Primus’s Lollapalooza offering, Entertainment Today claimed, "They put on a superior show that was remarkably tight and demonstrated they were the right choice for the closing band."

Primus recorded Pork Soda at minimal cost by bringing digital recording equipment into their rehearsal space rather than renting studio time. "The quality we got on this record has a lot to do with the sheer quantity of things we could afford to record," Claypool explained to Guitar Player’s Gore. "Had we gone into an expensive studio and tried to do what we did, this album would have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. We wouldn’t have done nearly so many abstract things." This home studio—known as From the Corn—has afforded Primus the opportunity to record other projects, such as a collaboration among Claypool, Metallica guitarist Hammett, and Faith No More drummer Mike Bordin, as well as records by former Primus guitarist Huth’s band Porch and Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy guitarist Charlie Hunter’s side band. Primus hoped to release some of these recordings on the revamped Prawn Song. In other artistic explorations, Claypool collaborated with Lance Montoya on the whimsical clay sculpture that graces the cover of Pork Soda.

With major label support, Primus has emerged as one of the most musically daring acts in rock, yet its bizarre cross-fertilizations flourish in a garden of relative independence. It’s the best of both worlds, and Claypool knows it: staying involved in all aspects of his band’s work "gives you confidence," he insisted to Guitar Player, "and that’s the most important thing to have in any aspect of the music business."

Selected discography
Suck on This, Prawn Song, 1989, reissued, Caroline, 1990.
Frizzle Fry, Caroline, 1990.
Sailing the Seas of Cheese (includes "Tommy the Cat"), Interscope, 1991.
(Contributors) "Tommy the Cat," Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey (soundtrack), Warner Bros., 1991.
Pork Soda (includes "My Name Is Mud" and "Mr. Krinkle"), Interscope, 1993.

Sources
BAM, June 18, 1993.
Billboard, April 10, 1993.
Entertainment Today, August 13, 1993.
Entertainment Weekly, June 18, 1993; July 18, 1993.
Guitar Player, September 1990; June 1991; August 1991; June 1993.
Musician, November 1991; July 1993.
Oakland Press (Oakland Co., Ml), October 17, 1993.
RIP, August 1993.
Rolling Stone, June 13, 1991; October 31, 1991; June 10, 1993; September 2, 1993.
Spin, October 1993.
Additional information for this profile was obtained from Interscope Records press materials, 1993.
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:

Primus

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  • Genres: Rock

Biography

Primus is all about Les Claypool; there isn't a moment on any of their records where his bass isn't the main focal point of the music, with his vocals acting as a bizarre side-show. Which isn't to deny guitarist Larry LaLonde or drummer Tim "Herb" Alexander any credit; no drummer could weave in and around Claypool's convoluted patterns as effortlessly as Alexander, and few guitarists would willingly push the spotlight away, like LaLonde does, just to can produce a never-ending spiral of avant-noise. All of this means that they are miles away from being another punk-funk combo like the Red Hot Chili Peppers; Claypool may slap and pop his bass, but there is little funk in the rhythm he and Alexander lay down. Instead, they're a post-punk Rush spiked with the sensibility and humor of Frank Zappa. Primus' songs are secondary to showcasing their instrumental prowess. Their music is willfully weird and experimental, yet it's not alienating; the band was able to turn their goofy weirdness into pop stardom. At first, the band was strictly an underground phenomenon, but in the years between their third and fourth albums, their cult grew rapidly. 1991's Sailing the Seas of Cheese went gold shortly before the release of Pork Soda. By the time of the album's 1993 release, Primus had enough devoted fans to make Pork Soda debut in the Top Ten. After touring for a year -- including a headlining spot on Lollapalooza 1993 -- Claypool revived his Prawn Song record label in 1994 and released a reunion record by Primus' original lineup under the name Sausage. In the summer of 1995, Primus released their fifth album, Tales From the Punch Bowl. It was another success, going gold before the end of the year. In the summer of 1996, Primus announced they were parting ways with their drummer, Tim Alexander. He was replaced by Brian "Brain" Mantia, who made his debut on The Brown Album, which was released in the summer of 1997. The covers EP Rhinoplasty followed in 1998, and a year later, Primus returned with Antipop. Antipop was a departure from previous Primus albums, as different producers were used on almost each track (including such notables as Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst, Tom Waits, South Park creator Matt Stone, and former Police drummer Stewart Copeland) and it featured such guest artists as Metallica's James Hetfield and former Faith No More guitarist Jim Martin. After a supporting tour wrapped up in 2000, Mantia left the band to join Guns N' Roses. Claypool talked about reuniting with former drummer Tim "Herb" Alexander in the press, but shortly afterward announced that Primus was going on indefinite hiatus. During the ensuing break, Claypool focused on recording the debut album by his side project, Oyster Head (who also included Copeland and Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio), as well as releasing his two-part solo outing, Live Frogs: Set 1 and Set 2. Primus reunited in 2003 with a lineup containing Herb Alexander to release an EP's worth of new material as a part of the Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People DVD set. The band focused on touring until 2010 when Alexander once again left the band. Claypool and LaLonde turned to former drummer Jay Lane, and the band went back into the studio to work on a new full-length. In 2011, Primus released their seventh album, Green Naugahyde. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine & Greg Prato, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:

