Fun-loving Primus is back in prime time

funk-metal-spouting Primus was scheduled for one show at the Orpheum Theatre next week but is now booked for two, on Monday and Tuesday. This marks a reunion of the original lineup -- bassist Claypool, guitarist Larry LaLonde, and drummer Tim Alexander -- for the first time in seven years. As Claypool tells it, the reunion is a happy accident. "At first we were just going to release a DVD. We weren't even thinking of touring," says Claypool. "But then we became nostalgic, and I said, `Let's get together and jam.' We went into this without any preconceived notions, and we still don't have a game plan."

The jamming led to a bunch of new songs that ended up on a five-song EP, "Animals Should Not Try to Act Like People." It has just been packaged with a new DVD that collects all of Primus's groundbreaking videos.

The new songs include the Frank Zappa/Captain Beefheart-influenced "The Carpenter and the Dainty Bride," the jivey, Tom Waits-style "My Friend Fats," the quirky "Mary the Ice Cube" (says Claypool: "I wanted to do a song about an inanimate object"), and the crazed "Pilcher's Squad." The last is about the infamous British police officer who busted John Lennon for marijuana. Years later, Pilcher was convicted of planting evidence on another celebrity.

"I had seen a reference to Pilcher in a recent Beatles documentary," says Claypool. "I didn't discover him until then. We needed one more song, so I though he'd be a good subject."

Primus's Boston shows will encompass two sets -- the first to be drawn from a repertoire that goes back to the band's inception in the mid-'80s, the second to feature all of the 1991 breakthrough album "Sailing the Seas of Cheese."

"We also have a lot of visuals -- and we have a visualist who jams along with the music," says Claypool. Adam Gates weaves video images and photos with real-time live footage of the band.

Although Primus is back, Claypool is not making any promises about the band's future. "We all have families now, and our world doesn't revolve around the band anymore," says Claypool, who has two children.

He's also in several bands at this point. He still hopes to do another record with Oysterhead (a trio with Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio and former Police drummer Stewart Copeland) and will continue with Frog Brigade, which is playing New Year's Eve at the Fillmore in San Francisco. And he has another group, called Col. Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains, which includes drummer Brain, guitarist Buckethead, and former Talking Heads/P-Funk keyboardist Bernie Worrell. Expect a new album from them next spring.

Caught in the clubs:

Dwight Ritcher Band at Toad: A bright new face on the scene, Ritcher plays a lively, fan-favorite brew of rock and blues with a horn section added for just the right spice. He also has a social conscience, illustrated by the song "Care #3," which espouses helping others. Ritcher shares a bill with Nicole Nelson tomorrow at Johnny D's. Chief Eddy Clearwater at Johnny D's: You've got to admire a rocker in his 60s who does a song called "I'm in Very Good Condition Considering the Shape I'm In." And make no mistake, the Chicago roots-rocker still has the goods. His voice rang out with clarity, his guitar playing was as precise as ever, and he had the club's dancers at his mercy. Bits and pieces: The Kendall Cafe closed with a private party last Saturday in which impromptu music was provided by Mike Gent of the Gentlemen, Todd Thibaud, and Jake Brennan of the Confidence Men. . . . Boston-based Elcodrive is nominated in the "New Music Award" category at the American Music Awards, airing Sunday night. . . . Promoter Harvey Robbins's latest Royalty of Doo-Wopp & Rock 'n' Roll concert is Nov. 29 at Worcester's Mechanics Hall, featuring the Flamingos (a reunion with '50s singer Tommy Hunt, back from England), Shirley Reeves, and the Poni-Tails. Tickets now on sale. . . . Phil Vassar, winner of last year's best new artist award from the Academy of Country Music, plays the Lowell Auditorium Feb. 19. Tickets on sale now. . . . Melissa Etheridge has been added to MIX 98.5's Holiday Hoedown at the Orpheum on Dec. 16. . . . Berklee College of Music has added a new online course, "The Future of Music and the Music Business." Details at berkleemusic.com. . . . Tonight: Leftover Salmon at the Paradise and Sondre Lerche and Thalia Zedek at T.T. the Bear's. . . . Tomorrow: Moonraker at T.T.'s and Super Genius (a personal fave) and Starhick at the Paradise Lounge. Starhick describes its sound as "If Hank Williams had listened to a lot of Aerosmith and the Replacements." . . . Sunday: Birdsongs of the Mesozoic and Atlanta singer Oral Moses at the Forsyth Chapel at Forest Hills Cemetery at 4.