A Perfect Circle

I went to A Perfect Circle last night totally prepared for them to be crap, and the new album stuff to fall completely flat, and, well, none of that happened. At all.

The new stuff just completely clicks live - the likes of Disillusioned and The Contrarian sound just as epic and lush as anything on any of the other albums - and the older stuff sounds phenomenal. It doesn’t hurt that Maynard seems far more engaged and interactive than he historically has with Tool, and the lightshow is absolutely breathtaking.

Starting at 9pm, the set scraped two hours (no encore - they didn’t need one) and covered a range of tracks from all the albums, heavy on the new one of course, but a representative set. I'm writing this before the second night, but I wouldn't be surprised if tonight's set has a few differences.

The only bone of contention for a lot of punters was the we-mean-it zero photos policy. Even taking your phone out in the auditorium got a torch shone at you, as a few unfortunates discovered, and, well, it was rather wonderful.

I wasn’t expecting quite what a huge difference it makes, or quite how distracting phone screens are, as they’re now just part of the furniture. An uninterrupted view of the performance over the heads of the crowd just made me remember how things used to be, and it was an actual relief to be separated from the insidious little voice telling me I must capture this moment rather than just experience it.

And what a performance it was. Looking forward to seeing them again tonight. :)

This was my first time seeing APC as well as my first concert at the Peterson Events Center, so this review will cover both.

The Peterson Event center is a pretty good venue, it is basically a smaller PPG Paints Arena (formerly Consol Energy Center). I had floor seats near the back and could see and hear everything fine. The lights, curtains, props, and audio were all on point, though the screens were smaller and longer than most Pittsburgh venues. I prefer bigger and wider screens, but it didn't hamper things to much.

The Beta Machine opened up, and they sounded pretty good. I like BM well enough, and they are a fitting opening act for APC, but like everyone else there I came for APC. BM played for about half an hour, all songs from their debut EP.

Having seen one of Maynard's other bands (Puscifer, not Tool yet unfortunately), and having listed to the Stone and Echo album I was expecting APC to sound very good live, which they did. Near studio quality throughout. They played all the songs you would expect ("Weak and Powerless", "The Outsider", "Blue", "The Noose", "Magdalena", "Count Bodies...", etc.). They also played a few covers from eMOTIVE, namely "Imagine" and "People are People". I was hoping they would play some brand new music, which they did ("By and Down" their latest released song, as well as "Feathers", "HourGlass", and "The Doomed" from their upcoming album). The concert lasted about an hour and a half. Light on banter and theatrics and heavy on substance. Overall, it was a good concert.

If you like your music heavy, riff-driven and moody as a sulky teenager, you may already be a fan of A Perfect Circle. The dark rock/ metal/ grunge 'supergroup' formed back in 1999 as the brainchild of guitarist and Nine Inch Nails producer Billy Howerdel and Tool singer Maynard James Keenan- one of the most influential, affecting and recognisable vocalists in rock music today. A Perfect Circle broke records for the fastest-selling debut ever with their multi-platinum 'Mer De Noms' in 2000, and the sheer clout of their musical prowess is clear from their live shows as well as on record. So much so in fact, that they have released two live DVDs, as well as selling out stadium tours all over the world.
Over the past decade or so, the band, having undergone a few line-up changes and a long hiatus, are back to touring after releasing a greatest hits album, 'Three Sixty', last year. Fans can rest easy (or mosh out in delight) knowing that they are still as powerful a live act as ever, with Maynard's cleanly haunting vocals over heavy guitar shredding as awesome as when they first began. When I saw them in 2011 at an intimate venue in Columbia, Maryland, they also changed up the arrangements of a few songs from their album versions, such as the opener 'Annihilation' and the thundercloud-worthy 'Outsider'- keeping their set fresh, original and as awesome as can be. If you manage to catch these guys live, you won't be disappointed!

The Billy Howerdel/Caduceus Cellars tour was amazing. We had an in stage tour with Billy, he explained a lot about the stage set up in great detail, he played guitar for us directly infront of me, and I got to ask him the first of three questions (which I believe I received the most complex answer to the most sincere of the three questions)..
The wine tasting I did not take part in, unfortunately, as I do not drink alcohol nor use drugs (synonymous)..

The show was awesome!
Stellar, in fact, out of this world.
Hadn't seen the band live, since their Greek Theater Cinquanta show for Maynard's 50th birthday bash, and before that since their 2011 tour.