Primus (band)

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Primus

Les Claypool, Larry LaLonde and Jay Lane performing with Primus circa 2011.
Background information
Origin El Sobrante, California, USA
Genres Alternative rock, alternative metal,[1] funk metal, experimental rock, progressive rock
Years active 1984–2000, 2003–2006, 2008, 2010–present
Labels Caroline, Interscope, Prawn Song, ATO
Associated acts Sausage, Holy Mackerel, Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains, Les Claypool's Frog Brigade, Oysterhead, Blind Illusion, Possessed
Website primusville.com
Members
Les Claypool
Larry "Ler" LaLonde
Jay Lane
Past members
Tim "Herb" Alexander
Robbie Bean
Todd Huth
Peter Libby
Bryan "Brain" Mantia
Vince "Perm" Parker
Tim "Curveball" Wright

Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed the band at the end of 1988. Featuring LaLonde and drummer Tim "Herb" Alexander, Primus recorded their debut, Suck on This in 1989, followed by four studio albums; Frizzle Fry, Sailing the Seas of Cheese, Pork Soda, and Tales from the Punchbowl. Alexander left the band in 1996, replaced by Bryan "Brain" Mantia, and Primus went on to record the original theme song for the TV show South Park and two more albums, Brown Album and Antipop, before declaring a hiatus in 2000.

In 2003, Claypool and LaLonde reunited with Alexander and released a DVD/EP, Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People, before touring sporadically through 2009. In 2010, it was announced that Lane had rejoined Primus, replacing Alexander, and the band released their eighth album, Green Naugahyde, in 2011.

Primus are characterized by their irreverent, quirky approach to music. They have released some of their records on Claypool's Prawn Song Records label, the name of which is a parody of Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label.

Contents

Band history

The early years and Frizzle Fry (1984–1990)

Primus began as Primate in El Sobrante, California in 1984 with singer and bassist Les Claypool, guitarist Todd Huth, and a LinnDrum drum machine. The duo initially had trouble finding a drummer, until Claypool's friend Vince "Perm" Parker returned home from a stint in the army, and together the three of them recorded their first demo, financed by Claypool selling his car.[2][3] Primate changed their name to Primus after "about a month" when they were approached by a group called The Primates threatening legal action over the similarity of their names.[3] Parker was soon replaced by the band's second drummer, Peter Libby, who was himself replaced by Robbie Bean, before the band eventually settled on Tim "Curveball" Wright in 1986.[4] After rising to local music scene stardom with their brand of funk metal fusion, reaching the point where they were "selling out Berkeley Square", Wright left Primus in the summer of 1988 to be replaced by Jay Lane, drummer with the Freaky Executives, who were "getting dicked around by their record company", as Claypool later described it.[3]

After recording another demo, titled Sausage, Lane left Primus at the end of 1988 when "something good happened" with the Freaky Executives' record deal.[3] Huth soon left the band, wishing to dedicate more time to his family.[3] In 1989, Primus was put on hold briefly and Claypool rejoined his former band, Blind Illusion, who at the time also featured one-time Joe Satriani student and ex-Possessed guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde.[5] Claypool recruited LaLonde to reform Primus together with Tim "Herb" Alexander, drummer with the Arizona-based group Major Lingo, and a month later,[3][6] the trio recorded their first album: Suck On This, a live recording culled from two of their Berkeley concerts, funded by a loan from Claypool's father.[7]

In 1990 the band released their first studio album, Frizzle Fry, and released singles for "John the Fisherman" and "Too Many Puppies". With a music video featuring Kirk Hammett, a studio album and a tour with Jane's Addiction, Primus' popularity grew to the point where they attracted attention from Interscope Records, who signed them in 1990.

