Hey you may be onto something with the bass tone sounding like the voice - you can definitely hear it with Lemmy and Tom Araya .
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I have been a Primus fan, and in awe of Les’ bass playing, for as long as I can remember. I have seen Primus numerous times:
- Opening for Fishbone at the Hollywood Palladium.
- Opening for Public Enemy and Anthrax on the “Bring the Noise” tour.
- At the Nokia Theater, with Mariachi El Bronx as their opener.
I was fortunate enough to see Les’ Duo de Twang at Pappy & Harriet’s in Pioneertown, out by Yucca Valley. Very intimate venue, awesome show.
@JoshFossgreen, when you are doing the left hand percussive full-hand slap thing, are you just thumping your hand onto the strings? Or pushing them down to the frets?
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Les Claypool is a cool cat!
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I love Les. Oysterhead is an amazing band. Les on bass, Stuart Copeland on drums, Trey Anastasio on guitar. Three masters of their craft playing some far out there weird proggy stuff. They only ever put out one album since it is just a little side project for all of them, but they still play a festivals and such from time to time.
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Ah yes, the elusive left hand slap… the tricky is to get em to smack the frets, but not long enough to make a note. Like a Bruce Lee punch, in and out before you can blink. I also leave my index finger on the strings for muting a lot of the time, and then do the smack with the other three fingers.
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Added to the BassBuzz YouTube Video Guide.
Josh, your videos just keep getting better. This is an exceptional overview of what and how Les Claypool plays. I’ve never heard or seen anyone get in to this much detail on how Les does his thing. Man, this was so, so good.
It probably helps that I’m a huge Primus fan.
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True that!
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Josh, you should definitely do an advanced course! Granted I am not ready but a lot of people are. Add 5 or more strings and other advanced techniques. Your manner of teaching is very different than others online. Which is very refreshing!
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I sent this video to my brother who is a drummer. A few things he said…
- His take on music is so refreshing compared to the stuff I usually listen to.
- That part where he played with different pickup settings. I could hear the difference but more than anything I could feel the difference.
- His “present in the moment” approach is definitely better than my standard diet.
- His skill is amazing but he also did such a deep dive and music theory analysis.
- This video was so good, it reminded me of what I love about listening to Primus.
Pretty cool that this video was so good, even a drummer can appreciate it! 
At the risk of sounding like a fanboy, I agree with everything he said and more.
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I found this video from this other bass instructor that goes into a wee bit more detail on this technique:
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Oh I wonder who he is 
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Yes to this!
I always reference the 3 inch punch from Kill Bill too. Maximum smack with minimal movement.
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And also: “We need emotional content…Don’t think - FEEL It’s like a finger pointing away to the moon. Do not concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all of the heavenly glory!”
But maybe that’s for after you’ve practiced long enough for a punch to just be a punch again. 
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This is actually a very very important point, said just wonderfully by you @kristine.
We are a lot of times so focused on getting something to play right that we forget to feel it and let the feeling take over. Yes, this takes time and yes it takes patience but it does come. When your basics are practiced enough and baked in, you can let feel guide you instead of your brain/eyes/fear of missing a note. When this starts to happen little by little, everything is right in the bass world.
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@John_E 
but let’s say “quoted just wonderfully by Kristine” - it’s something Bruce Lee said in the movie Enter the Dragon. I think about it a lot, though.
Never been much of a gearhead when it comes to things that, you know, require gear (like photography or music). While it’s important to know how to use the tools of a trade or hobbie or whatever, I think sometimes we can get caught up in technical things instead of considering what we feel when we create something. Because, you know, ew feelings. 
But we also need to know how to bring our creative vision to life, so - gear.
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@John_E erm, the gear comment isn’t really related to your beautifully said point about playing right (our fingers are the gear in that case), but recently I feel like I’ve been looking at stuff instead of finishing my lessons. (and I’m not that far from finishing!) (stupid gear threads)
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There’s a lot to say and like about this video, but that’s what happens when you cram a lot of good content in there. If TL;DR, then the heart of these comments is at 2:59, 3:16, 12:44 and 13:25. The rest is just acknowledging a bunch of the fun parts. Like @eric.kiser , this video reminded me why I enjoy Primus (and @JoshFossgreen 's videos).
2:59 – Josh gives attainable entry points for crazy-hard technique someone might not otherwise try because too hard
3:16 – “The secret to being able to do this [ridiculously fast thing] is to be able to do this [ridiculously accessible thing]”
Rhythm First – viewer gets a list of techniques to choose from (slaps, pops, fretting slaps, hammer-ons) and then an invitation to work with patterns the viewer already likes
[gives bass face, indicating this should be fun]
3:34 Fun “subscribe” interlude, including a Reminder - You are beautiful! Aww, see – we are more than just a statistic for the analytics. 
5:43 Daaaayyyyy-uuumm
5:48 Only 5 seconds of Tommy the Cat? Not cool, Josh (jk kidding that was amazing)
6:10 Batman interlude
6:18 Too Many Puppies!
6:34 Second Attainable Entry Points segment
7:05 Weird A$$ Notes & dissonance! Favorite
7:31 “Intense & Jarring” yay
8:15 “It’s completely filthy” great description
8:50 “You could groove along to that all day” like Captain America
9:10 “Whoa we’re not chilling we’re at an evil carnival and we’re gonna die! Or something” something wicked this way comes, eh?
9:18 “not to mention all of Larry LaLonde’s super cool and quirky guitar parts” oh yeah Primus has a guitar player, too
9:35 I’m not sorry you did this – I’ve always wondered what Weird Al would be like on a bad acid trip and now I know
10:09 “just get weird and dissonant with it” ok!
12:04 [Jerry Was a Racecar Driver] That’s just insane
12:34 This sounds like the William Tell Overture in some f*cked up key
Creativity First – YES
12:44 “I like turning over rocks and looking for whatever’s new. For me, it’s exciting” YES
13:25 “…it wouldn’t have been a smart move creatively.” From one angle it looks like Les Claypool breaks a lot of rules, but from another angle what he’s really done is help expand them (keeping in mind that we are all standing on the shoulders of those what come before us).
In 2022, no one would blink an eye at someone playing an electric bass with a bow. But in 1992, it felt like performance art.
14:25 Creativity Needs Space – YES
16:33 OK, more Tommy the Cat! Thanks Josh
17:48 “I’ve been told how weird our music is…But to me, it all seems normal.” 
18:05 [Weirdo] – love the glasses 
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Love all the commentary @kristine !
Also I really need Primus pinball. My birthday is in July if the forum would like to pool together to send me one.
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Oh, also, once upon a time this happened -
Yes, that is a very young and foppishly dressed me, on stage with Les Claypool and Jay Lane!
I played for a few years with Gabby La La, an artist who used to tour with Les, and he and Jay came out to join us for a couple songs at her album release show!
I am 100% certain he made no notice of me and wouldn’t remember it, but… I played bass while Les Claypool also played bass!
More bits of evidence in this video -
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How cool is that! I’m pretty sure the 1st musician he noticed was the other bass player!
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