Review by Joshua


Puscifer and Carina Round at Tower Theater

Puscifer, the eclectic music-meets-comedy troupe helmed by Maynard James Keenan (Tool, A Perfect Circle), rolled through Upper Darby’s Tower Theater last Wednesday for a musically driven evening that merged technology, quirky characters and comedy. Puscifer‘s core and touring band members include renowned musicians Maynard James Keenan, Mat Mitchell, Josh Eustis, Carina Round, Matt McJunkins and Jeff Friedl.

The evening was kicked off with a performance by Carina Round, as she continues to support her 10th Anniversary addition of The First Blood Mystery, which was the first of her three full-length albums to hit streets since 2001. And, although her set was on point with array of gifted musicians including several members of Puscifer, the audience remained relatively apathetic. Despite the crowd’s apathy, Round stormed through an energetic and attitudinal set that combined elements of rock and dashes of electronic leitmotifs that energized a small but very vocal group of her supporters.

I had originally intended to present Blow The Scene readers with a rich review and photo gallery, but do to an array of miscommunications with The Tower Theater’s security staff, this simply wasn’t in the cards. I spent the majority of the evening briefing the rotating set of guards on what the photo stipulations were set by the tour, as they apparently were clueless. I was able to focus long enough to witness Mr. Keenan captivate the audience with his dry wit and humor as he set up a smorgasbord of stage props that included trailer camper (which he pulled onto stage), grill, picnic table, and of course Maynard’s own wine from his Caduceus Cellars.

Puscifer continue to support their troupe’s latest LP, Conditions of My Parole, which made an impressive debut at #27 on the Billboard Charts in October.

“The Verde Valley is an intrinsic part of what Puscifer is,” explains Keenan. “It’s equal parts Twilight Zone, Mayberry and Road Warrior. The ghosts and aliens, Republicans and Democrats, cowboys and artists living side by side with hostile creatures such as scorpions, spiders, rattlesnakes, javelina and hippies are just a few of the spicy ingredients that give Conditions of My Parole its unique flavor.”

Conditions of My Parole was recorded in Jerome, Ariz. this spring with tracking done amidst the wine barrels from Keenan’s Caduceus Cellars. The album was produced by Keenan, Mat Mitchell, and Josh Eustis. Contributing musicians for the new album include the aforementioned Keenan, Mitchell, and Eustis as well as Carina Round, Juliette Commagere, Matt McJunkins, Jeff Freidl, Gil and Rani Sharone, Jonny Polonsky, Tim Alexander, Devo Keenan, Alessandro Cortini, Sarah Jones, and Jon Theodore.

Rather than scrapping the entire set of photos, I decided to post a handful of haphazardly shot pictures I was able to shoot amidst the confusion of an ill informed security team.

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Review by Joshua


A tale of two very different frontmen

It’s probably not fair to compare the two very different concert experiences I had this past week, but for the sake of argument, let’s talk about the upside and downside of creative freedom in the music business.

The first show I attended was Guns N’ Roses on Nov. 20 at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre, which was sincerely the weirdest concert I have ever been to. Considering GnR is an ’80s hair metal band, I figured I knew what I was getting myself into. I was well-prepared for Axl’s infamous tardiness, though I can’t say I find it excusable, and I anticipated some insane instrumental solos and pyrotechnics. The song choices, however, threw me for loop.

About half of the three-hour set felt like it was made up of cover songs, and while I don’t mind hearing a new take on a old favorite, they’ve been playing Paul McCartney & Wings’ “Live and Let Die” for many years now. A rather ill-placed and pointless instrumental cover of Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall Part II” also made me question why it took “Chinese Democracy” a decade to come out if GnR only planned to play two or three songs off the entire album.

Axl exited the stage for many of these covers, leaving his band members to take on The Who’s “My Generation” and “Baba O’Riley.” By the time the guitarist started into a rock version of the “Pink Panther” theme, of all things, I had to check my ticket again to be sure I had come to the right show.

When the Great Bandana-ed One did decide to grace us with his presence, I must note that while the guitar amps were turned up to 11, his vocals were at more of a five or six. I’ll let you decide whether or not it was the acoustics or an attempt to hide those minor imperfections that come with age and hard partying.

And since it took Rose until almost 11:30 p.m. to take the stage, people started leaving only three or four songs in. By the time the encore came around and all the GnR classics started to play, at least half the arena had cleared out, along with my interest.

On Nov. 23, however, I had a much different experience. As an avid fan of Maynard James Keenan, known best as the singer of Tool and A Perfect Circle, I’ve seen the man perform more times than any other national recording artist, but the Puscifer show at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby gave me a whole new perspective into his multifaceted and creative brain.

The night began with a beautiful and powerful set by British singer/songwriter Carina Round, who rocked the hell out of an acoustic guitar and a little black dress. Few present seemed to know who she was, but just a few songs in, she already had the audience eating out of the palm of her hand.

She brought that same level of energy to Puscifer, joining Keenan on back-up vocals for the duration of the show. As she is featured prominently on the new album, Conditions of My Parole, the ever-revolving band members played through the record in almost its entirety while still squeezing in a few older favorites. Carina held her own next to the cowboy hat-clad frontman the entire time, which is no easy feat if you’ve ever seen Maynard do what he does best.

Puscifer, unlike his other bands, is a completely independent project under his complete creative control. It shows, too, because these songs are as funny and tongue-in-cheek as they are deep and emotional. Entering an empty stage, Maynard engaged the audience in a conversation about the importance of art and creativity to humanity while setting up props with his bandmates.

By the time they had finished, they were surrounded by a trailer, folding tables and chairs, and a grill spewing fake fire. Images on screens behind them ranged from beautiful landscapes to goofy parodies of living the hillbilly lifestyle, transporting himself and the audience to the deserts of Arizona, where he currently resides, and the inner workings of his eccentric mind.

The receptive audience danced and swayed in front of their seats to the calm and meditative beats and thrashed as more aggressive tunes were interspersed throughout. Highlights included the latest album’s title track, “Man Overboard,” “The Weaver,” and Carina’s solo rendition of “Rev 22:20.”

While Axl is known for whiny tantrums and public break-ups, Keenan stays out of the spotlight, even literally during his own shows. You hear little about him in the media for a reason – he likes his privacy, and what he wants to share with audiences is his art, not his ego. I may be biased, being only a passing fan of GnR while following Keenan carefully throughout his career, but there is a reason for that bias – the music, the stage presence, and the respect for the fans cannot even begin to be compared.

On Sunday, I felt like I was being forcefed, while on Wednesday, I felt like I was part of a mutual and personal experience, right down to the personal “thank you” at the end of Puscifer’s show.

All the fireworks and big-budget distractions in the world can’t give you a time like that.

Take note, Mr. Rose – sincerity beats theatrics any day of the week, particularly this week.


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