ssmarcus Despite being a more commercially viable distilled form of metal with more than its fair share of cash grabbing excesses, alternative metal, as a scene, definitely had a progressive streak to it. While Tool was indeed creating an explicitly progressive form of alternative metal, even more straight forward sounding groups like The Deftones and A Perfect Circle (APC) had embraced a kind of psychedelic and, at times, art-rock approach that set themselves apart from the pack.

This psychedelic and art-rock approach to alt-metal is captured quite well on APC’s first record, Mer De Noms. Every song on this record has its own unique flavor. Some tracks like “Judith” and “Thinking of You” revolve around a fairly standard riff while tracks like “Rose” and “Thomas” are more comfortable taking their time to explore different soundscapes before drawing to a climax of some kind. Still, the strongest song on this record by far is the opener with its futuristic verse riff and explosive chorus.

Not all the tracks on this record work. But APC’s willingness to take chances deserves to be lauded.

aglasshouse Thirteen years of baited breath and whispered rumors followed A Perfect Circle following their 2004 cover album eMOTIVe and subsequent hiatus. This effect followed both them and Tool, the other project featuring the frontman vocalist extraordinaire Maynard Keenan, as both bands of which fell into what seemed like an irreparable slumber filled with insubstantial announcements of various happenings, none of which came or seemed would come to fruition.

But Tool in fact came back with a bang with a surprise reunion tour in January of 2016, and it was only expected by the collective conscience of Keenan to give a fair shake to his sister band as well. As expected, a little over a year later APC also received recognition with not only a similar tour but one supporting the release of a new single (/rumored album) titled 'The Doomed'. Remember, this single is the first thing this legendary act has created in almost a decade and a half, so expectations are higher than an elephant's ear.

'The Doomed' has arrived at a perfect time, particularly for me, at a time when I am personally starved of new and enthralling uniqueness on the rock scene, let alone the hard rock/metal scene. It has got to be one of the most interesting songs released over the span of this entire year, and this is for a variety of reasons. First, for those who care to know, this song does in fact synthesize previously established sounds on other APC records, particular the past two. In other words Thirteenth Step and the good stuff from eMOTIVe, especially the original song from the latter, 'Passive'. This means great big burly drums (by new member Jeff Friedl replacing long-time member Josh Freese) that shift from simplistic beginner fills to war-like timbre that fills the stage heftily. This coincides perfectly with Keenan's vocal delivery- one of his absolute best in my opinion- which similarly shifts from scratchy and raw (akin to the Tool trademark) to almost saddened, quiet bridges. These bridges lament of a rapture-like event, as a "new Christ" comes to bless/doom those he deems worthy or not. The blessed are portrayed as undeserving (the fornicates, the rich, the envious, etc.) as they sit on the proverbial skeletons of the deserving doomed (the pious, the pure-of-heart, the peaceful). This lyrical environment is not only fresh but also almost bemusingly expressive. Although such greatness is unsurprising from such an act as A Perfect Circle, the content they deliver is straightforward yet thought-provoking, panicked yet collected, emotional yet headstrong. All in perfect harmony with eachother.

I'm not sure why I felt the need to write such a massive review for a single track, but a band that is so important to me and my past releasing such satisfying content is something I'm not willing to slip under my radar so easily. Fantastic.

aglasshouse This review's been a long time coming.

Supergroup A Perfect Circle's previous works, Mer De Noms and Thirteenth Step, while good, showcase more the same lines as most of Keenan's other work; aggressive, pseudo-experimental metal that appeals to a wide variety of music enthusiasts. It's a different case for their third (and seemingly final) album, Emotive (eMOTIVe). Emotive is mostly a cover album, spare two track written by the band. Named after the sociological term for the expression of feeling, Emotive is an album that showcases covers of songs that center around a defined political meaning. Many of the songs unsurprisingly come from the motherfeared anarcho-punk bands of the 70's and 80's, including Crucifix, Black Flag, and Fear. There are other more interesting bands covered as well, like electronic band Depeche Mode, Devo, and Joni Mitchell.

