Live Review: Primus + The Claypool Lennon Delirium + The Frog Brigade @ The Caverns, Pelham, TN - June 5, 2026

Les Claypool’s 2026 “Claypool Gold” Tour Brings Three Mind Bending Sets to Pelham, TN’s The Caverns

Older man in a green hat and glasses sings into a microphone with one hand raised under blue-green stage lights. — Les Claypool photo by Andrew Pringle

Friday, June 5th, 2026, musical mad scientist Les Claypool brought his psychedelic circus to The Cavern’s 6,000-person cap outdoor amphitheater in middle Tennessee. With distinct sets from the Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, Claypool Lennon Delirium, and Primus, the nearly three-hour show was full force fun for both longtime fans and newcomers alike, accurately displaying the ever-eclectic world of Les Claypool.

At 6pm sharp, the gates opened, and the line of fans poured into the venue’s grounds. Between lining up for merch, finding spots on the lawn, buying drinks, and ordering food from the food trucks, the vibe amongst the attendees was good. With the sun soon to be setting and temperatures in the low seventies, the evening was shaping up to be a perfect summer night for an outdoor show. Populated by fans of all ages, ranging from actual infants to white-haired, first-gen hippies, the crowd’s energy was unanimously attributed to the excitement of seeing Colonel Les Claypool taking the stage.

At 8pm, with little sunlight left in the sky, the pre-show music dissolved, and the screens faded into the sepia-tinted 1948 prospecting western The Treasure of the Sierra Madre where an ecstatic Walter Huston delivers the line “Up there’s where we got the gold!”, while pointing to the top of a mountain in the desert as the film’s music crescendos. The scene fades into the Frog Brigade’s bass playing flying frog logo with a blue background, filling the screen, and the recognizable “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” playing over the speakers. The crowd’s cheers overtook any remaining silence as the band took the stage, with Claypool being the final member to get into position, before delivering the thumping bass line of “Up On The Roof”. The bass was soon joined by the rest of the Frog Brigade, abiding by the song’s 3/4 time signature. Before even reaching the first verse, saxist Skerik blared into a solo with his sax mic’d to a guitar amp, producing a distorted tone, and he didn’t hold back.

Black-and-white close-up of a bearded musician in a hat and glasses singing into a microphone on stage, with blurred lights — Les Claypool photo by Andrew Pringle

Going into the first verse, Claypool quietly sung the words, building up to the chorus’ main lines “I’m up on the roof again, watching the sparklers dance and play. Up on the roof again, please don’t take my ladder away!”. Despite the song’s simple structure, the roaring chorus hits harder and harder every time. The solo section is where the Frog Brigade really shines, jamming in the waltz rhythm, giving each of the members time to spread their flying frog wings. In particular, percussionist Mike Dillon playing the mess out of his vibraphone, producing gleaming tones played at extraordinary speeds, which he pulled off several times throughout the night.

Following the exciting opener, Les and guitarist Sean “Shiner” Ono Lennon shared some stage banter, trading quips, to which the crowd responded with genuine laughter. After which they went into the marching “Amanitas”, in which Shiner’s eerie slide guitar accompanies Les’ foundational yoinky sploinky bass line. For the next song, “Precipitation”, Les brought out his five-string bass and pig mask. When that combination graces the stage, two things are for certain- what follows will delve further into the weirdness, and the crowd will completely eat it up. This would not be the last time the combination makes an appearance for the night. The song’s repetitive structure and uneasy feel turn into pure madness by the end.

Before starting the final song of the Frog Brigade’s set, Les introduced a special guest, Norwood Fisher (formerly of Fishbone), to join them for the next song. When Norwood was all set with his bass, they began playing “D’s Diner”, a fan favorite and consistent staple of Frog Brigade setlists since the band’s early days. In classic Claypool fashion, the song features goofy lyrics that are nonetheless well written, which can easily be missed due to the catchy attention-grabbing instrumentation. During the solo section, Claypool and Norwood traded bass licks, building off one another, a real treat for funk fans and casual listeners alike. After coming back to the main chorus, the band gave the song a solid conclusion, with the crowd howling. To my surprise, the band promptly left the stage, however, the departure was momentary.

