PRIMUS
MASTODON/JJUUJJUU
CAL COAST CREDIT UNION OPEN AIR THEATER, SAN DIEGO
Progressive pioneers join forces on the West Coast
Two hours norTh,
a week-long heatwave is mercilessly roasting any Los Angeles resident foolish enough to venture outdoors. Here in San Diego, however, the weather remains typically perfect and as the sun sets over the amphitheatre, LA retro-rockers JJUUJJUU [7] initiate tonight’s festivities with a kaleidoscopic deluge of brain-tingling psychedelia. Though one sprawling jam bleeds into the next, the crowd acknowledge their workmanlike set with throaty appreciation.
What unites MASTODON [8] with tonight’s headliner isn’t their sound but their voracious appetite for proggy experimentalism. Opening with Sultan’s Curse, from Emperor Of Sand, the Atlanta quartet waste zero time diving into the frenzied, dual-fretted virtuosity that underpins their compositions. Guitarists Brent Hinds and Bill Kelliher effortlessly weave together taut, intricate patterns while drummer Brann Dailor rattles off thunderous polyrhythms that threaten to dislodge the tectonic plates beneath us. Bearded, spidery-legged bassist Troy Sanders swaps vocals with Brent and Brann as the band plow through a relentlessly heavy and balanced mix of old and new songs, including Divinations, Megalodon, Andromeda and closers Mother Puncher and Steambreather. After the set, Brann takes the mic as the others leave the stage and joyfully recalls playing San Diego’s tiny, but legendary Casbah club, 20 years before. He then promises to shower, grab a drink and come out and watch the rest of the show with the crowd.
If you’re hoping to catch PRIMUS [7] live this year, your window of opportunity has nearly closed, as tonight is the second-to-last stop on their summer tour. A handful of dates remain in September, after which the band plan on taking an extended hiatus, according to bassist and founder Les Claypool. Opening with To Defy The Laws Of Tradition, Pudding Time and Here Come The Bastards, Les stomps around in wide circles and banters genially with the crowd, but instrumental jams dominate the set. With guitarist Larry LaLonde and drummer Tim Alexander, the trio meticulously craft sparse, driving grooves, gradually adding one new element at time until the tracks erupt into a feverish, funked-out chorus. The energy ebbs when the band enter the middle tier of their set, playing the entirety of their latest release, The Desaturating Seven. Looking around, most people have taken their seats by that album’s closer, The Ends? As the end draws near, the band inspire a heroic recovery from the audience, closing with Jerry Was A Race Car Driver and encore John The Fisherman. A chilled-out but massively enjoyable way to spend a warm summer night.