Stern’s Primus, released in 2018, is a delightfully unconventional music pin — a re-theme of the retro-styled Whoa Nellie! playfield, reimagined as a tribute to the eccentric rock band Primus. Built on Dennis Nordman’s deliberately old-fashioned electromechanical-style layout, it swaps the fruit-stand kitsch for the surreal, psychedelic aesthetic of artists Zombie Yeti (Jeremy Packer) and Zoltron, who created the band’s album artwork. The result is a one-of-a-kind machine that pairs the tactile charm of mechanical score reels and real ringing bells with the band’s offbeat sensibility.
True to its EM heritage, the scoring stays small and satisfying — points and bonus rather than millions. Each of the four left top lanes lights a pop bumper and a rollover for ten points apiece, while the bullseye centers and the saucer score 200 when lit. The scoop is the clever scoring engine, paying an extra ten points for every lit bumper, which rewards a deliberate strategy: light all the bumpers and cash in at the scoop, then keep just three lit and hit the scoop repeatedly to grind out points.
There’s a charming throwback ball save, too, active only if you avoid the bumpers and rollovers after plunging, with the skill-shot light still blinking. Quirky, tactile, and unlike anything else on the floor, Primus is a fascinating collaboration between a master designer and a band that never colored inside the lines. For fans of the group — and collectors who love pinball that celebrates the mechanical age with a wink — it’s a genuinely distinctive and entertaining machine. Tales from the punchbowl, indeed.