While Tool and Puscifer remain different musical beasts that allow vocalist Maynard James Keenan to express different sides of his personality and creative passions, their musical output also comes with some set limitations it would seem. As it turns out, the logistical differences between a Tool live show and a Puscifer concert can dictate what type of notes and registers Keenan can utilize if he effectively wants to pull the songs off live.
Speaking in a newly shared conversation with Rick Beato about Puscifer‘s latest release, “Normal Isn’t“, Keenan spelled out the matter in regards to the song “Pendulum” from the aforementioned album [transcribed by theprp.com]:
“A song like that [‘Pendulum‘], you do it and then you go, ‘Sh*t, can I play this live?’ Because it is a pretty low vocal register. So, we did it. We filmed it at The Exchange downtown, but I literally had to be in the back corner away from cymbals, amps, everything, because I had to be able to hear the vocal live. So, I think that was the most nerve-wracking part of that song — performing that live — is making sure that it I could hear myself.”
When asked by Beato if that song represented the bottom of his vocal range, Keenan replied:
“That’s it. As far as being able to play live, that’s the bottom of the range… And I could do that with this band. I couldn’t do that with Tool. Because all the ambient noise on stage with Danny‘s [Carey] drums and Adam‘s [Jones] 16 guitar amps and the bass and everything, I wouldn’t be able to do a song like this with Tool. Because it’s just too loud on stage. Because I can get up behind these instruments for Puscifer. And the drums are way over there… I can get away from them.”
That also led to Keenan explaining his approach to live performances when it comes to hearing his bandmates onstage during live shows. Keenan stated:
“…This is an ongoing struggle in my head. I like it to be bone dry. No audience sounds or anything out there. You don’t get to hear the accolades or the [crowd] reaction. I can’t hear them… To me the most important part is that they hear an accurate and passionate version of this song.
It’s not about me and you adoring me. It has nothing to do with being adored. It has to do with presenting these songs the best we can. And the best way to do that is for me to not hear you. I have to hear [Puscifer bandmate Mat Mitchell]. I have to hear the drums. I have to hear me in context so that we can present this thing to you.”
Keenan also shared his thoughts on how the in-ear mixes of some musicians have negatively affected their live performances:
“…There’s a lot of singers that you hear them live and they sound like they’re singing flat. It’s because their vocal is too loud over the music in their mix. Their live vocal — they don’t have a recorded vocal. Their live vocal is so much louder than the music that they’re singing to an adjusted version of the music in their ear which is a half step down.
So when they’re singing… We hear it out front. Like I heard Chris Cornell [Soundgarden, Audioslave, etc. frontman] did that a lot. And you know that guy can sing. There’s no question that guy can sing his ass off, but with his in-ear monitors, his vocal was so loud in his mix, that he sounded like he was singing flat. He’s not flat. He’s singing to what he’s hearing.”
Keenan has previously got into the weeds of why he often takes on a minimalistic stage presence when it comes to Tool‘s elaborate performances. While most frontmen become the focal point of a live show, Keenan instead tends to stand at the back of the stage on an elevated platform. As Keenan told Kerrang! in 2024:
“With Tool, Danny’s drums are so loud, he has like 17 arms and 15 legs, and then you’ve got Adam’s row of amps and Justin’s wall of bass. It just makes it way harder for the front-of-house to have a mix if [I’m] down front. And the position up top is also great, visually, because I can see what’s going on, we can connect with each other by looking at each other. If I was facing the audience, my back would be to what’s happening, so I can’t take cues.”