Seas of Cheese, Pork Soda and Punchbowl (1991–1996)

Primus's major label debut was the album Sailing the Seas of Cheese. The album was supported by the singles "Jerry Was a Race Car Driver" and "Tommy the Cat", both of which appeared on MTV. A third single, "Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers", was also released but did not feature a video. The band appeared as contestants for the Battle of the Bands in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey and made music for a Beavis & Butthead tribute album with a song entitled "Poetry and Prose". With a major label behind them, Sailing the Seas of Cheese went gold. The band then toured in support of Rush, U2, Anthrax, and Public Enemy.

After the release of Sailing the Seas of Cheese, in 1992 Primus released a cover song EP Miscellaneous Debris, with their version of XTC's "Making Plans for Nigel" receiving enough airplay to reach #30 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart.[8]

In 1993, Primus released Pork Soda, which managed to debut at #7 on the Billboard Top 10. The album was darker than previous Primus efforts, dealing with murder, suicide, and alienation. The band has commented that prior to recording, they had been touring for nearly two solid years and were thus in a sombre mood. "My Name Is Mud", "DMV", and "Mr. Krinkle" were singles, the latter made into a video featuring Claypool in a pig suit and tuxedo playing upright bass in an abandoned warehouse as a carnival of oddities parades behind him, including Claypool's wife and her twin sister. Claypool said he put his "heart and soul" into the video, but it received next to no airtime on MTV. In an interview with Guitar World magazine, Claypool disparaged the channel's unwillingness to air the video, saying "it got played like six times."

Pork Soda was recorded at the bands rehearsal space in San Rafael. The band would subsequently record all of their albums at Les Claypool's home studio called Rancho Relaxo.

In 1993 Primus headlined the alternative rock festival Lollapalooza. They also made an appearance at the Woodstock '99 Music Festival. They were pelted with mud while they performed "My Name is Mud" (Claypool claims to still have mud in his speakers). About a minute into the song the band stopped playing, and Claypool said, "Well I opened a big-ass can of worms with that one, didn't I? The song is called 'My Name is Mud', but keep the mud to yourselves you son-of-a-bitch."

The band produced material frequently. In the previous four years they had released three albums, an EP, six music videos, and a home video. To top that all off, they toured with Rush, who they consider to be one of their biggest influences.

During a lull in 1994, the early Primus lineup consisting of Claypool, Huth, and Lane reunited to record Riddles Are Abound Tonight under the band name Sausage, named after the demo they had recorded together in 1988. Among the songs they recorded is an early version of "The Toys Go Winding Down", retitled "Toyz 1988". The video for the title track "Riddles Are Abound Tonight" featured the band in blue leotards performing on stationary bicycles.

In 1995 Primus released their fourth album, Tales from the Punchbowl. It contained Primus's most successful single to date, the Grammy-nominated "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver". The song was accompanied by a video with the band members dressed up in cartoonish plastic cowboy costumes (similar to the suits worn in the then current Duracell battery commercials). The band was invited to perform on David Letterman and Conan O'Brien's shows. On the David Letterman show Primus appeared dressed in penguin tuxedos. Two other less successful singles, "Mrs. Blaileen" and "Southbound Pachyderm" (the latter of which featured a claymation video that received only minimal airplay on MTV) were also released.

In 1996 Claypool self-produced his first solo album entitled Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel Presents Highball with the Devil. On this album many of the songs are done solely by Claypool himself. Claypool also employs the help of a number of other musicians. Experimental Bay Area guitarist M.I.R.V. joined Claypool and others. Performances include a spoken word piece from Henry Rollins on the song "Delicate Tendrils". This album was recorded at Claypool's home recording studio, Rancho Relaxo.

Brown Album, Antipop and hiatus (1997–2002)

Claypool, Mantia and LaLonde in Copenhagen, Denmark in the summer of 1998.

Alexander left the band and was replaced by Bryan "Brain" Mantia of Limbomaniacs and Praxis. With Mantia aboard, Primus was asked in 1996 to compose the theme song to South Park. Primus also later contributed to the Chef Aid album with the song "Mephisto and Kevin".

