Watch Primus, Mastodon, Tool Members Cover Rush’s ‘Anthem’

A group of heavy music stars — including members of Primus, Mastodon, Tool and Coheed and Cambria — linked up to record a lockdown rendition of Rush’s 1975 tune “Anthem.”

The lineup features Primus bassist Les Claypool, Mastodon guitarist Bill Kelliher, Tool drummer Danny Carey, Coheed and Cambria frontman Claudio Sanchez and guitarist Stephen Brodsky (Mutoid Man, Cave In).

A quarantine-style video, recorded for Gwarsenio Hall’s “Two Minutes to Late Night” series, utilizes a split-screen format, with each of the members tracking their parts at home. The virtuosity is intense, including Kelliher’s wild solo and Sanchez’s wailing choruses.

The Rush cover is the 15th video issued for the Patreon-spawned project, created to give both musicians and fans an outlet for performance. While the clips usually benefit everyone involved in their creation, the musicians have redirected their funds to the Cancer Research Institute.

Claypool, an outspoken Rush fan, was scheduled to cover the prog-rock band’s 1977 record, A Farewell to Kings, on tour with Primus. But they were forced to postpone the Tribute to Kings jaunt to 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rush drummer Neil Peart died in January following a brain cancer battle. Five months later, his voice appeared in an inspirational short film for DW Drums.

In May, the surviving Rush members released a 40th anniversary edition of their 1980 LP, Permanent Waves, featuring unreleased live tracks.