Primus have officially announced the release of A Handful of Nuggs, a new five-song EP arriving on vinyl July 22 alongside the launch of the upcoming “Claypool Gold” tour.
As the first major preview of the release, the band led by Les Claypool unveiled the new single “The Ol’ Grizz”, a track filled with twisted grooves, frantic bass work and the surrealist songwriting style that has historically defined Primus.
The song unfolds as a strange narrative told from the perspective of a gold prospector wandering through the wilderness before eventually confronting a massive bear. Musically, the track blends wobbling rhythms, aggressive slap bass and multiple dynamic shifts while Claypool delivers one of the absurd theatrical stories that have become central to the band’s identity.
The EP A Handful of Nuggs will also include Primus’ eccentric version of “Holy Diver,” originally made famous by Dio, recorded alongside performer Puddles Pity Party. The release additionally features “Little Lord Fentanyl,” a collaboration with Maynard James Keenan of Tool, Puscifer and A Perfect Circle.
The EP arrives as part of the promotional rollout for the “Claypool Gold” tour, a special series of concerts featuring three separate projects led by Les Claypool: Primus, The Claypool Lennon Delirium and Fearless Flying Frog Brigade.
The tour officially begins May 20 in Reno, Nevada and marks one of the most ambitious live celebrations of Claypool’s creative universe in recent years.
The activity also coincides with the recent release of The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy, the newest album from The Claypool Lennon Delirium, the collaborative project between Les Claypool and Sean Lennon.