Brown Album was released in 1997 and supported by the singles "Shake Hands with Beef" and "Over the Falls". In 1998, the band headlined the inaugural Sno-Core tour with The Aquabats, Long Beach Dub Allstars and Blink 182.

In late 1998, Primus released the Rhinoplasty EP, which features covers of acts like XTC, The Police and Peter Gabriel. The EP also includes two live recordings of Primus, as well as bonus content accessed through a CD-ROM portion of the CD. It was shortly followed by the video release Videoplasty.

Antipop was released in 1999, and featured production and guest appearances from James Hetfield from Metallica, Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine and Fred Durst from Limp Bizkit. While producing the song "Lacquer Head", Durst encouraged Primus to return to the more aggressive sound of their earlier albums for Antipop.[9] The band toured in support of Antipop with Ozzfest and Family Values Tour. The band released a music video for the album's only single, "Lacquer Head", which was banned from MTV because of references to and depictions of drug use, despite the song's anti-drug message.

In 2000 Primus performed a cover of Black Sabbath's song "N.I.B." featuring vocals by Ozzy Osbourne. The track originally appeared on the album Nativity in Black II: A Tribute to Black Sabbath. The track was also released as part of Ozzy's 2005 Prince of Darkness box set.

The band went on hiatus, with Claypool later stating:

"The end of the Nineties was an unhappy Primus camp. I hit a creative stagnation that wasn't helping us forward, and the personal elements, it just was time to stop. And I had been asked for many years, "How long can Primus go on?" And I always said, "I'll do it until it's not fun anymore." And it just wasn't fun anymore on many different levels."[6]

During this hiatus, Alexander released two albums with the band Laundry and performed with Blue Man Group, A Perfect Circle, and Born Naked, among others. Claypool explored the jam band scene with Oysterhead (featuring friend Trey Anastasio of Phish and Stewart Copeland of The Police) and his own Colonel Les Claypool's Fearless Flying Frog Brigade (featuring both Huth and Lane). He also collaborated with Brain, Buckethead and Bernie Worrell in the group Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains.

Reformation (2003–2009)

In late 2003, Primus reunited with Tim Alexander on drums to record a five track EP. Released alongside a DVD containing the band's music videos and clips from live performances, the resulting package was titled Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People. The band staged a two month tour performing two sets per show, the second consisting of their 1991 release Sailing the Seas of Cheese in its entirety. 2004 saw them continue touring, this time performing their 1990 release Frizzle Fry in its entirety. For these two tours, the band sold recordings directly recorded from the sound-board online. The performance in Chicago was videotaped and released as a DVD titled Hallucino-Genetics: Live 2004.

In 2005 the band performed at Lollapalooza and Vegoose. Between Primus shows, Claypool created a new solo project called Les Claypool's Fancy Band which, like other projects, occasionally used Primus songs.

A May 10, 2006 article in IGN revealed that Primus had signed on with RedOctane to allow the master recording of John the Fisherman to be used in Guitar Hero 2, a game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360.[10]

Primus performed on July 29, 2006 at the first annual Hedgpeth Festival in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin.

On October 17, 2006, Primus released both their first greatest hits CD They Can't All Be Zingers, as well as their third DVD Blame It on the Fish: an Abstract Look at the 2003 Primus Tour de Fromage. Containing live footage from the band's 2003 Tour de Fromage, interview segments and behind the scenes footage, the DVD includes a seventy minute feature film and ninety minutes of bonus material, including a thirty minute mockumentary about the band in the year 2065. Blame it on the Fish was directed by Matthew J. Powers. They Can't All Be Zingers: The Best of Primus includes 16 digitally remastered songs that span the band's career.

In November 2006, Primus commenced another tour which concluded the following month. They played at a few festivals in 2008, including the Rothbury Festival (in Michigan), the Ottawa Blues Fest, the Quebec City Summer Fest, and the Outside Lands Festival (in San Francisco), followed by their first annual Oddity Faire tour in March, 2009.[11] On November 24, 2009, Prawn Song re-released the band's first studio album, Frizzle Fry, on vinyl record, along with some of Claypool's solo albums.

