Primus defies categorization and walks the halls of Devo, Thelonious Monk, and Salvador Dali–instantly recognizable as something new to the Earth, destined to do their own thing and well, that’s it. First walking the Earth around 1984, they bring to our planet walls of bass wizardry (yes, that’s a whammy bar) backed by a guitarist and drummer who can tell where Les Claypool’s going, carefully steering clear of the abyss while dancing all along the edges. After Antipop, there was much hand-wringing–from whence would our craving for quirky bass madness and tales of killer rodeo bulls come? But wait! Primus is far from dead and their newest album, Green Nougahyde (the first since 1999’s Antipop) is a must purchase on double green vinyl or CD:
We caught them at the Metropolis in Montreal for a spectacular 3+ hour show, complete with vintage Popeye reels and giant inflatable astronauts (friendly argument ensued among friends–were the astronauts Alfred Hitchcock, Jean-Luc Picard, George Bush, or some evil love child of all three?). It was a very dark show, with little light on the performers and major focus on the projected images and stage props. A perfect mood, but a little hard on the D700. But as usual, we win the ISO battle (hey, it’s our job):
If you haven’t checked out Primus on their current tour, get your tickets early. The Montreal show was sold out with scalpers getting 2 X face value for a few remaining tickets. And now for another listen of Green Nougahyde…