“It got stuck in the snow. We were like, ‘The truck’s not making it, the gear is not making it”: Primus’ Larry LaLonde on how he and Les Claypool ended up with off-the-rack gear from Guitar Center right before a show

Seeing Primus' Larry LaLonde and Les Claypool at a local Guitar Center may not have been on anyone's bingo card for 2024, yet that's exactly what happened after the two guitar and bass behemoths realized their gear had become stuck between Red Rocks and Vegas en route to a festival.

“The weirdest thing was, kind of in the back of my mind, I was thinking, ‘Is this gear gonna make it? These numbers aren’t adding up…’” LaLonde tells Guitar World in a new interview.

“We were on tour with A Perfect Circle, so all our gear was in the same truck, and it got stuck in the snow. So, really quickly, we were like, ‘Okay, the truck’s not making it, the gear is not making it. What are we going to do?’”

Their solution? To head to the local Guitar Center for some brand-new gear.

“I think at the same time, Les and I both had the same thought, because he texted me as I was about to text him, ‘Hey, should we just go to a local guitar store and just buy some stuff,’ which in itself, is like, an excuse to go buy some gear, which is awesome,” LaLonde recalls with a laugh.

“We went in with the limited time that we had and grabbed some stuff. That turned into us trying to find matching guitars, like, a bass and a guitar, and then whatever pedals were in there that seemed like they might get us through the show.

“So, it went from a thing that sucked to turning into an opportunity to be something fun. It was interesting, for sure.”

Asked whether any fans spotted them at the store, LaLonde replies with, “I don’t think anyone even knew who we were.” Pressed for time, the shopping spree lasted less than 45 minutes and saw LaLonde grabbing a white Strat and Claypool opting for a matching P-Bass.

As for what happened to the instruments, the two decided to auction them off for charity and donated the proceeds to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

“So, that was another win from the whole thing, you know?” LaLonde explains. “We actually got the opportunity to do something good with them.”

Guitar World's interview with Larry LaLonde will be published in the coming weeks.