In the summer of 1994, Sausage released their one and only album, ‘Riddles Are Abound Tonight’. A genuine treat for Primus fans, this was far more than a side project for Les Claypool – it was effectively a reunion of the first Primus line up featuring guitarist Todd Huth and drummer Jay Lane.
The album featured a couple of songs that had been reworked from old Primus demo tapes, but there was more riding on the album than mere nostalgia. Tunes like ‘Girls For Single Men’ and ‘Prelude To Fear’ reached even deeper into Claypool’s experimental side, giving the album an even more avantgarde backbone. Those who heard the album loved it; some fans even preferred it to the Primus discs it would soon live between (1993’s ‘Pork Soda’ and 1995’s ‘Tales From The Punchbowl’) despite those records featuring songs that would quickly become signature pieces for Claypool and co.
Nothing more was heard – or expected – from Sausage, but surprisingly the band held a brief reunion in 2019. This, of course, was made far easier with Jay Lane having returned to the Primus fold briefly a few years earlier. No new material surfaced, but their return gave the world an excellent live document.
Their full set from The Warfield in San Francisco was captured by a couple of fans for posterity. Below, you can revisit the Sausage experience from three camera sources and with very good sound. For a show that wasn’t pro-shot, this is a genuinely excellent set. If you have any interest at all in Les Claypool, it’ll pass an hour majestically.