Dave Garrison, September 1999

For any of you familiar with Las Claypool’s amazing ability on the Bass guitar, his odd style of singing and song subject matter, you are aware that Primus is an acquired taste. But for those of us who have been lucky enough to acquire the taste for their addicting sound, this band is a true favorite.

I will begin with Pork Soda. This is hands-down my favorite Primus CD. It both represents Primus’ odd style, while being mainstream enough to keep songs in your head long after you’ve left your car (or room). "My Name is Mud" (It’s always been), "Welcome to This World," and "Nature Boy," are true classics in every sense. Pork Soda is a turning point for the band. Their preceding CD’s, while unmistakably Primus, were under-produced and lacked the quality of this release.

Brown Album on the other hand, is a step too far in the direction that Pork Soda took. These songs lack the feeling of strangeness of the other CD’s, although musically, it has everything one has come to expect from the Band. "Bob’s Party Time," is probably one of my favorite songs of all time, from it’s memorable intro, and to the clinking glasses and lyric-heavy body, this song has it all. It is simply a song you must hear for yourself. Other great songs on the CD include "Hats Off", "Over the Falls," and "Shake Hands with Beef" (hmm…I wonder what that means?).

Finally, I would recommend Rhinoplasty. This CD is a series of covers (although save for the Metallica cover, I’m not sure from whom), and original and live material. It is probably the most ‘fun’ of their CD’s; songs such as "Scissorman," and "Amos Moses" cheer you up without fail. They do a better than decent Metallica cover of "The Thing that Should not Be," and an interesting fact is that Les Claypool actually auditioned for Metallica (after the death of their original bassist, Cliff Burton), but was rejected for the fact that his style was too independent and distant from Metallica’s. The live version of "Tommy the Cat" (another Primus classic), is in my opinion better than the original version, and the live version of "Bob’s Party Time" speaks for itself. In addition to all of this, the icing on the cake of Rhinoplasty is that it is an enhanced CD that includes a claymation music video of a Charlie Daniel’s Band cover, entitled "The Devil went down to Georgia." I only wish that the song were included as an audio track on the CD. Even without it, this CD often finds itself in rotation on my long commute to school.

PRIMUS discography

"Rhinoplasty"