Emotive is one of the most eclectic albums I own in my collection. Much of this comes from the diversity of artists chosen to be covered, yet all do follow a semblance of a motif- this being one of dark and brooding antiestablishmentarianism. Even the hopeful nature of John Lennon's classic 'Imagine' becomes a misanthropic ballad that feels more pessimistic than optimistic. The voice of Keenan brings this home very much, not to mention the practical smorgasbord of instruments that invokes some much needed emotion that their debut lacked. Emotive features some of the best musical blending I've heard, where the aggression and somberness mix into a pure album that plucks at both your heart and your mind.

I've always found enjoyment in Emotive, from casual background music to a more thought-provoking sit-down hour of listening. In any case Emotive could appeal to any kind of person you are.

Phonebook Eater 8/10

"Mer De Noms" is one of the great Alt Metal albums that will certainly go down in history.

Music snobs are everywhere. Usually, these people snob only a few genres, but they are fiercely coherent and always avoid those, no matter what. Alternative Metal and especially Nu Metal are usually one of those genres; metal-heads especially dislike these for sounding more alternative than metal, so they consider these people "posers". But exceptions are always made; A Perfect Circle is in fact one of the most loved Alternative Metal bands, also by the genre's haters.

It's not hard to understand why, because APC is also one of the most unique sounding bands out there, even though many would recognize Maynard James Keenan's voice, from the universally beloved band Tool. Frankly speaking, APC does have a lot in common with the legendary band; Tool's music core is a darker version of Alternative Metal, but is then covered and perfected with a huge, thick veil of experimentation that makes their sound distinguishable like no other band. APC go just a little further from Tool's core, so basically they are a lot more accessible, but a lot less experimental. However, they are more original than many other bands of their same genre. What makes the band's uniqueness are the guitars and Maynard's voice. While the guitar work is very distinctive because of the wide amount of effects it can have, Maynard's singing abilities are impressive not only for their excellence, but also because they have a very different delivery than the one they had with the other band; Tool's vocals are creepy, warm, present, urgent and of course very haunting, and many times they are used as another instrument, something that only a few vocalists are able to do. But in APC, even though they are always haunting and beautiful, Maynard sounds more distant, almost like a melancholic,remote cry. This of course said in the most complimentary way possible.

"Mer De Noms" means "Sea Of Names" in French, and it can almost be considered a concept album, where most of the songs are dedicated to people that had an impact on Maynard, who wrote all the lyrics. These songs, such as "Madgalena", "Judith", "Orestes", "Thomas", are full of that personality and darkness that the world fell in love with when Tool came on stage, even though the music is, like I said earlier in the review, a lot different and more straight forward than the Progressive band. Songs like "The Hollow", "Madgalena", and the single "Judith" are destined to make history, because of these characteristics that many have been so happy to hear, loving Maynard for his previous work, and listening to something equally as haunting as Tool.

Indeed, "Mer De Noms" is one of the great Alt Metal albums, that will certainly go down in history because of it's profoundness and it's very fragile, human touch. If you're one of those haters of the genre, please put aside your pride and prejudice, and listen to this gem: I'm sure you won't regret it.

Hagbard Celine I have fond memories of A Perfect Circle's debut from a decade ago, a time when metal was returning to the public eye after several years of extreme un-hipness. Unfortunately, the early '00s metal that broke through in the mainstream turned out to be primarily various nu-metal disasters, but A Perfect Circle became one of the rare great breakthroughs of the dawn of the last decade. On this album, Keenan and Howerdel pull off a beautiful blend of traditional metal and traditional goth. Instead of a mistake that brings out the cheesiest of both genres, as "goth metal" unfortunately often does, Mer de Noms becomes something that sounds almost like a 21st century version of The Cult's legendary metal/goth blend "Love" from 1985. It worked, and both mainstream and alternative (whatever THAT meant by 2000) rock radio incorporated "Judith" into their regular playlists for a year or two. Great album that hasn't become stale in the decade since.