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for all TOOL and A Perfect Circle fans, Maynard interview
Who is Maynard James Keenan?
In an exclusive in-depth interview revolver attempts to shed some light on
the shadowy frontman of Tool and A Perfect Circle
By Andy Langer
Lounging outside a Los Angeles coffee shop, Maynard James Keenan is
sporting a T-shirt adorned with a simple statement: "I Am Not an Artist."
Of course,
nothing could be further from the truth. Keenan is indeed an artist; in
fact, when you consider the majesty and vision of his bands, Tool and A Perfect
Circle, you'd be hard-pressed to find another modern rock frontman more
worthy of the title.
But Keenan's also notorious for keeping his playbook close to the vest-he's
a cagey, let-the-music-do-the-talking type who's infamously press-shy and not
any more chatty with fans. And yet, across a surprising, sprawling, and
exclusive revolver interview, Keenan was unexpectedly forthcoming,
revealing the
motivations, mathematical formulas, and wild conspiracy theories that
underlie his art.
revolver: people think you're crazy. is that something you've come to accept?
Maynard James Keenan: I'm not crazy. We all have our emotional weirdnesses,
hang-ups, paranoia, and fears. But at the end of the day, why shouldn't we be
paranoid? Look at what's happening and the way things are homogenized and
the control issues that come up in a fascist regime or dictatorship.
Take music-there's fewer and fewer outlets for bands to even rehearse and
develop in. And even if you do get something going on, unless your willing to
do the radio show and go on oprah, you're out of the loop and not part of
the machine. Wal-Mart is gobbling up every record store out there. It's an
uphill
struggle. And what ends up happening are manufactured bands, fabricated to
fit right into the Happy Meal slot. Initially, they sell a bazillion records
because they're being sold like McNuggets. Of course they're gonna
sell-it's the only option! It's the only thing consumers are presented with
as a choice.
where does that leave you as a musician?
Fucked. I can only do what I do. Even if I wanted to make my work more
shallow, I don't think I could. But who am I to judge? People have to
follow their
hearts, and if their hearts lead them to Wal-Mart, so be it. But if people
are listening, then they'll hear something and hopefully crawl out of the hole.
how easily do you do what you do?
Not easily at all. It's always a struggle, because you're looking for that
magic word-the magic line or sequence of sounds that unlocks something. There's
a gazillion people in recovery and if we could just find the magic word
that would suddenly heal people, we would have probably come up with it by now.
So it's an endless struggle to figure out what's going to work for you.
That's all I can really do-try to figure out what works for me and feel better
about the world around me by having expressed something about it.
what do you think people most misunderstand about you?
I have no idea. And it's not going to change what I'm doing.. There are
certain behaviors I'm trying to become more aware of in my personal
relations. But
as far as somebody's perception, there's nothing you can do about it. It is
what it is. If you're really good about playing the media then you might be
okay for a while, but eventually, the music ends up suffering and people
realize it's the emperor's new clothes-a house of cards.
but there's a mysterious mythology around you and your career. is that a
pro or a con?
I have a theory. Most people will agree we're connected on some level, be
it by these invisible threads of consciousness or whatever. I think all of us
recognize that ball of light in some way. And often, artists who become
popular or gain recognition have a little more of a grasp than others on
channeling
that light, that chi or aura. But at some point, when you pass that
threshold and people are aware of you on a global level, it can suck your
energy-unless
you learn how to keep those people away.
You can see those who pass that threshold getting destroyed, getting more
gaunt as people take away their life force-there's so many people plugged into
them and they're taking on more than they're capable of handling. You have
a nice mansion, but what did it cost? You're a zombie. You see actresses and
actors out in a club without makeup and it's like "Jeez...take a vacation
and unplug somehow, because people are sucking you dry." So I think that's the
double edged sword I'm happy with-I may not be a household name, but I can
go shopping and buy groceries.
do you change your appearance so frequently and do things like wear wigs so
that you can build a defense against the world? or are the disguises just part
of the way you express yourself artistically?
It's part of the art. Jack Nicholson will tell you that when you put on the
Joker outfit, it comes to life on its own and has its own personality that has
nothing to do with Jack Nicholson. Gary Oldman puts on some kind of
fucked-up wig and makeup and he's a whole different person and the acting
just kind
of follows. So yeah, it's a part of the art and performance, but it also
lets me step aside and do what I do without being corrupted by fame.
what do you enjoy by all this? what's fun about it all for you?
It's a puzzle. I'm trying to figure out life puzzles, music puzzles,
geometry, word games.. Play until you die, you know? And the more you learn
about different
stuff, the more references and cross-references pop up that make the
puzzles and matrixes more fun. It's how you grow and learn about yourself.
