Les Claypool will wrap up a busy 2023 and ring in a new year with a special Bastard Jazz performance at San Francisco, CA’s Great American Music Hall on December 31st featuring Bastard Jazz vets Skerik (saxophone) and Mike Dillon (percussion) alongside a new initiate on drums, Adam Deitch (Lettuce, Break Science). Uncle Sea Monster will serve as the opening act.
While Claypool, Dillon, and Skerik have a long history of collaboration with various projects—most recently their just-wrapped tour with Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade—Deitch will make his Bastard Jazz debut on New Year’s Eve in a slot that has previously been manned by the likes of Galactic’s Stanton Moore and legendary session drummer Vinnie Colaiuta. As Deitch wrote of the opportunity in a social media post, “In 1990 when Primus dropped their album Frizzle Fry I hit the basement and played along to the album multiple times. Les Claypool brought a funk sensibility to rock music that resonated with me. Its an honor to announce that I’m going to be performing with Les in San Francisco on NYE!”
One of many rotating bands in the Les arsenal, Bastard Jazz, typically an outlet for dark and deranged improvisation, has only appeared for scattered shows since its inception in 2017. Claypool will often book the project during special events like New Orleans Jazz Fest and Jam Cruise, or mark holidays like New Year’s. This will be the Primus bassist’s second straight year celebrating New Year’s Eve in Northern California with Bastard Jazz following 2022’s two-night run in Napa.
As Claypool said of the concept behind the band during a 2019 late-night show in New Orleans during Jazz Fest, “So, um, it’s the Bastard Jazz. What does it mean? What does Bastard Jazz mean? People say, ‘Les, what the hell is this Bastard Jazz?’ It’s just two words that sound really f—ing cool together. And then you stick my name on there to kind of throw it off a little bit… and that’s the Bastard Jazz. Right, Skee-rik?”Skerik’s appropriate response to the strangeness: “Somebody call my mom and tell her to pick me up right now. I don’t want to be here anymore.”
“Basically,” Claypool continued, “the whole notion of this is just throwing pasta at the walls, and hopefully a lot of it sticks. If not, you’re gonna end up with a lot of pasta in your faces and, um… that’s the Bastard Jazz.”
Two VIP upgrades will be offered for the Les Claypool’s Bastard Jazz New Year’s Eve festivities. The “Cheap Bastard” option includes one GA ticket along with a VIP-only Q&A/Meet & Greet with Les Claypool, a Claypool Cellars Champagne Toast, VIP laminate, early entry, and crowd-free merchandise shopping before doors. The “Royal Bastard” package includes 1 premium balcony ticket along with all of the aforementioned VIP amenities.
Tickets and VIP packages go on sale on Friday, November 3rd at 10:00 a.m. PT. For complete ticketing details, visit Claypool’s website.
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