Wino Wednesday: Probot’s “The Emerald Law”
In the grand scheme of Scott “Wino” Weinrich‘s influence, Probot really isn’t that big a deal in itself, but at the time, the profile was huge, and it led many to go back and discover the likes of Saint Vitus and The Obsessed. It’s easy now to look at the Dave Grohl-masterminded project as a kind of indulgent homage to underground metal, and the lone 2004 self-titled as a vanity piece on which Grohl let himself write for and promote some of his favorite singers and guitarists. It’s an enduringly fascinating footnote in the catalogs of Eric Wagner, Tom G. Warrior, Lemmy Kilmister, Cronos, Mike Dean and of Southern Lord, which released it, and I can’t imagine the time and effort it took to put together.
Because of Grohl‘s success in Nirvana and Foo Fighters, as well as his drum contributions on 2002’s Songs for the Deaf album by Queens of the Stone Age (and of course, he’d pair again with Josh Homme in Them Crooked Vultures), anything he touched would’ve been given a certain amount of attention and acclaim, and to his credit, he used that to grant exposure to an underground scene that helped shape him into the songwriter he became. Probot‘s Probot couldn’t really establish an overall flow with so many players, but among the 11 tracks, there were several standouts, and “The Emerald Law” was definitely one of them.
And while Grohl was young when he joined D.C. punk outfit Scream, he would’ve been kicking around some of the same territory as Wino was in The Obsessed at that point, playing shows together and knowing the same people. “The Emerald Law” isn’t definitively in the style of The Obsessed or Vitus, but in a kind of compressed in-between space. Wherever it rests sonically, though, Grohl‘s heart was clearly in the right place, and Wino‘s performance on the song is spot on perfect.
Hope you enjoy “The Emerald Law,” and have a happy Wino Wednesday:
Tags: Probot, Wino Wednesday
This is the best track on Probot, hands down. It’s what opened the door to Wino for me as you pointed out and countless others, I’m sure. Good call.
I think it’s one of the coolest songs Wino has ever done. Unlike C., I was a huge Wino fan before this, but I agree that it’s the best track on the Probot album as well.
Does Wino play any guitar on this and what is the movie that the video is made from?