The VIP only merchandise was stellar, as well, and I even scored a bunch of other merch items, at the regular merch booth, to include a second separate signed beautiful poster in very limited quantities.

They played their newer track "By and Down" from 2011, as well as three HIGHLY evolved brand new tracks.

Live music events like these are the purist form of therapy that I've ever discovered, and I am still riding on its high..
Stellar fucking show!
Thank you, Billy, James, Matt, Jeff, and last but certainly not least, M J Keenan.
I had the time of my fucking life, brothers!
Peace, love, and happiness to you all!
With much love and appreciation,
David D Corley. \m/

Saw them for the first time, was really excited. Although the concert was great and the lightshow was really theatralic and aligned great with their music / style, i was a bit annoyed that maynard kept repeating "put away your phones, and we will continue playing" a couple of times with some kind of arrogance. Kinda killed my mood. I know hes not into smartphones and surveillance and all that stuff, and its good dont get me wrong, however i think its not appropiate to "teach the mass a lesson" when youre some kind of rockstar, playing in front of thousands and charging a whooping 70€+ for a ticket. I mean i couldnt even spot more than one or two smartphones, but we were standing quite close to the stage..

Also i dont quite understand the benefit of grabbing a LP of the new album for 35€ while you can order it for 25€. I would like to be able to buy some of Maynards wine haha, because shipping to europe is way too expensive.

However, music was great (besides not playing judith, maaaan), that bald guitarist was super hype and made up for the bad mood maynard spreaded before (he was ill too, maybe i just caught him on a bad day/concert). Not sure if i would go again though.

Maynard doesn't disappoint and neither did A Perfect Circle. And they played my favorite, favorite song….By and down!! Some people were pissed about the no photo/no recording policy. However if you follow Maynard, you would know that it has been this way and that it's been a no recording/no photo policy for the past 25 yrs with Tool, Puscifer, and A Perfect Circle. So this is nothing new for gigs involving Maynard. Maynard and the band feels it's disrespectful for other concert goers to have to deal with someone in front of them recording or constantly snapping photos. He wants the audience to unplug and enjoy the ride, to be present and to be in the moment. Honestly....it was nice to not have to see cell phones out everywhere or in my direct view of the stage. Too many times at concerts, I've dealt with the person in front of me and their phone, out the entire time of the show....where I'm actually having to watch the concert through their cell phone, cuz it's in my range of view for the show.
A memorable evening with so many feels and so much love. My heart is full. Thank you APC <3 <3 <3

Openers were ok. Tricky instrumentals over powered vocals, but was happy to see them non the less.

O. Tight sound! Set list covered all the favorites. Lighting was colorful on the simple back set. I Love A Perfect Circle!

At the Honda Center, Anaheim: VERY STRICT on no cell policy! Every where you turned lighted signs and signs taped to chairs on floor. They meant business. Cops and increased security to enforce. I was sitting front rower to floor & witnessed people being kicked out before the show and during for taking selfies. One guy was cuffed for taking his shirt off and dancing too crazy. The crowd control was gastapo. Very tame crowd.

Absolutely must see... If you get the chance. The band performed so many good songs, old and new. I love that about them. This is only my second time seeing them live but I've been a fan from the beginning. During the entirety of the concert, at the artists request, there was a no cell phone policy. It was so nice to be able to just enjoy the music and people and environment! Everyone on the same wavelength, it was overwhelming and I found myself crying throughout the first few songs. I loved the visual effects they used throughout the show. Definitely one to see before they're gone...

The same great sound and voice’s as on the cd. Loved the show only when Maynard told us to pull out our camera’s on the end of the show....he quickly left the stage so missed him for a good pic ...the smart ass I know he like to ceep away from the lights like a vampire but his voice did not change trough the years. Also Thanks to the other great menbers of this band.
Great numbers and in june I will see them with the band TOOL.
Also CHELSEA WOLF gave a great performance.
Thanks to AFAS for gettting them in had a fantastic evening. ❤️❤️❤️

The band was great, everything you could hope or want from them. The venue was the opposite. The Hollywood Bowl is a terrible venue, I will never go back. Waited in line for 45 minutes to buy a $13 12oz IPA. All concession stands were packed, and the workers could care less. It was like being at Disneyland when at capacity. So stressful, missed two opening acts, walking to my seat as headliner started.

Never, ever again. I'd rather drive to San Diego or Las Vegas to see a band I like when on tour than go to this outdated venue.