It's how
you figure out what makes you tick and perhaps how to adjust that or
enhance that.
all of that sounds very mathematical. isn't self-discovery supposed to be
emotional?
Emotions can be mathematical in nature-everything else is. All nature can
be described with mathematics.
is that what always appealed to you or did you grow into realizing that?
No, I just write what I hear. I hear something and say, "That's a cool
idea. Let's see what I can do with that." And then something comes up in my
personal
life and I try to see if I can't get to the bottom of that motivation and
see what makes that thing tick. I'm like any kid that gets a toy for Christmas
and wants to break it open to see what makes it work. Then the trick is to
try and put the toy back together.
i would have thought that someone as socially conscious as yourself would
reflect in your lyrics the malaise caused by the war in iraq and other
world events.
but apc's new album (see story, page 72) is largely apolitical.
No, it's not; the sleeping people are in there. Take the line "Counting
body like sheep to the rhythms of the war drums." There are a lot of
people-especially
around Middle America-that have been asleep. It's difficult for me to
separate interpersonal and internal dynamics from relationship dynamics and
world
dynamics. It all has to do with listening and compassion. And right now,
there's not much listening going on in the world.
you've spoken about the late, great counterculture comedian bill hicks. is
there anybody else out there fans can use as a doorway to figuring you out?
It's hard to step up to the Hicks. As far as the social and political
commentary, I hope people would discover David Cross and Janeane Garafolo
through
us-they're amazing people. She's so well read and pretty much took the
words out of my mouth-thank God-when the Iraqi Freedom Fest broke out. If
I'd been
put on camera on crossfire, I'd have been shot between the eyes. She's an
amazing individual, and David Cross as well. He's got some pretty strong
opinions
that are grounded. I'd be running around trying to tie the war in with the
JFK assassination. He's a little more levelheaded that that.
what's with you and the conspiracy theories?
I'm an idiot with them. I'll start putting it all together for you and by
the time I'm done you'll think I need lithium, but you'll kind of start
agreeing
with me too.
so the point for you is to question things, not necessarily to reach an
incontrollable conclusion?
On September 11 what I thought immediately was, Start to question now.
Suspect everything. Don't take anything at face value because the people
that run
the country own your media. Even if you're wrong about your crazy
conspiracies, at least ask the questions. Because never, ever, in the
history of man,
have you ever, ever, ever been able to trust your government. So why the
fuck would you start now? Just because something blew up? Start there and draw
your own conclusions. But definitely start the process. And even now, you
can't get much information unless you really begin to seek out alternative
sources
to try and figure out what's going on. And you have to be armed with the
skills to do that kind of research. And having a father and mother that
were high
school teachers, I can tell you straight from the horse's mouth that we've
been robbed of the tools and skills necessary to even know where to look.
since you feel that way, do you find it tempting to make your music more
politically focused-to use it as a vehicle for protest?
In a way it is. There's a lot of social commentary in the music already
that cuts to the bone as far as the social dynamics of waking up and
questioning.
It's all there. You have to listen, though. It's about looking at your
weaknesses and strengths and knowing you have to wake up-whether it seems
like it's
about relationships or substance abuse. Television is the biggest drug
we've ever been introduced to. The effect it has on your mind is insane-the way
it alters the way you perceive things and alters your reality, where you're
gonna put your money and who you're gonna vote for. It's a mind-altering drug
drug.
but you watch it?
I watch films. But even in films you can see an agenda. Just pay
attention-just look and see it. Look at all the war movies that came out a
year prior to
9/11.
are television and film that different than the conglomerate-owned
recording industry
I'm not Rage Against the Machine. I'm not claiming that kind of platform.
I'm just trying to make records and express myself the best I can. At the end
of the day, all the evil corporations can really do is not put my records
in stores. I'm putting what I want on my records. They're not changing that.
Nothing is altered. And if they want to not sell my records, that's fine
with me-I'm still going to bag on them and try to undermine the monster. At the
end of the day, I'm going to get onstage and play. Even if you don't want
to sell or buy my CD I'm still going to go out and perform.
does the performing part come easier now than when you started?
It's always come easy. It's always been simple.
why?
It just makes sense to me. There's an energy in the room that makes sense
to me. It's all about the moment, really. You know you've tapped into something
when you can replay an equation and get a similar emotional response. So
every night is a reminder that we're on the same path.
are there things that you'd address with tool that you wouldn't in apc?
There's no rule of thumb; things happen as they happen. I'm sure you have
friends that you can try to force certain discussions on, but that discussion
might be easier with a different set of friends. But there's no sacred
ritual or outline on paper.
if you had to do this all over again, would you take the same path?
