By: The Tourist
 
How does a band top their own album? That was the question I was left asking myself after seeing A Perfect Circle. Billy Howerdel and Co. sure know how to blow the doors off of a place...and what better place to blow the doors off than at the oppressively hot Palladium. The club was packed tight, the heat was ridiculous, and the band was throwing down. Life seldom gets better.
 
After a particularly heart warming pat down by the courteous welcoming committee, I made my way to the floor. What followed were two forgettable sets by two forgettable bands. I would have preferred one opening band that could have held their own, in lieu of the cannon fodder that was offered up for slaughter to the impatient crowd. I heard a few people talking about what would happen next, and was pleasantly suprised to watch two young women simulate a round of strip poker...as if the club was not hot enough. The crowd seemed far more interested in this vignette than they had in the opening acts. I can only assume that it had something to do with the level of anticipation for what was about to unfold.
 
Enter, A Perfect Circle.
 
It goes without saying that Maynard James Keenan is one of the most intense frontmen that anyone will ever have the pleasure to witness. I have often wondered what strange and wonderous demons posses this gifted man. As the band launched into the set opener, Magdalena, the crowd surged with the type of primal energy that can make one question their mortality. I thought that I was far enough back to be "safe" from this part of the experience. I was wrong, but I didn't mind. Next came The Hollow, and Sleeping Beauty. It was then that I realized that APC was not going to let up. They had the crowd by the jugular. A Perfect Circle is something of a super group. Guitar wiz and the man responsible for all that is APC, Billy Howerdel, is joined by some pretty heavy hitters in my book. Troy Van Leeuwen, formerly of Failure (one of my personal favorites) handles the atmospherics on guitar. Josh Freese is the heavy hitting juggernaut on drums. Paz is the undisputed queen of the low end, and ofcourse that aforementioned Maynard guy...I wonder where Billy found him??? :).


The band continued with Orstes, Brena and Thomas. By the time they'd finished Thomas, I'd already decided that A Perfect Circle has to be one of the most amazing live experiences I'd ever had. The band fed on the energy of the crowd. It surpassed a typical show going experience, and became something of a revelation for me. This show redefined what I will expect from all bands in the future: intensity, conviction, and total command of the reality within the experience. Next came Thinking of You, Rose, and Renholder. Maynard told the audience that it was "great to be home", and thanked them for their support, but APC was far from finished. Three Libras quite simply kicked ass, and was followed by a song that Maynard took great pleasure in introducing."A bad joke can go a long way...that's what you do when you don't have enough of your own material. This next song is called Bad Joke. It's also called The Hatfield's and the McCoy's. It's also called.. Josh Freese."

I thought that Ozzie's Cure would have been the end of the show. The band had left nothing to prove by this point, but showed no signs of stopping. Over was followed by what proved to be the finale of the evening, Judith. Maynard dedicated Judith to someone named Ana. The band tore through the song with the same intensity that they had opened the show with. I was not close enough to catch one of the water bottles that the band was tossing from the stage, and opted to make my way to the exit as quickly as possible since I figured that there wouldn't be an encore (they played EVERYTHING). Getting out of the Palladium was a hellish experience that I do not care to ever experience again...though I would...gladly...to bear witness to the awe-inducing power that is A Perfect Circle.


But damn, was it hot in there!

 

 

Read our review APC's cd "Mer de Noms"

 
All Photos ©2000 / TSLA

 

 

 

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