Maynard James Keenan has never been a huge fan of talking about himself at great length.
The singer is renowned for being shrouded in mystique and refraining from taking centre stage – quite literally, too, as the stage plans for his main bands, Tool and A Perfect Circle, will testify. It’s so much a part of his personality that even when discussing what is ostensibly his solo project – the post-industrial arthouse outfit Puscifer – Keenan is quick to deflect to discussing the other people who are involved with making music under the moniker. One such person is Mat Mitchell, who is a frequent co-writer, collaborator, producer and lead guitarist when Puscifer play live.
“Everything is kind of in Mat’s hands when it comes to the Puscifer side of things, so credit where credit’s due,” says Keenan. “Other than me saying, ‘OK, it’s time to make a record,’ he’s the one who deals with all of the matters of timing in regards to the project. He actually has a history of this sort of management. He used to play in bands back in Texas just to pay the bills, but he was also a go-to guy when it came to technology – he’d make sure your keyboards worked, he’d make sure the triggers on your drums were in order. Mat was the guy that you took on tour to make sure everything was functioning. If load-in’s at nine, he’s there at nine on the spot. If doors are at eight, he’s got everything ready to go at eight. So whenever I say it’s time to start working on a new record, he meets every deadline. It’s in both of our natures – he understands how to maintain and honour a schedule.”
The third Puscifer album, Money $hot, was released at the end of October amid the rumour mill winding up yet again with speculation over Tool’s long-awaited fifth LP. For those still patiently waiting a decade on, Money $hot will serve as insight enough into what is interesting Keenan as a musician and as an artist currently. With this album, he looks to further expand the already vague notion of what a Puscifer song can sound like – something he attributes, in part, to another key collaborator, British vocalist and songwriter Carina Round.
“She’s much more of a presence on this record,” Keenan says. “I wanted to add a lot more harmonies on this. Of course, like anything, if you’re going to do a thing, you’re going to continue to do it the way that you do it – that might sound redundant, but it’s worth bringing up, because it’s something that I wanted to break out of. When I was writing and arranging vocals for Money $hot, I knew what kind of harmony that I would write; I knew what sort of sound I would go for. Instead, I got her to write the harmonies. That way, it would come out differently to what I would normally do. In some cases, I’d go with my harmony part; others she would do better. There’s even a few songs where both of our parts were used in different places. Regardless, it meant that it would be a change. It wasn’t me repeating myself.”
Over the years, Keenan has developed a reputation – in tandem with his enigmatic presence – as being an incredibly self-serious person; one who, even when seemingly doing something ironic, delivers every last thing with a straight face.
“I honestly don’t know what people are talking about when they say that about me,” he says. “My first ever gold record was for my part in ‘Three Little Pigs’ by Green Jellÿ. The first ever Puscifer single was ‘Cuntry Boner’.”
This leads to discussion of Keenan’s most recent foray into comedy – a cameo on the TV show Comedy Bang! Bang!, hosted by former Mr. Show writer and noted podcaster Scott Aukerman. In the show, Keenan played a fictional British punk legend with the charming name of Barf Edwards.
“He [Aukerman] called me up to pitch that part to me,” Keenan explains. “I was like, ‘Damn… do I have to be a rock star?’ I’m not sure how to play a rock star – I’ve certainly never been one. He wanted me to have an English accent, too – he was just throwing everything at me. I was arguing with him, asking, ‘Can’t I just play an asshole instead? That’s what I’d rather do.’ He insisted I do it his way, and it was a tragedy.”
Keenan deadpans on the last word, almost letting it linger to make it clear he’s joking – or, at least, joking in his own way.
He continues: “There was a cat that I was supposed to reach out and pick up during my scene, so I spent a good hour before we started shooting with it. I just wanted it to be familiar with me, so it would know me when the scene happened. It didn’t even end up mattering – with the lights blaring on it, it just kept hissing at me.”
A shame, certainly, but it turned out to be one of the more strangely funny moments of the entire season. Keenan concedes the point, but not without adding in one final slight at his character’s costuming: “I felt like I looked more like Gemma from Sons Of Anarchy than a rock star.”
[Puscifer photo by Tim Cadiente]
Money $hot is out now through Rocket.
