After several years away, The Claypool Lennon Delirium is coming back in 2026. Guitarist/vocalist Sean Ono Lennon revealed in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning that his project with Primus bassist Les Claypool will tour and release a new album next year.
Sitting down with Anthony Mason, the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono said that the Claypool Lennon Delirium’s third studio album will arrive sometime in early 2026. The 2LP concept album, The Great Parrot Ox and The Golden Egg of Empathy, will feature the duo confronting the paperclip problem. The thought experiment posits that, if sophisticated AI were instructed to make as many paperclips as possible, it could run amok and try to turn the Earth and all of mankind into paperclips.
“You have to be careful how we program these devices,” Lennon said, teasing that the album will be a literal interpretation of the paperclip problem actually happening.
Lennon also revealed that The Claypool Lennon Delirium will go back on tour in July 2026. The band, which also features Cake drummer Paulo Baldi, has not toured since the summer of 2019 when it went out in support of its sophomore studio album, South of Reality. The project made its debut with 2016’s Monolith of Phobos.
In the time since The Claypool Lennon Delirium last performed in January 2020 aboard Jam Cruise, the titular co-band leaders went on tour together in the 2023 revival of Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade. The revamped lineup featured Les, Sean, Paulo Baldi, percussionist Mike Dillon, saxophonist Skerik, and keyboardist Harry Waters (son of Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters). The multi-headed psychedelic monster performed Floyd’s Animals in its entirety on the Summer of Green tour, along with selections from the Frog Brigade’s limited cache of originals.
Related: Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade Shares Pro-Shot Pink Floyd “Pigs” Cover [Watch]
The Claypool Lennon Delirium adds to the growing list of projects Les will perform with in 2026. Additionally, the bassist leads the lineup for All Good Now with Claypool Gold, a supergroup featuring members of Primus, the Frog Brigade, and Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel. The bassist assembled the group on the fly for Primus’ 2024 New Year’s run after longtime drummer Tim “Herb” Alexander suddenly resigned from the band in late October. Herb was since replaced by Shreveport, LA, drummer John Hoffman, winner of the viral Interstellar Drum Derby.
Check out the full interview with Sean Ono Lennon on CBS Sunday Morning. The news about Claypool Lennon Delirium opens the clip. Stay tuned to the band’s social media channels for further updates.
Extended interview: Sean Ono Lennon