“Flashy chops are wonderful, but groove, pocket, and the ability to listen, react, and contribute to the musical conversation is a must,” the band posted last November.
‘They’re quirky, they’re fun'
Bicknell — a fan of Primus from his teenage years — said he immediately felt aligned with the qualities the group requested.
“I would call them an alternative rock prog [progressive] band. They’re quirky, they’re fun. Throughout their whole career they’ve been risk-takers, they’ve never really conformed. Les [Claypool], he’s one of the most talented bass players in the world. Everything they do is from a creative stance and he’s never really given that up, which I really admire.”
Born in Hastings, Bicknell played in bands in his hometown and Hamilton before moving to Melbourne to pursue a “career in music and coffee” before returning to New Zealand during the pandemic.
He has toured and recorded with artists such as Kimbra, Miami Horror and his own outfit The New Caledonia as well as creating online content filming drum videos for his online subscribers.
Bicknell said — in applying for the gig — he made sure to focus on the qualities he felt matched the band’s requirements and avoided recording a clip of a Primus song hoping his existing posts would speak more to his skills as a player.
“I said to them that ‘I could definitely honour your past but also cater to your future and it would be a pleasure’ and then I left it at that. I’ve got so much content online that if they’re not into anything that I’ve already recorded showing myself then there’s no point in us getting into a room together.
“I knew not to post a Primus cover because that’s literally what 6200 drummers ended up doing. That’s how many submissions they got and they watched all of them. Larry [LaLonde, guitarist] said ‘I would’ve felt bad if I didn’t because that could’ve been someone’s dream’,” Bicknell said.
A few weeks later an email arrived from bass player Les Claypool.
“It opened up with ‘Ahoy there Stan Bicknell down in Hobbit land’. I could almost hear his voice as I was reading it. I had a damn near out-of-body experience. I thought it was fake, to be honest,” he said.
Meeting the band
Bicknell travelled to Los Angeles last week to meet with the band and jam in their personal rehearsal space — dripping with psychedelic imagery and Primus memorabilia. He was quickly mic’d up for the cameras filming the auditions.
“They’ve gotta make the biggest career decision that they have in a long time based on a two-and-a-half hour interaction. So the whole thing was getting recorded and then they can go back through with a fine-tooth comb.”
LaLonde and Claypool arrived and after a quick fist bump and a few probing questions the three musicians started jamming.
“I had an hour to set up but I think I was ready in about 20 to 25 minutes and so we jammed for about 30 minutes. Just free-form jamming like old school — three dudes jamming in a room — just riffing off each other.
“It was cool. When he started playing I thought to myself ‘Just stay present and just listen’ and then I felt like I was just jamming with some mates,” he said.
The trio then worked through four songs, two chosen by the band and two that Bicknell got to select from a pair of set lists.
He purposefully chose a technical “deep cut” that he felt would show the depth of his preparation and musicality.
Another brief chat and a moment to check out the player’s instruments and “I was sent on my merry way”.
A week later, Bicknell was still content about his performance.
“It was surreal. I said to myself ‘Far out, I couldn’t have done any better’ and there is something really great about that alone.
“I now know the other 10 drummers that were in the room, I know all those drummers and they are all weapons. But for some reason, I still feel that I’m the right guy. But I also don’t know what Les and Larry want, ultimately, so the rest is with the universe but my cup’s pretty full man, I’m pretty happy.”
Bicknell said he would find out whether he had won the gig within the next week but it could be a while before any decision came out publicly.
He said he had discussed the role with his partner of 18 years and he knew he had the backing of her and his three children.
“This is not like your average session gig. They’re looking for a member. Over my 27 years as a drummer, I’ve often pulled back on big opportunities — to make sure that my family are at the forefront — but at the same token an opportunity like this could potentially change my family’s life.
“It would be hard to be away. Their first tour is called the Sassanta 2.0 tour where it is A Perfect Circle, Primus and Puscifer all on tour for six weeks but this is a needle-moving career opportunity.
“I know that my wife’s got my back and my kids will be forever better for it because I’ve reached for something big and gone with it.”
Now, Bicknell and his family wait for the call that could change their lives.
“It’s awful. It’s kinda like waiting to find out if you’ve won the lottery or not. It is a needle in a haystack situation already and to be waiting just kinda sucks.
“I’d rather know that I didn’t get it now than have to wait for another week. Limbo sucks, man,” Bicknell said.
- RNZ
