Shows / Primus Tracks
Primus Tracks
Primus Tracks chronicles the recordings of the rock band Primus, one track at a time. Join Josh, Frankie, & Primus friend/assistant Tim Soya as they create the ultimate Primus companion - for beginners and hardcore fans alike.
Episodes
- Primus Tracks
Oysterhead - Little Faces w/ Lalo Fierro
We continue our Primus-adjacent chronology with the 2001 release by Oysterhead, The Grand Pecking Order. This record came about after Les Claypool, Trey…
- Primus Tracks
Master Class with David Lefkowitz 3 - Pork Soda
David Lefkowitz returns to Primus Tracks to further flesh out the narrative of the band's 1990s rise. We discuss the Pork Soda album cycle, complete with…
- Primus Tracks
Les Claypool's Frog Brigade 2023 Tour Wrap
Les Claypool's Fearless Flying Frog Brigade returned in majestic form as they toured the USA in 2023 - 57 shows that thrilled, delighted, and awed audiences…
- Primus Tracks
Les Claypool's Frog Brigade - Live Frogs Sets 1 & 2
After Primus went on hiatus in 2000, Les Claypool was at a musical and professional crossroads. Eventually, he assembled a group of friends as Colonel Les…
- Primus Tracks
Buckethead - Monsters & Robots
This week, we discuss Buckethead's album Monsters And Robots, a 1999 effort that features Les Claypool and Brian Mantia writing and performing with Bucket…
- Primus Tracks
Lespecial - Odd Times with Luke Bemand
We take a detour from our standard programming to talk with frequent guest Luke Bemand about the new lespecial record, Odd Times. All three members of the band…
- Primus Tracks
Attention Deficit with Michael Manring
In 1998 and 2001, Tim Alexander teamed up with guitarist Alex Skolnick and bassist Michael Manring to create records under the name Attention Deficit. We are…
- Primus Tracks
Inter-Album Interview: Harry Waters
The great Harry Waters takes the glass elevator up to the 38th floor of Primus Tracks Towers to discuss his endeavors in film and tv composition, as well as…
- Primus Tracks
Laundry - Motivator
Tim Alexander resuscitated Laundry in 1999 to create Motivator. Tim took over vocal duties, and the resulting effort is in many ways a departure from the first…
- Primus Tracks
Ask Soya!
Here's another sub-series within the Primus Tracks realm: Ask Soya! We put out the call, and you answered with your hard-hitting questions about the Primus…
- Primus Tracks
Legendary Show Dissection - Bonnraoo 2008
Bonnaroo 2008 saw Les Claypool assemble a one-off lineup to perform a bevy of his solo tracks around a couple of setlist surprises. Sam Bass, Pualo Baldi, and…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Me and Chuck & Carolina Rig
We double-dip to close out our exploration of Les Claypool & The Holy Mackerel Presents Highball With The Devil by discussing the two instrumentals at the end…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Granny's Little Yard Gnome
Granny's Little Yard Gnome is a little plaster gem hidden near the end of the record, but it hasn't escaped the watchful eye of Primus Tracks. We discuss what…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - El Sobrante Fortnight
An autobiographical narration about Les Claypool's decision to purpose a career in music, El Sobrante Fortnight stands out among the goofball tracks on Holy…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - George E Porge
An oft-overlooked track on the Holy Mackerel record, George E Porge is a modern take on the children's nursey rhyme, and features some fantastic guitar work…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Precipitation
Do you want relentless, pounding rain? You'll get it with this strange offering from the Holy Mackerel record. This track dates back to 1991, and trace its…
- Primus Tracks
The Awakening w/ Luke Bemand & Rory Dolan
It's a special day on Tracks, as we address a tune near and dear to Les Claypool.The Awakening is a drum-and-bass piece originally by The Reddings, and over…
- Primus Tracks
Legendary Show Dissection - Seahawks Exhibition Hall 2004
We've referenced it enough, so why not return from out summer vacation to discuss Primus at Seahawks Exhibition Hall, 2004. This recording captures the band…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Delicate Tendrils
This is a strange track, but in a different vein from the previous three; for the first time ever on a Les Claypool-fronted record, someone other than Les is…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Cohibas Esplenditos