It was revealed in 2011 that Alexander lacked interest in continuing Primus, despite enthusiasm from LaLonde and Claypool.[6] Claypool hinted that the band could have recorded with Alexander, but that "when we did readdress Primus in '03 and '06, it was more of a nostalgic thing. It was great at the time, but it just didn't have that creative spark as far as moving forward",[6] and thus the reformation instead focused on touring.

Green Naugahyde (2010–present)

On March 18, 2010 it was announced by Phil Lesh on his official message board that former Primus drummer Jay Lane would be leaving his previous band Furthur to rejoin Primus.[12] On May 3, 2010 Primus announced a new tour with Gogol Bordello, Wolfmother, and The Dead Kenny G's.[13][14] The press release for the tour revealed that the band were looking to "refine their chops before heading into the studio to record their first album of brand new music since 1999's Antipop."[15] Correlating with this announcement, the Primus website was updated with an animation of an elevator with its twelfth floor featuring a stylized question mark, and a sign reading "Primus will be with you shortly", alluding to future plans. In 2011, Claypool elaborated on the band's decision to record an album, stating that "(Lane) coming back has just breathed life back into the project. We did some touring, and we decided, "Let's go make a record," because we were creating things on the road."[6]

Jay Lane performing at the 2011 Soundwave festival in Brisbane, Australia.

On August 5, 2010, Primus released June 2010 Rehearsal, a free four-track rehearsal EP available for download on their official website. The EP consists of new recordings of previously released Primus songs featuring Jay Lane on drums.

Primus began their second annual Oddity Faire tour on September 14, 2010 with opening acts Portugal. The Man, Split Lip Rayfield, Mariachi El Bronx, The New Orleans Bingo! Show, Mucca Pazza and Gogol Bordello. The Squidling Brothers Circus Sideshow performers also entertained the crowd between bands on select dates. To promote this tour, Primus appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in September. The Oddity Faire tour did not include dates in Primus's hometown, the San Francisco Bay Area, because for promotional purposes it was too near to the planned New Year's dates December 30 and 31 in Oakland.[16]

Their song "Jerry Was a Race Car Driver" is included in the video game Rock Band 3, which was released October 26, 2010.[17]

In interviews conducted backstage at the Soundwave Festival in March 2011, Claypool said of the new Primus album "we've recorded it, we just need to polish it", and that the release date "should be around May or so".[18] He also described the new material as being "very reminiscent of Frizzle Fry".[19] In May, it was revealed that the album was complete and had been named Green Naugahyde, though the release date was pushed back to July to avoid the holidays.[20] On June 6, a press release was issued announcing that the album would be released by ATO Records and Prawn Song on September 13, 2011.[21] A second press release was later issued announcing that the album would be released in Europe on September 12.[22] On August 17, the track "Tragedy's a' Comin'" was made available to stream via the Spin magazine website,[23] followed by "HOINFODAMAN" on September 1 via the Rolling Stone site.[24] On September 8, the TV show South Park made the entire album available for streaming to anybody who "likes" their Facebook page, including "Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers" as a bonus track.[25]

Primus continue to tour throughout 2011, playing a number of dates in North America in May and June, including the Bonnaroo Music Festival,[26] followed by a tour of Europe from late June to mid July. They then return to America to play a few more music festivals leading into early August, including a show at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado with The Flaming Lips, before embarking on a "major fall tour" in support of the new album.[21]

Musical style and influences
"Lee Van Cleef"
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Primus's musical style is difficult to define. Primus has been called everything from "thrash-funk meets Don Knotts, Jr."[27] to "the Freak Brothers set to music",[28] and has been variously termed alternative rock,[29] alternative metal,[30] funk metal,[29] and progressive metal.[27] MTV suggests that Primus is "a post-punk Rush spiked with the sensibility and humor of Frank Zappa".[31] Les Claypool himself once described their music as "psychedelic polka."[32] Primus is the only band with its own ID3 genre tag, 'Primus', as extended by Winamp.[33] Primus' influences include Frank Zappa[34] and Pink Floyd.[34] Bands that have cited Primus as an influence include Deftones,[35] Incubus,[35] Korn,[36] Limp Bizkit,[36] Muse[35] and Pleymo.[37]

