Les Claypool and Sean Ono Lennon have never been content to write simple songs about simple things. “Meat Machines,” the latest single from their upcoming album ‘The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy’ (ATO Records, May 1), makes that abundantly clear. Driven by wiry psych-prog tension and a creeping ominous groove, the track locks onto one of the most pressing questions of the moment: what remains essentially human when automation keeps tightening its grip.
The song arrives with a new visualizer that pulls from the album’s companion comic book, illustrated by longtime collaborator Rich Ragsdale. It follows the warped, A.I.-themed opening salvo “WAP (What a Predicament)” and extends the record’s central argument deeper into unsettling territory. Lennon puts it plainly: “Some people think humans are just biological machines. They think free will is a hallucination and we’re destined to be replaced by robots. Some of us think we still have a choice.”
“Meat Machines” hits hard precisely because the Delirium mean it. The track carries real weight, coiling tension around a groove that never fully releases, and landing squarely among the strongest work the duo has produced. Recorded at Claypool’s Rancho Relaxo studio in Sonoma County and Lennon’s upstate New York studio The Farm, ‘The Great Parrot-Ox’ is the most fully realized Delirium project yet, fourteen tracks built around paperclip logic, spiritual collapse, and a fight to hold onto feeling.
The physical edition deepens the mythology considerably. A 2-LP tip-on gatefold with a 24-page comic book maps each song to its own illustrated chapter, the remnant of what began as a concept for a feature-length animated film. Pre-orders are open now on vinyl and CD.
Supporting the release, the Claypool Gold 2026 Tour brings together Primus, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, and the Fearless Flying Frog Brigade for a full-evening coast-to-coast run beginning May 20th. Claypool and Lennon both appear in the Delirium and the Frog Brigade, giving audiences multiple corners of Claypool’s catalog in a single night. Tickets are available now at theclaypoollennondelirium.com.
‘The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy’ Tracklist:
- Pro-Log
- WAP (What a Predicament)
- The Wake Up Call
- Meat Machines
- Troll Bait
- Simplest of Deeds
- Heart of Chrome
- Through the Horizon
- Mantra of the Manatee
- The Golden Egg of Empathy feat. WILLOW
- Cliptopia
- Cliptron Scuttle
- Melody of Entropy
- It’s a Wrap
Claypool Gold 2026 Tour Dates:
Wednesday, May 20 – Reno Events Center – Reno, NV
Friday, May 22 – Hayden Homes Amphitheater – Bend, OR
Saturday, May 23 – Marymoor Live – Redmond, WA
Monday, May 25 – KettleHouse Amphitheater – Bonner, MT
Tuesday, May 26 – The Lot at the Complex – Salt Lake City, UT
Thursday, May 28 – Starlight Amphitheatre – Kansas City, MO
Saturday, May 30 – The Factory – St. Louis, MO
Sunday, May 31 – Meadow Brook Amphitheatre – Rochester Hills, MI
Tuesday, June 2 – Jacobs Pavilion – Cleveland, OH
Wednesday, June 3 – Salt Shed – Chicago, IL
Friday, June 5 – The Caverns Outdoor Amphitheater – Pelham, TN
Saturday, June 6 – KEMBA Live! Outdoor – Columbus, OH
Tuesday, June 9 – Thompson’s Point – Portland, ME
Wednesday, June 10 – Leader Bank Pavilion – Boston, MA
Friday, June 12 – Saratoga Performing Arts Center – Saratoga Springs, NY
Saturday, June 13 – Stone Pony Summerstage – Asbury Park, NJ (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, June 14 – All Good Now Festival – Columbia, MD
Tuesday, June 16 – The AMP Ballantyne – Charlotte, NC
Wednesday, June 17 – Firefly Distillery – North Charleston, SC
Friday, June 19 – St. Augustine Amphitheatre – St. Augustine, FL
Saturday, June 20 – Synovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Park – Atlanta, GA
Monday, June 22 – Walmart AMP – Rogers, AR
Tuesday, June 23 – ACL Live at Moody Theatre – Austin, TX
Thursday, June 25 – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory – Irving, TX
Saturday, June 27 – Dillon Amphitheater – Dillon, CO (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, June 28 – Dillon Amphitheater – Dillon, CO
Tuesday, June 30 – Arizona Financial Theatre – Phoenix, AZ
Wednesday, July 1 – Gallagher Square – San Diego, CA
Friday, July 3 – Long Beach Amphitheater – Long Beach, CA
Saturday, July 4 – Meritage Resort & Spa – Napa, CA