Another Holy Mack track, another heavy! This time, Bruce Swenson joins us to discuss Cohibas Esplenditos and its unabashed star, Mirv Haggard. Bruce crewed for…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Rancor
What Calling Kyle begins, Rancor continues: madcap adventures in home-studio recording with Les Claypool. Soya relives some Mackerel tour moments via the live…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Calling Kyle
Perhaps the most bizarre of them all, Calling Kyle seems to be Les Claypool channeling his inner Residents, or simply letting his id run wild. Soya recalls the…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Hendershot
Track 4 of the Holy Mackerel record showcases Mirv's surf guitar prowess, and this tune became a live favorite of the Holy Mack crew on the 1996 tour…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Highball With Adam Gates
For the track Highball With The Devil, we needed a heavy, and Soya delivered with the legendary Adam Gates, who contributed backing vocals to the tune. Adam…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Holy Mackerel
Track 2 of Les Claypool & The Holy Mackerel Presents Highball With The Devil is the first two title tracks. For this one, Les brought in Jay Lane on drums, and…
- Primus Tracks
Holy Mackerel - Running The Gauntlet
In this episode, we begin our track-by-track discussions of the 1996 release Les Claypool & The Holy Mackerel Presents Highball With The Devil - Les's first…
- Primus Tracks
Prawn Song Records: Porch & Laundry
We return to the Prawn Song Records well to discuss a pair of 1994 releases by Primus principles: the self-titled Porch, helmed by Todd Huth, and Tim…
- Primus Tracks
MIRV - Cosmodrome
We return to the Prawn Song Records catalogue to discuss MIRV's Cosmodrome, recorded in 1993 at Les Claypool's house for release on his own record label. This…
Primus TracksInter-Album Interview: Riding with Mike Dillon
Mike Dillon, aka Jazz Dad, returns to Primus Tracks. The busiest man in music gives us the skinny on his new Punkadelick record, Inflorescence, and primes us…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Caution Should Be Used While Driving a Motor Vehicle or Operating Machinery
We've reached the final track of the Sausage record, and it's time to relax with an instrumental jam that escorts us off the premises. We discuss our lasting…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Recreating
Recreating is another early Primate track that was resurrected for the Sausage record, and it's a ripper! Soya joins us from Portugal to bend his knee and…
- Primus Tracks
Live Show Dissection - Woodstock 94
Just as Les Claypool took a momentary day off from Sausage to play a one-off with Primus, we divert from the Sausage record to introduce another semi-recurring…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Girls For Single Men
This week, we discuss the Sausage track Girls For Single Men, a jam that features layers of spoken-word tracks that blend together to overwhelm, much as one…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Temporary Phase w/ Matt Hunter
Matt Hunter saunters into the episode to model the bass and guitar parts from this Sausage "slow jam," which is one of the earlier Les Claypool tunes ever…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Toyz 1988 w/ Lalo Fierro
The Toys Go Winding Down from Frizzle Fry has a sludgy cousin that appears on Sausage's 1994 record Riddles Are Abound Tonight, and it's only fitting that Soya…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Shattering Song w/ Rory Dolan
Shattering Song may be one of the most-beloved non-Primus tracks that Les Claypool has created, as far as official releases go. To give the tune its due, Rory…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Here's To The Man
In the third track of the Sausage record, things take a sudden, grating turn. We discuss this dark, sludgy grinder, and how it defies expectation, which may be…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Riddles Are Abound Tonight w/ Kello Gonzalez
The title track of the Sausage record gained some traction as the inspiration for "The Great Cornholio" on Beavis & Butthead, and brings a groovy element to…
- Primus Tracks
Sausage - Prelude to Fear w/ Blas Perez
In this episode we begin our exploration of the Sausage record, Riddles Are Abound Tonight. 1994 saw Les Claypool reunite with Todd Huth and Jay Lane to…
