Primus have officially found their new drummer.
Three months on from the surprise departure of the alt-funk eccetrics’ longtime skinsman Tim “Herb” Alexander, Primus have revealed that their quest to find a new drummer has ended. It turns out Shreveport, Louisiana, percussionist John Hoffman will be sailing the seas of cheese from behind the drum kit henceforward.
While Hoffman had been detailing his audition process on his drum tutorial YouTube channel over the past few weeks, Primus’ founding mastermind Les Claypool officially sealed the deal on Instagram today (February 7th), captioning a new band picture of he, Hoffman and guitarist Larry “Ler” Lalonde with: “Hoffington!!! Welcome aboard!”
As previously reported, Primus put out an open call for a drummer back in November, noting at the time that they were “seeking a well-mannered, affable individual with original sensibility and aesthetic” who could sit deep in the pocket, and likewise possessed “a desire to open new doors in the creative world.” Turns out Hoffman fit the bill.
It’s been revealed on social media that he was among more than 5,000 applicants vying for the job. Hoffman was selected to head out to the West Coast to try out for Primus during a 5-day “interstellar drum derby”. On top of impressing Claypool and Lalonde, Hoffman ended up getting an unexpected vote of confidence from another iconic musician: TOOL, A Perfect Circle and Puscifer frontman Maynard James Keenan.
“Maynard James Keenan was sitting directly in front of me and watched my entire audition,” Hoffman explained on Instagram. “He gave me this towel. It’[d] been one of the most incredible days of my life.”
Hoffman will be joining Primus on this spring’s “Sessanta V2.0 tour,” meaning he may well be collaborating on-stage with tourmates A Perfect Circle and Puscifer, too. You’ll find the full tour route here.
Ahead of that, however, TOOL’s Danny Carey will be performing with Primus at the inaugural TOOL Live in the Sand event taking place March 7th-9th at the Hard Rock & Royalton Resorts in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.