Concert Review: Primus Keeps It Weird in Columbus, OH
Primus
Review & Photos by Jack Foley
Primus Sucks.
Anytime you ask a Primus fan what they think about the band, this is likely the response you will get. Fans of Primus are keen on irony and keeping things weird, and I’m glad they haven't changed in some forty-odd years.
Primus is one of those bands that, upon first listen, people tend to fall into two categories–they either steal the aux cable or hesitate before a grin appears. It’s somewhat of an amalgam of progressive rock, metal, grunge, and pure chaos; Primus is more easily described as its own genre that requires such a degree of talent to be deliberately unhinged that there is nothing else like it. As a bassist, I feel inclined to say that Les Claypool of Primus is arguably one of the greatest living bass players, if not the best. His ability to make his instrument speak in tongues of slaps, slides, and staccato with enough music theory to puzzle a jazz-trained musician is what initially drew me to Primus. Admittedly, I was not particularly fond of Primus at first and wrote them off as the product of Gen X doing everything in their power to piss off their parents. My good friend from middle school forced me to listen to Primus on our way to see a Green Day concert, and I found myself getting into it a bit more than I would have admitted at the time, and to this date I still occasionally tap into their infamous MTV Spring Break at Daytona Beach 1992 special, where the band took copious quantities of acid before performing for an audience of intoxicated college students.
Primus
Fast forward several years, it’s one of the hottest days of the summer in Columbus, Ohio. Thunderstorms loom in the distance as Coheed and Cambria take the stage. I had heard them named dropped by people in a secondary school jazz ensemble that had discovered progressive rock and ponytails, but, admittedly, I have not listened to them on my own. I was blown away by their performance. While in the photo pit, I was able to observe the chemistry between the members of the band, as well as with their fans. Their reactions to the crowd made it clear they were in tune with their audience.
Coheed and Cambria
The skies darkened as the sun began to set and storms started to become a threat. Primus took the stage and immediately jumped into their harrowing set. The crowd was ecstatic, even with the rain beginning. Les Claypool’s bass sounded as if it was direct from a fully-mixed and mastered recording; the band has honed their sound over the decades, and are masters of their craft. After the first song, Claypool notices a group of fans donning banana costumes and pauses to embrace the oddities of their audience. Their set consisted of several deep cuts, as well as fan favorites such as “My Name Is Mud” and “Jerry Was A Racecar Driver.” Primus made things weird in the best way possible, and despite their many decades of tenure as touring musicians, they show no signs of slowing down anytime soon. I highly recommend catching Primus if they pass through your town.
View photos from the show here!