TALES FROM THE PUNCHBOWL

Blending everything from the qiurkiness of Frank Zappa , the heaviness of post 80`s Crimson, the precision of Rush, and even a sprinkle of Tom Waits ( Larry Lalonde even guests on the latest Tom Waits CD, The Orphan Files) Tales From The Punch Bowl is silly and brilliant. This music is tight and precise and for those who like fierce bass playing reminicient of how John Wetton played with the `73-`74 KIng Crimson with his use of volume tweeking you`re in for a real treat here.

Don`t be decieved by wacked out titles such as Glass Sandwich, Space Farm and South Bound Pachyderm these guys can really play and the time signatures and keys are as weird and out of this world asthe song lyrics and themes. The prominence of Les Claypool`s thundering bass riffing does not overshadow Larry Lalone`s screaming guitar passages which sort of sound like Alex Lifeson meets Bob Fripp .Tim Alexander`s heavily accented drum style and tightly tuned drum kit completes the trio and he does a great job in holding the guitar/bass barrages at bay which at times can get a little muddled because everybody is just going nuts. However be forewarned, there are a few weak tracks on the album and the track sequence ( ie opening with a great track and ending with a mediocre one ) is my only complaint about this otherwise interesting and technically impressive album. For me Primus at the azimuth of their powers.

By far my favourite Primus album from a band that plays way outside the box,Tales From The Punchbowl is definitely their "Tour de Force". However, fans of more "serious" prog might want to skip over this one, as the "cartoonie" lyrics and Les Claypool`s silly vocal deliveries might seem to go a little bit in the red on the wacked out scale.

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