Artist Spotlight: Primus

First formed in El Sobrante, California in the mid-1980s, Primus rose to fame with its brand of funky metal and rock. Comprised of vocalist and bassist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry LaLonde, and drummer Tim Alexander, Primus has a career spanning three decades, with nine studio albums and multiple Grammy nominated albums to its name.

Suggested by MTV to be “a post-punk Rush spiked with the sensibility and humor of Frank Zappa,” Primus is known for its funky, bass heavy music that refuses to be pigeon-holed into any specific genre. After releasing the live album Suck on This in 1989, the band went on to record six studio albums over the course of the 1990s, including Frizzle Fry, Sailing the Seas of Cheese, and Tales from the Punchbowl.

Courtesy of Rolling Stone

One of the band’s most well known performances is the theme song from South Park, which Claypool was asked to compose in 1996. Primus later featured in the show during season two in the episode “Chef Aid,” and on the accompanying album, Chef Aid: The South Park Album.

In 2014, Primus released their eighth studio album, Primus & the Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble, a re-imagining of the Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory soundtrack. The album tour saw the band play two sets each night, the first comprised of their classic songs, while the second saw a psychedelic stage complete with dancing oompa-loompas as the band played through the album in its entirety while the film screened in the background.

2017 saw Primus release The Desaturating Seven, inspired by The Rainbow Goblins, a childrens book written by Italian author Ul de Rico.

This year, Primus finally sets out on their latest tour, A Tribute to Kings, during which they plan to cover Rush’s 1977 album A Farewell to Kings each night in its entirety. The tour is co-billed by Wolfmother and The Sword.

Primus makes its stop in Houston on September 7^th, at Bayou Music Center, get your tickets before its too late!