A certain level of pretense is typically assumed for any band of even marginal success, but this is exactly the kind of image that Primus has tried - successfully- to avoid. Even with their meteoric rise in the early and mid-90's rock scene, the group has maintained a low profile and a down-to-earth reputation with fans. They've even gone so far as to deny playing songs that earned them a huge amount of fame.

Primus, Unpretentious

"No, we suck."

A certain level of pretense is typically assumed for any band of even marginal success, but this is exactly the kind of image that Primus has tried - successfully- to avoid. Even with their meteoric rise in the early and mid-90's rock scene, the group has maintained a low profile and a down-to-earth reputation with fans. They've even gone so far as to deny playing songs that earned them a huge amount of fame.

Primus Gets All Primed Up

It all began when guitarist Todd Huth, bassist Les Claypool and drummer Jay Lane made up the group Primate in El Sobrante, California in the mid-1980's. They soon switched to their current name, however, when another band fought their claim for the Primate name.

Despite their success performing in the local scene, Lane and Huth both left the band in 1989, each to pursue his own career. Larry Lalonde and Tim Alexander were then called up by Claypool to fill the vacancies in. The new lineup released the band's debut album Suck on This that same year. It wasn't until their 1990 release Frizzle Fry, however, that the band caught the eye of Interscope Records, which quickly added them to its roster.

Their commercial breakout album was undoubtedly Sailing the Seas of Cheese in 1991. It soon earned gold status and got the band supporting gigs with the likes of Public Enemy and U2. This was followed by the darker and more sombre Pork Soda in 1993, which debuted in the Top 10 of Billboard. Tours and a short lull followed, during which time Claypool was able to reassemble the old lineup to record Riddles Are Abound Tonight.

Primus: Down from the Peak

A new Primus album, Tales from the Punchbowl, came out in 1995, and is one of their best received. The band got a Grammy nomination for the single Wynona's Big Brown Beaver, netting them several prime time gigs. Band members, however, were not entirely comfortable with the newfound fame; Claypool declared that they would stop playing the single entirely, and Alexander left in 1996 to be replaced by Bryan Mantia.

Mantia spread his wings in 1997's Brown Album and the 1998 Sno-Core Tour where the group headlined. Antipop came out in 1999, with numerous artists contributing to a track or another. After the tour to support Antipop, however, the band chose to go on hiatus in 2001. The members - Claypool in particular - went on to perform live several times, but no new album releases were planned.

Their latest album release was They Can't All Be Zingers, a greatest hits compilation from 2006. While on hiatus, they also released several DVDs like 2003's Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People and 2006's Blame It on the Fish: an Abstract Look at the 2003 Primus Tour de Fromage.

Did You Know That...

• ...the band's first drummer wasn't even human? Before Claypool and Huth met Lane, the pair had a drum machine affectionately called Perm Parker.
• ...Claypool's home was a de facto headquarters for the band? Starting with Pork Soda, all their albums were made at the recording studio there, Rancho Relaxo.
• ...South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker are big fans? They personally requested the band to compose the show theme in 1996. Good thing Claypool was a fan of the pair's early work, too.

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