Band members

Current members
Former members
  • Todd Huth – guitar (1984–1989)
  • Vince "Perm" Parker – drums (1984)
  • Peter Libby – drums (1984–1985)
  • Robbie Bean – drums (1985–1986)
  • Tim "Curveball" Wright – drums (1986–1988)
  • Tim "Herb" Alexander – drums (1989–1996, 2003–2010)
  • Bryan "Brain" Mantia – drums (1996–2000)

Timeline

Discography

Main article: Primus discography

Tours

  • Bring the Noise Tour (1991)
  • Roll the Bones Tour (1992)
  • Zoo TV Tour (1992)
  • Lollapalooza (1993)
  • Liquid Pig Tour (1993)
  • Counterparts Tour (1994)
  • Punchbowl Tour (1995)
  • Southbound Pachyderm Tour (1996)
  • Brown Tour (1997)
  • H.O.R.D.E. Tour (1997)
  • SnoCore Tour (1998)
  • Ozzfest (1999)
  • Family Values Tour (1999)
  • Antipop Tour (1999–2000)
  • Tour de Fromage (2003–2004)
  • Hallucino-Genetics Tour (2004)
  • Unnamed tour (2006)
  • Unnamed Summer tour (2010)
  • The Oddity Faire Tour (2010)
  • Primus World Tour (2011)
  • Guinea Pig Tour (2011)
  • Green Naugahyde Tour (2011)

Awards

Album Year Award
Sailing the Seas of Cheese 1991 Platinum Album
Pork Soda 1993 Platinum Album
Tales from the Punchbowl 1995 Gold Album