I don't think I could change anything. I'm the guy that freezes up when you
say you have three wishes from the genie. I'm a let-go,
let-it-happen-as-it-will
kind of guy. And yet I'm a guy with direction. I'm working toward
something, recognizing the nuances.
are you a happier guy than, say 10 years ago?
I don't know. Who cares?
you don't want to be happy?
Sometimes I'm happy and sometimes I'm sad. Anybody that claims to be happy
all the time is clearly on fucking Prozac. You're not supposed to be happy all
the time-it's the nature of emotion.
do you enjoy being on the road?
Absolutely. It's the exchange of energy. The minimal amount of energy you
put out to deliver your music or have your television show or movie come
out-there's
this sucking and drawing because you're not putting enough out. The road
balances that because there's a lot more energy being generated in that
space-it's
more of a sharing of energy. A lot of that seems kind of new age and very
McDonald's/celestine prophecy/Wal-Mart, but I think you really can feel that
exchange of energy in a performance space.
are you a more powerful performer now than when we first saw you?
I think I'm just a different performer now. There was a rage that I felt
back in 1992, living in L..A. and being broke, that I no longer have. It's
the same
story with every successful musician: You're hungry and angry and then
things change. I mean, I'm still pissed off plenty-the traffic in L.A. is
enough
to drive anyone insane-but then again, I have a nice big tub I can get into
and cool off. It's not easy maintaining that James Brown edge and enjoying
your life-enjoying being comfortable and successful. It's a fine line. And
it's what takes most musicians down. The record company's worst fear is that
you'll fall in love or get rich.
do you like dealing with fans at all?
No. It's just too strange a form of adoration. I'm not sure how to relate
to it. I understand that young kids have idols and are fans of things, but
I would
hope that they've learned from what we've done is that they can do it too
and there's no reason to praise me for anything. I'm basically just trying to
work shit out and channel some important emotional, physical, spiritual
stuff that everybody goes through. We're just doing our best to put it on paper
and get it on tape. But it's the same shit everyone goes through, so in
theory everyone has access to it and everybody should be able to do it. So the
point of praising one particular set of metaphorical vessels doesn't make
sense, because I didn't invent the emtion, I'm just trying to translate it.
and you have particularly adoring fans...obsessive fans.
Nah. I don't think we have obsessive fans. Obsessive fans are really into
the Backstreet Boys this week and will be into the next boy band next week.
That's
obsessive, fly-by-night fans. Our fans, if they're really fans, get really
into what we do and do stuff with it-they write and create. We become
irrelevant.
They just took at what came out of the interaction between the four or five
individuals and go, "That was an interesting result of that set of chemicals.
There's nice alchemy there." It's like running up to a jar of fucking
phosphorous and going, "Good job!" It doesn't make any sense!
I realize that fandom is part of this process and this business, so I'll
acknowledge it. And I'm not going to judge the fans for not getting that.
But at
the same time, I'm not going to foster that kind of behavior. I don't want
to plug into it. God, fucking photos at the show are so annoying-flash cameras.
I know you want to be closer but nothing pushes us farther away. As soon as
those flashes go off, the relationship becomes very parasitic.
You're not being very compassionate for what we are doing up there if you
flash a light in my eye. Try to have someone tell you a personal story when
you're
flashing a light their eye. They can't focus on what they're trying to tell
you. It's why you can't bring a fucking camera to an orchestra while they're
playing or Baryshnikov when he's dancing.
do you have any regrets?
I have no regrets. I've made more mistakes that I'd care to list, but I
wouldn't change a thing. At the end of the day they're not going to matter;
there's
no asshole with a book at the Pearly Gates judging you. As I understand it,
the first line in that particular book in question is "In the beginning there
was the Word, and the Word was God." And the Hebrew word for "God" is the
same word for "light" and "love." So in the beginning there was love-infinite,
unconditional, and not about judgment. So if you subscribe to the idea that
we're all connected and there's some sort of source that keeps our hearts
beating,
then there's no judgment.
do you put commercial expectations on your albums?
I've done what I can do. All we can do is feel how all the songs feel in
the order we play them and say, "We can rearrange that or make the lights
do this
or that." Otherwise, it's out of my hands. There's nothing I can do about
it. And the odds are that whatever I do now, eventually the numbers will go
down.
Especially in this climate of downloading, whatever you do this year or
next is going to look like a failure compared to what you did the previous
year-even
if you did the same kind of business.
does that frustrate you?
No. If you take that personally or to heart than you've let yourself fail.
Don't worry about it. The world is changing. We get to be alive during the most
extreme sets of change in the history of our human development since
ancient Sumeria. This is the time. If you bought a ticket you bought a
ticket for
the right show. In this age of technology and emotional
development-everything going on and leapfrogging day by day-you're right in
the right spot for
fireworks.
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