Long-haired guitarist in red cap and jacket plays under red stage lights beside a microphone, focused on performance — Sean Ono Lennon photo by Andrew Pringle

Before returning to the stage, the lights shifted from green and blue to purple and pink, along with the video wall displaying a galaxy with the same color scheme. The spacey “There’s No Underwear in Space” played over the PA system, building the anticipation. When the right moment hit, The Claypool Lennon Delirium filed onto the stage. Starting their segment with their appropriately titled “South of Reality”, they set the mood for what was to come. Paying homage to late 60’s British psych-rock, think Syd Barret-era Pink Floyd, they focus on creating atmospheric feels, as opposed to the Frog Brigade’s funk sound or Primus’ heaviness, all without compromising Claypool’s quirkiness and flair.

The next four songs were drawn from The Delirium’s most recent album The Great Parrot-Ox and The Golden

Egg of Empathy, which was released last month (May 1st, 2026). The satirical, brutally honest, and Vonnegut-esq concept album explores themes of societal problems of the modern age and the repercussions of social media. These themes are well-vocalized in “Meat Machines”, which pleads the question “Is there more to us?”. Even with its toned-down pace, Les’ groovy bass manages to shine through the mix, and features a solid synth solo from Harry Waters. After “Meat Machines”, they went into “Troll Bait”, driven by its clunky rhythm, followed by “WAP (What a Predicament)” another commentary on modern life, and a title referencing rapper Cardi B’s controversial 2020 hit of the same name.

The final original they played was the semi-titular “The Golden Egg of Empathy”, a funky track reminiscent of Pink Floyd’s “Have a Cigar”. Since I’ve mentioned Pink Floyd twice so far, I was delighted to experience them end their set with a massive cover of Pink Floyd’s “Astronomy Domine”, which they had previously covered in the studio for their Lime and Limpid Green EP. It’s also special getting to see Harry Waters pay tribute to his father’s music. Once the song ended, an “Intermission” title card appeared on the screen.

Silhouetted musician in a hat and glasses plays guitar against a vivid blue and pink abstract background. — Les Claypool photo by Andrew Pringle

After a 15-ish minute intermission, a video titled “What is Primus?” began playing on the screen, featuring fast paced interviews with some of rock’s finest musicians explaining professing their love for Primus, along with Les and guitarist Larry “Ler” LaLonde. The video also hilariously begs the question “Why is Primus” or “How in the world did this band ever get so big?”. The video ended with footage of various crowds chanting “Primus Sucks!”, prompting the audience to start the chant for themselves. Suddenly, Danny Elfman’s nightmarish “Clown Dream” played. Between the song and the continuing “Primus Sucks!” chant, the suspense was peaking, and at the height of it, drummer John “Hoffer” Hoffman took his seat behind his kit. Following closely behind was Ler, who, once in position, rang out the dissonant swells of “Those Damn Blue-Collared Tweekers”. The fans who instantly recognized it cheered, then everyone cheered when Les took the stage and began plucking the lowest string of his bass. The crowd was ready to get rowdy.

Despite the front section of the amphitheater being ticketed seats, most of that section left their seats to press against the front barricade, which made a heck of a difference. A Primus show without a pit is hard to imagine. With every section of “…Blue-Collard Tweekers”, the crowd got more and more into it, and by the end it felt as those the entire audience was yelling “Hey-yuh!” in unison with the band. Following that, the band jumped into “Dirty Drowning Man”, a deep cut that was revived last year for the first time in nearly a decade. Something to know about live Primus is that no corner of their discography is off limits. They’re always pulling from the depths of their catalogue, even their not-so-popular albums, and the fans still love it. Next on the docket was the classic “American Life”, and even though it’s not one of their faster songs, the intensity is still there. I even spotted some fans in the pit trying to get a mosh pit going. This one also gave us our first taste of jamming, leaning into their psychedelic side. Aside from the obvious reasons for Primus’ weirdness, the diverseness of their fan base doesn’t make sense on paper.

Silhouetted bassist in a hat and plaid shirt plays onstage before a vivid blue, pink, and green abstract light backdrop. — Les Claypool photo by Andrew Pringle

Primus is the intersection of heavy metal, funk, noise rock, jam, and so much more; however, they don’t sound like anyone from those genres. Primus sounds like Primus. Yet their music resonates with so many types of people. It really is a wonderful thing. After some banter between Les and Ler, they introduced their most recent song “The Ol’ Grizz”, which was featured on their compilation EP A Handful of Nuggs which coincided with this tour. Even after being a band for nearly forty years, they still know how to write songs that hit just as hard as the old ones. It’s similar to NASA sending rockets to space; we’ve seen them do it dozens of times before, we know they can do it again, but every time they do it, it still feels like a major accomplishment for the human race. Like many songs before it, “The Ol’ Grizz” showcases Claypool’s impressive ability to sing tricky melodies while simultaneously play complex bass parts. Afterwards, Les went to the side of the stage to trade his four-string bass for his upright, and upon setting it into position he began running the signal through effects pedals and filters, creating his signature warping delayed drone. He let the noise feedback for a moment before killing it and bowing the opening notes to “Sailing the Seas of Cheese”, which always shines as a live track due to its extended outro featuring Ler playing slide guitar, wailing through a heavy tone. As the last note winded down, Les quickly bowed the deep melody of “Mr. Krinkle”, giving no forewarning of the surrealist nightmare we were embarking on.

