Biography of this week's SundaySpotlight band is best to split in two directions. First is the direction of the already established artist Maynard James, while the other one belongs to then totally anonymous musician Billy Howard. Their paths will cross randomly one rainy night in the intersection of a round geometric figure called A Perfect Circle. So, let's get this timetravel machine rolling.
Maynard James was born in 1964 in Ohio. After being in US Marines, he realized he is not actually into war, so he pursued degree in art and design. His interest in college was short termed, and as soon as he moved to LA, he founded famous band Tool with Adam Jones, one of the most important bands in the history of heavy metal. After the debut Undertow, Tool grew rapidly and turned into a groundbreaking band. Maynard's studies paid off as Tool's album covers were sophisticated, dark and highly creative. Along with special effects used on their concerts, these visuals became fundamental part of their identity.
That Maynard is an idiosyncratic and autotelic person was noticed right away. His authentic lyrics and original live interpretations generated an aura of obscure mysticism around him. Tool's dark videos are epitome of heavy metal, but also reflection of Maynard's personality. An evidence that he is not a complete maniac lies in the fact that he is also a stand-up comedian and pundit in enology who used his fame for commercial purposes (he is selling his brand of vine in one famous American supermarket chain). Who would reject buying a vine from a man whose unique taste was sung by the lead singer of Tool and A Perfect Circle?
Billy Howard, creator of A Perfect Circle, started his career as a guitar technician for Nine Inch Nails and The Smashing Pumpkins. In 1992, he meets Maynard on a tour. Three years later, he moves to LA and Maynard offers him a bed in his apartment. This event gave Billy an opportunity to show his demos to Maynard. As Maynard was thrilled with the material, he expressed desire to sing those songs. Billy was hesitant, since he originally planned those songs to be performed by a female singer. Once he agreed, it was a zygote of A Perfect Circle. The band was fully formed when other members joined - bassist and violinist Pez Lenchantin, guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen and drummer Tim Alexander.
Their first official public performance was in LA Viper Club back in 1999, and soon after they entered the studio to record their debut Mer De Noms who went on to become a chart topper. It spawned three singles, The Hollow, Judith and 3 Libras, that ruled radio stations, while album was collecting apotheosis-based reviews. "A Perfect Circle plays rock that is supposed to be played today", was the line from one of those reviews. The album's song titles were names of real personas from Maynard's personal life. Besides good tracks, A Perfect Circle also constructed their own alphabet, comprised of symbols that immediately became the language of their fanbase.
A Perfect Circle's debut was an amalgam of rock, hard rock and heavy metal, stylistically undetermined, but still very specific and memorable. The song Judith was a homage to Maynard's mother who became paraplegic when he was 11 years old, and it also stands as the most aggressive tune on the album. Mar De Noms sold 180.000 copies in its first week. A Perfect Circle went on world tour with Nine Inch Nails, and started gathering muses for their sophomore album that was created with some new members.
Thirteen Step was preceded by a single Weak and Powerless that teased the new sound of A Perfect Circle. While the debut came off as aggressive and stylistically unset, their sophomore was more balanced and compact. Although the conceptual faculty of the record left some fans disappointed, I dare to say that Thirteen Step is a masterpiece that should be on your streaming playlist as soon as you finish reading this review. So, why don't we finish it now? Start with first two albums of A Perfect Circle and you will naturally be triggered to explore more. Once you are done, switch to Tool or wait until I dedicate some SundaySpotlight to them. Happy Sunday!
