Customer Rating: 
Summary: More of Les.
Comment: What can I say? It kicks. I heard Iowan Girl on Pandora and knew I had to have it. As a fledgling bassist who is dipping my toe into the fretless and five-string world, as well as a Primus fan, it was a given that I would like it. It does the job.
Customer Rating:
Summary: SIMPLEMENTE CLAYPOOL
Comment: GUIADO POR EL EXELENTE BAJEO DEL LIDER DE LA BANDA PRIMUS, MESCLADO CON EL SUCULENTO SAXOFONEO DE SKERIK Y LA MARIMBA EJECUTADA POR MIKE DILLON Y AUNADO A EL EXENTRICO SONIDO DEL SITAR DE GABBY LA LA, HACEN DE OF WHALES OF WOE UNA PIEZA MUSICAL DE CULTO, QUE COMBINA TODOS LOS ELEMENTOS CON UNA ARMONIA SIN IGUAL, ALTAMENTE RECOMENDADO PARA SEGUIDORES DE PRIMUS Y EL GENERO ALTERNTIVO Y PROGRESIVO QUE GUSTAN ESCUCHAR COSAS DIFERENTES...
Customer Rating: 
Summary: good
Comment: i like this,but it seemed too short(album and song length/s),and didn't have the character most les' work does.iowa gal and the first single are my favs!
Customer Rating:
Summary: It takes a few spins to really take it in, but it's all good
Comment: The Good
"One Better" spins a funky bass line under the tale of two friends trying to outdo one another. The second verse delves into the U.S. and Russia trying to out due one another is space exploration. You know those senior citizens that talk and talk about the good old days and how great things were and how great they were back then? That's the story behind "Of Whales and Woe." You can hear the agony in Claypool's vocals. "Vernon the Company Man" is thick on the bass (like you expected something else) and light on the guitar. There's a surprise ending to this devoted employee's life.
"Phantom Patriot" has a superhero theme quality--a cheesy superhero that is. The groove is sweet and the songs will bring a smile to your face. "Iowan Girl" has a country twang to it. You can actually picture a long-bearded hillbilly on his front porch rocking chair tapping his foot along to the beat. "Rumble of the Diesel" suggests a powerful truck, but in keeping with his albums nautical theme, Les is really speaking of the lives of fishermen.
The Bad
There are a few songs that are really nothing special. "Back off Turkey" is one that comes to mind that is bad even for the wacky Les Claypool.
The Verdict
There's no denying that Les Claypool is a little twisted and bizarre. Sometimes his music is funky and fun, other times it's just plain strange. Of Whales and Woe is a balance of both. It takes a few spins to really take it in, but it's all good.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Just Claypool--no one else's sound
Comment: It is ALWAYS refreshing to listen to a solo outing that doesn't sound like an attempt at the artist BEING the band all by himself. Ric Ocasek, for example, started his post-Cars solo career by trying to sound like The Cars (without the rest of the The Cars, of course), a thorough flipping of the bird to former bandmates.
Les Claypool doesn't sound like he is trying to do the sound of a former band without the rest of the members getting in his way in this one, _Of Whales and Woe_...but then again, what band could Les ever try to sound like? Primus? Sausage? Oysterhead? Actually, one might think, considering the range of bands Claypool has played with, that it might be impossible NOT to sound like one of his previous projects.
But the truth is that Claypool is an odd enough artist to be able to go out on his own and still sound as unique as always. We should all feel fortunate that Metallica turned him down when looking for a replacement for Cliff--no doubt, not only would Metallica have been changed forever (for the better?), but Claypool might not have developed into the punk-Zappa, Waits-drinking-buddy funkmaster we know and love. The only true connections to Primus-type work on this disc is the sea theme which pervaded Primus, but here Claypool lets the sea theme invade the music as well as the lyrics, fostering unusual collaborations of bass against anything but guitar.
It's hard not to bob along to Claypool's avant-funk in songs like "One Better," and the faux-epic storytelling of "Vernon the Company Man" is somewhat Tom Waits in nature, but how nice it is to see other Claypools join the effort in the first track.
Dance, jig, or just stare at the wall, _Of Whales and Woe_ is worth a few loud listens in your kitchen while fixing yourself a few cocktails. Grog preferred.
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