See also

References

  1. ^ [1]
  2. ^ Karl Coryat. "Les Claypool gets a Taste of the Big Time". Bass Player Magazine via ram.org. http://www.ram.org/music/primus/articles/bp1.html. Retrieved September 23, 2006. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f Michael Goldberg. "Primus Through the Years: Les Claypool Reflects on His Past". http://mama.indstate.edu/users/primus/html/primus_through_the_years.html. Retrieved May 1, 2011. 
  4. ^ "Primus family tree". http://www.ram.org/music/primus/misc/family_tree.html. Retrieved April 29, 2011. 
  5. ^ Randy Reiss (September, 1997). "You Say It's Your Birthday: Les Claypool of Primus". Addicted to Noise, via ram.org. http://www.ram.org/music/primus/articles/les_bday_atn.html. Retrieved May 1, 2011. 
  6. ^ a b c d e Greg Prato (June 10, 2011). "Return of Drummer Jay Lane has 'Breathed Life' Back Into Primus". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/les-claypool-return-of-drummer-jay-lane-has-breathed-life-back-into-primus-20110610. Retrieved June 12, 2011. 
  7. ^ Illustrated Discography, Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People DVD, 2003.
  8. ^ "Primus Chart History, Singles". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.vnuArtistId=5450&model.vnuAlbumId=388860. Retrieved April 1, 2007. 
  9. ^ Devenish, Colin (2000). Limp Bizkit. St. Martin's. pp. 159–60. ISBN 0-312-26349-X. 
  10. ^ Kathleen Sanders. "E3 2006: Rock Out with Primus on Guitar Hero II". http://ps2.ign.com/articles/707/707004p1.html. 
  11. ^ "Les Claypool 'The Oddity Fair' Tour Dates, Bands". SMN News. February 11, 2009. http://www.smnnews.com/2009/02/11/les-claypool-the-oddity-fair-tour-dates-bands/. Retrieved May 27, 2011. 
  12. ^ "Phil Lesh, Furthur, Grateful Dead Phan Forum". Philzone.org. http://www.philzone.org/. Retrieved 2011-10-22. 
  13. ^ Tuyet Nguyen. "Primus announces headlining tour, new album". http://www.avclub.com/denver/articles/primus-announces-headlining-tour-new-album,40715. 
  14. ^ "Critters Buggin official website". Crittersbuggin.com. http://www.crittersbuggin.com/01live.html. Retrieved 2011-10-22. 
  15. ^ "Primus Returns to the Road, Plans New Album". http://www.spinner.com/2010/05/03/primus-returns-tour-new-album. 
  16. ^ Aidin Vaziri Pop Quiz: Les Claypool of Primus sfgate.com July 18, 2010
  17. ^ Johnson, Stephen (August 20, 2010). "Harmonix Responds To Rock Band 3 Set List "Leaks" By Revealing Entire Set List". G4 Media, Inc.. http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/707034/Harmonix-Responds-To-Rock-Band-3-Set-List-Leaks-By-Revealing-Entire-Set-List.html. Retrieved October 29, 2010. 
  18. ^ Primus Interview: Soundwave TV 2011. March 10, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  19. ^ Primus Interview - The Knave interviews for BEAT TV at The Melbourne Soundwave 2011. March 7, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  20. ^ Steve Centanni (May 17, 2011). "Primus brings ‘saccharine nightmare’ to Gulf Shores". LagniappeMobile.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. http://web.archive.org/web/20110720015627/http://www.lagniappemobile.com/article.asp?articleID=4519&SID=14. Retrieved May 18, 2011. 
  21. ^ a b Press release (June 6, 2011). "Primus to Release New Album in September". theprp.com. http://www.theprp.com/2011/06/06/news/primus-to-release-new-album-in-september/. Retrieved June 8, 2011. 
  22. ^ European press release (June 17, 2011). "Indie Distrobution Nyheter 17.06.2011". indiedist.no. http://www.indiedist.no/files/newsletters/INDIE%2017.06.2011.pdf. Retrieved June 22, 2011. 
  23. ^ Kevin O'Donnell (August 17, 2011). "Exclusive: Primus Return with First New Song". Spin. http://www.spin.com/articles/exclusive-primus-return-first-new-song. Retrieved August 17, 2011. 
  24. ^ Matthew Perpetua (September 1, 2011). "Exclusive Stream: Primus' Twitchy 'Hoinfodaman'". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/exclusive-stream-primus-twitchy-hoinfodaman-20110901. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
  25. ^ "Exclusive Free Preview of Primus' New Album Green Naugahyde". South Park via Facebook. September 8, 2011. https://www.facebook.com/southpark?sk=app_107256932692863. Retrieved September 10, 2011. 
  26. ^ "Bonnaroo 2011 Lineup: Eminem, Arcade Fire, WSP, MMJ". http://www.jambase.com/Articles/Story.aspx?storyID=26140. 
  27. ^ a b Gore, Joe (August 1991). "New Rage: The Funky". Guitar Player via ram.org. http://www.ram.org/music/primus/articles/funky.html. Retrieved September 23, 2006. 
  28. ^ "High Fryers". Metal Forces #54 via ram.org. http://www.ram.org/music/primus/articles/high_fryers.html. Retrieved September 23, 2006. 
  29. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Primus Biography at Allmusic. Retrieved November 27, 2009.
  30. ^ Friedlander, Paul (2006). Rock and Roll: A Social History. Westview Press. p. 296. ISBN 0-8133-4306-2. 
  31. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas; Prato, Greg. "Primus". MTV.com. http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/primus/artist.jhtml. Retrieved June 23, 2011. 
  32. ^ "Say "Cheese"!". Kerrang! #343 via ram.org. June 1, 1991. http://www.ram.org/music/primus/articles/say_cheese.html. Retrieved September 23, 2006. 
  33. ^ "ID3 tag version 2". ID3. March 26, 1998. http://www.id3.org/id3v2-00. Retrieved March 14, 2009. 
  34. ^ a b Elfman, Doug (October 15, 2003). "Primus plays Hard Rock". Las Vegas Review-Journal. http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2003/Oct-15-Wed-2003/news/22374264.html. Retrieved March 14, 2009. 
  35. ^ a b c http://www.nme.com/news/primus/54861
  36. ^ a b http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/orlandosentinel/access/46661412.html?dids=46661412:46661412&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+26%2C+1999&author=Parry+Gettelman+Sentinel%2C+Popular+Music+Critic&pub=Orlando+Sentinel&desc=LES+CLAYPOOL+LEADS+MOSHERS+THROUGH+A+PUMMELING%2C+FUN+SHOW&pqatl=google
  37. ^ http://www.allmusic.com/artist/pleymo-p623039/biography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Primus
Primus
Studio albums
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Related articles
Primus singles discography
Frizzle Fry
Sailing the Seas of Cheese
Miscellaneous Debris
Pork Soda
Tales from the Punchbowl
Brown Album
Rhinoplasty
Antipop
Collaborations
Les Claypool
Studio albums
Filmography
Novels
Primus
Studio albums
Extended plays
Other albums
Videography
Frog Brigade
Studio album
Live albums
Oysterhead
Blind Illusion
C2B3
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