In addition to the chilling tune, the warehouse freak show music video played on the screen behind the band. As Les walked to the side of the stage to reclaim his bass, Hoffer broke into the beat of “Restin’ Bones”, another insanely deep cut that wasn’t brought back into the light until this past year. They doubled down on the deep cuts with the snappy “Bob’s Party Time Lounge”, also from The Brown Album and resurrected in the past year. For me, this was the highlight of the show, with the performance being on point along with the visuals being perfectly integrated into the experience. In the past, I’ve felt that Primus’ live visuals were the weakest part of their show, usually just looping shots from their music videos or cheesy low-effort visuals. However, this time they mix those visuals with live feed footage of the band playing, and even mixing in color bending filters, creating a super trippy experience.

As Les walked to the side of the stage to reclaim his bass, Hoffer broke into the beat of “Restin’ Bones”, another insanely deep cut that wasn’t brought back into the light until this past year.

Saxophonist in a green jacket and tan helmet-style hat plays on a dim stage with glowing green lights, focused mood. — Skerik photo by Andrew Pringle

The trippy energy carried over to “The Ole Diamondback Sturgeon (Fisherman’s Chronicles, Part 3)”, and with the help of Skerik and Mike Dillon, turned it into a worthwhile jam. With the sense of the set winding down, the band kept the energy up the wacky “Welcome to This World”, and to complete surprise, seamlessly dove into their iconic “Jerry Was a Racecar Driver”. I couldn’t see it to confirm it, but I guarantee you there was moshing up at the barricade, I mean, how could you not? Even that late into the show, the crowd was still craving more, so when the band left the stage, there was no doubt that they’d come back for an encore. When they returned to the spotlight, Ler strummed the fuzzy chords to “The Heckler”, playing it for the first time this tour, a pleasant and welcome surprise. Especially with it being one of their oldest songs, I was constantly asking myself “How do these guys not have arthritis?”. And to add to it, Les wasted no time between the final note and yelling “Three! Four!” before strumming the opening notes to the beloved “Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver”. Aside from being one of, if not their most well-known song, this one is rather difficult to catch live. For one, it is a very difficult song to play, and two, I think they try to balance it out with their other hits such as “My Name is Mud” and “Tommy the Cat”. Having waited a long time to hear this one live, it was definitely worth the wait, even after three decades, the band can still pull this one off flawlessly.

Afterwards, they brought the entire Frog Brigade and Delirium ensemble to the stage for a final jam. “Southbound Pachyderm” is always a safe bet for a show closer, but they subverted my expectations by breaking into a cover of The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows”. With Sean Ono Lennon on vocals, you can especially tell that he inherited his singing genetics from his father, sounding nearly identical, even utilizing swirling vocal effects. While The Beatles never played the song live, this rendition is a fascinating glimpse of what could have been- lengthy, drawn out, and the dictionary definition of psychedelic. Also, Mike Dillon had a bonkers vibraphone improv solo in it. In the end, each of the members exited the stage one at a time, leaving their loopers to self-oscillate, until FOH sound lowered the faders, bringing the euphoric music to an end. Per usual, every Primus show ends with “Pure Imagination” playing over the speakers as one final farewell.

When this tour was first announced, a was slightly skeptical due to its resemblance to the SESSANTA tour with Primus, Puscifer, and A Perfect Circle, which although was a good time, still felt unbalanced and inconsistent at times. However, this show was perfect from start to finish, not one dull moment. The way I see it, this show was split into two sets, with the Frog Brigade and the Claypool Lennon Delirium sharing the first set, which immensely helps when you realize they’re virtually the same band. Then theres a solid intermission to take a restroom break or grab food, drinks, or merch, then the second set is the main attraction, Primus. Part of me wishes the Frog Brigade had more than just four songs, but the way I see it, it only makes me more excited to see them again. As someone who has seen Primus five times and the Frog Brigade twice now, this show was definitely one of the most memorable ones I’ve seen. If you get the chance to see this tour, don’t hesitate! Even if you have to travel! Do it!