Peter Luscombe - 1/31/2010

Les Claypool is a genius, there is no denying it. His bass-playing skills are just phenomenal; he pretty much slaps, pops and even strums his way through this album effortlessly. It may come as no surprise to learn that when he went to audition for Metallica, he was rejected for being 'too good'.

However, Primus really isn't for everyone, but then Primus aren't a traditional band. Drummer Tim Alexander manages somehow to slot in and around the convoluted riffs, without taking too much attention away from Claypool. Claypool himself sounds like Kermit the Frog with a blocked nose; of course this suits the humorous lyrics but takes some getting used to. The dissonant riffs come from the bass, not the guitar, which instead produces a lot of noise, like some kind of unmelodic grunge.

To sum up:
If you have an ear for funk-metal-Zappaesque crossovers, you'll probably love it.
If you have 'normal' ears however, you probably won't.