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Primus rocks the Chocolate Factory

Claypool and crew put on "kind of a play" at Cal Center for the Arts Escondido

“I know we’re Primus and we suck,” said frontman Les Claypool, to cheers from the packed California Center for the Arts in Escondido. “But if you want to yell and scream, get it out of your system now, because when we start the Chocolate Factory bit, it’s kind of like a play.”

Audience members stood on their seats for “Jerry Was a Racecar Driver” and other fan favorites for about 40 minutes, then the curtains dropped for intermission, with Raymond Scott music piped in over the PA.

The curtain rose on a stage transformed to a Willy Wonka–inspired fantasyland. Huge candies and mushrooms lined the stage in imitation of the movie set. The bandmembers (including the cello and marimba “Fungi Ensemble”) wore costumes, with Claypool in the unmistakable purple coat and top hat of Gene Wilder’s Wonka.

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Claypool skipped introductions or drama, launching straight into Primus’ new album, a warped rendition of the soundtrack to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The tasty licks and riffs of “Candyman” set the stage for 40 minutes of pure deliciousness. The band rollicked through the skipping dance of “Golden Ticket,” dragged us through the terrifying tunnel boat ride, and transformed “Pure Imagination” into a dreamy, psychedelic funk with even more glorious promise than the original. Thrice, they returned to the Oompa Loompa chorus, playing off the bad kids one-by-one, while the crew danced on stage in costume. Claypool, ever the gentleman virtuoso, always had his bandmates take the spotlight for solos.

No band could be better suited to play the music from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The scrumptious, quirky weirdness of Primus put a spin on Wonka that paid clever, careful homage to the original, without pillaging anyone’s childhood.

  • Concert: Primus
  • Venue: California Center for the Arts Escondido
  • Date: November 22, 2014
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“I know we’re Primus and we suck,” said frontman Les Claypool, to cheers from the packed California Center for the Arts in Escondido. “But if you want to yell and scream, get it out of your system now, because when we start the Chocolate Factory bit, it’s kind of like a play.”

Audience members stood on their seats for “Jerry Was a Racecar Driver” and other fan favorites for about 40 minutes, then the curtains dropped for intermission, with Raymond Scott music piped in over the PA.

The curtain rose on a stage transformed to a Willy Wonka–inspired fantasyland. Huge candies and mushrooms lined the stage in imitation of the movie set. The bandmembers (including the cello and marimba “Fungi Ensemble”) wore costumes, with Claypool in the unmistakable purple coat and top hat of Gene Wilder’s Wonka.

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Claypool skipped introductions or drama, launching straight into Primus’ new album, a warped rendition of the soundtrack to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The tasty licks and riffs of “Candyman” set the stage for 40 minutes of pure deliciousness. The band rollicked through the skipping dance of “Golden Ticket,” dragged us through the terrifying tunnel boat ride, and transformed “Pure Imagination” into a dreamy, psychedelic funk with even more glorious promise than the original. Thrice, they returned to the Oompa Loompa chorus, playing off the bad kids one-by-one, while the crew danced on stage in costume. Claypool, ever the gentleman virtuoso, always had his bandmates take the spotlight for solos.

No band could be better suited to play the music from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The scrumptious, quirky weirdness of Primus put a spin on Wonka that paid clever, careful homage to the original, without pillaging anyone’s childhood.

  • Concert: Primus
  • Venue: California Center for the Arts Escondido
  • Date: November 22, 2014
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