- Primus Tracks
Prawn Song Records 93-95
After its inception to self-release Suck On This in 1989, Prawn Song Records went dormant until 1993, when Les Claypool revived the label to provide…
- Primus Tracks
Blind Illusion - Les meets Ler
It's the first in our series of Primus side projects - some one-offs, some track-by-track. DID YOU KNOW that Les and Ler first met as members of the band Blind…
- Primus Tracks
Primus Guest Appearances w/ Tom Waits, Ozzy Osbourne, Stewart Copeland
Primus guest appearances, as a full band, on others' recordings, are quite rare. We found (possibly) the only four in existence and provide background…
- Primus Tracks
Inter-Album Interview: Cage Claypool
Cage Claypool has a familiar last name, and his first name ought to be known to you by now as the creator of the music videos for Conspiranoia and Follow The…
- Primus Tracks
Erin on the Side of Caution
We round out our coverage of Conspiranoid with Erin on the Side of Caution, which imtroduces new wrinkles to the Primus fabric, and promises of more creativity…
- Primus Tracks
Follow The Fool
The second track of Conspiranoid, Follow The Fool, follows the theme of the EP's title track, and forced its way into sets during the second Tribute To Kings…
- Primus Tracks
Conspiranoia
Conspiranoia was borne of the band's prog shift, starting in 2017 and continuing with the Tribute To Kings tours, in which the band played Rush every night…
- Primus Tracks
Inter-album Interview: Jason McHugh
Jason McHugh partnered with Matt Stone & Trey Parker for Cannibal: The Musical, South Park, and Orgazmo, but he also produced Les Claypool's Electric Apricot…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Ends?
Is it truly The Ends? For The Desaturating Seven, yes. For Primus Tracks, not even close. We round out the 2017 Primus release with a brief discussion of the…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Storm
There's a storm a'coming, and Anthony Garcia returns to help us navigate the proggiest of Primus tracks, The Storm. Anthony models some of the bass and guitar…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Dream
Although some diehards derided this track upon album release, Josh and Frankie find the charms of The Dream via the connection to the original material in Ul…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Scheme w/ Luke Bemand
Lespecial bassist Luke Bemand returns to explain the underpinnings of this track, in which there are few, if any rests for the bass. It's a driving rainbow…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Trek w/ Kello Gonzalez
We hold The Trek in the highest esteem for its individual elements, and how they coalesce into a truly epic track. Our renowned guest, Kello Gonzalez, brings…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Seven w/ Lalo & Haro Fierro
The ostensible title track of the album, The Seven packs a punch with its changing time signatures and bass & guitar techniques. First-time guest Lalo Fierro…
- Primus Tracks
The Desaturating Seven - The Valley
We move into a new Primus record cycle and recap all of the hints the band dropped in early 2017 as to what was to come; the final product being The…
- Primus Tracks
Master Class with David Lefkowitz Part 2
David Lefkowitz, Primus/Les manager for about 20 years, returns to the podcast for more deep insight into the Primus timeline. Last time, Dave took us through…
- Primus Tracks
South Park 25 Recap
Primus and Ween accompanied Matt Stone and Trey Parker, along with a host of supporting performers on a two-night run at the famed Red Rocks to celebrate South…
- Primus Tracks
Primus & The Chocolate Factory Part 3
Soya's back for the final installment of the Wonka era in which he recounts stories from the road: managing multiple drum setups, being an Oompa Loompa, and…
- Primus Tracks
Primus & The Chocolate Factory Part 2
The Chocolate Factory record provided ample opportunity for whimsical promotion, and Primus took the hint. We discuss the various physical media releases and…
Primus TracksPrimus & The Chocolate Factory Part 1
Ladies and gentlemen: The Chocolate Room. We dig into the Wonka Era with our guide to the Primus Factory, Tim Soya. In Part 1 we cover: 1. Herb's return to the…
Primus TracksSoya & Frankie Play You Don't Know Cock
Back in 1999, the Primus website presented You Don't Know Cock, a parody trivia game about the band. Alas, they dropped the game from a website migration, and…