Happy New Year to everyone! It’s good to be back with my first blog post of the year after a couple of weeks away for the holiday. It only seemed right to start by talking about attending Primus’ yearly NYE shows at the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA. This was my second time attending, and there was about as much wackiness as one could expect. The theme of this year’s shows was “Send in the Clowns,” and fans were encouraged to come dressed in their favorite clown costume, with the opportunity to enter into a contest New Year’s Eve, hosted, appropriately enough, by the band’s opening act, Puddles the Clown. Don’t know him? He’s known as the Sad Clown with the Golden Voice, and having seen him several times over the years, with and without Primus, Puddles has more than earned that title. Anyway, the last two days of 2025 turned out to be overcast and gloomy, with New Year’s Eve itself leaving us standing out in pouring rain while in line for the doors. I came prepared with a rain poncho and umbrella, so in the end, I survived the wet conditions.
Like last year, I went all out and purchased the Lucky Bastard VIP experience for both nights. The VIP package comes with its own unique poster. The was this year’s:
Since I had VIP for both nights, I ended up with 2 of these posters, but like last year, I will be gifting the second poster to someone else. And yes, it is signed by the band.
A Primus VIP package includes early entry into the venue, which, for a general admission standing-only floor, is a must for me, so that I can get to the rails and enjoy the show as close as possible. Once everyone is checked in, we all huddle together for the Q&A session with the band. Photos and videos are strictly forbidden during the Q&A, so here’s a photo of the vacant chairs and microphones, set up right in front of the stage.
The Q&A lasted about 45 minutes each night. Amidst the usual questions related to musical influences, future plans, and check-in questions for new drummer John Hoffman (the band calls him Hoffer), there were some funny questions sprinkled in. One guy asked what music the band had been listening to. Les Claypool responded with a band called, wait for it… Tropical Fuck Storm. I was sure that he was making that up, but a quick Google search proved me wrong. Another person asked a question that is going to get a chuckle out of me every time I think of it for at least the foreseeable future. I don’t remember it word for word, but she asked Les something about owning warming underwear and whether he warms them with his farts. Les claimed he’s been “abstaining from flatulence” for some time, but between you and me, I think that’s bullshit. Yeah, the brazenness of Primus fans is truly something to behold. Even Les himself was surprised at this, as he put it “young woman asking me about my farts.” On a less infantile note, a guy I recognized from the Q&A at their Kansas City show at Grinders KC last summer stepped up to the mic once again, asking for marriage advice since he recently got engaged to the woman who was with him at Grinders. Les, who had recently celebrated his own 30th anniversary, simply told him “marry your best friend.” Fair enough.
Moving on from that, like I said, I enjoyed both shows on the rails, nearly dead center. I would say it’s the best seat in the house, but one could consider the average Primus pit crowd to be a potential dealbreaker for buying floor tickets. I can handle it overall, but it does get old having to duck down to avoid incoming crowdsurfers or fight off latecomers trying to bully their way to the rails. I spent the bulk of the New Year’s Eve show practically pinned to the railing because there was so much shoving. I’ve never considered Primus music to be “moshable,” so I’m not sure why people do it. Me, I’d rather just watch and enjoy.
Each show was its own unique set, with Night 1 being “An Evening with Primus.” It was two sets and a three-song encore. They included some of the expected tunes like their popular set opener,”Damned Blue Collared Tweakers,” “Harold of the Rocks,” and “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver,”m but there were some surprises, too. In the mix, they threw in a cover of Oysterhead’s “Polka Dot Rose” and “Hello Skinny” by The Residents. They’re one of those bands that has this way of making even covers sound like Primus songs, so I often don’t realize I’m hearing a cover unless it’s pointed out or I look it up later.
New Year’s Eve started with a fun opening set from Puddles the Clown’s act, Puddles’ Pity Party. For those of you not in the know, Puddles is known for taking songs and performing them to the tune of other songs. For example, he’ll take “Pinball Wizard” by The Who, and sing it to the tune of “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash. It works remarkably well, and it’s hilarious at the same time. At the end of his set, he led all the fans who entered the clown costume contest on stage so the audience could vote for their favorite. The winner took home a Dash mini waffle maker. In the right photo below, the clown third from the left is the one who won.
Primus came on at about 10:45PM. Long past my bedtime, but I certainly wasn’t complaining. Primus traditionally starts every show with the “Clown Dream” music from Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, only tonight, in keeping with the clown theme, they showed the actual scene from the movie on the screen as they took the stage, which was pretty cool! This was a completely different set that included some of my personal favorites, like “Jilly’s on Smack,” “The Antipop,” and “To Defy the Laws of Tradition.” When the time came, we all took part in the ten-second countdown and formally rang in 2026. They brought out Puddles at the top of the hour for a fiery cover of “N.I.B” by Black Sabbath.
I’m so glad I discovered these guys. And it all happened in the middle of a cross-country road trip, but since I had barely any idea of what I wanted to do when I jumped into the car that July 2024 morning, anything was bound to happen. Here’s a few more photos to close out this entry about a spectacular way to introduce 2026!
The Girl in the Scarf 
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