by Sean Reiter
Maynard James Keenan brought perhaps the most eclectic of his bands to San Francisco’s Golden Gate Theatre for a wild experimental two-set performance. Puscifer‘s sound combined the power and darkness of Keenan’s Tool with progressive elements of Rush, Lucius harmonies and a touch of EDM.
Behind a layer of haze and lights, Keenan, co-lead singer Carina Round, guitarist Mat Mitchell, drummer Gunnar Olsen and bassist Josh Moreau seemlessly wove together many of the songs from “Normal Isn’t” – their newest release from February of this year – with some of the more familiar songs off the albums from their first two decades. The first seven songs were from “Normal Isn’t” as the band opened with “Thrust” and “Self Evident” and the crowd remained in rapt attention no matter their familiarity with the newer songs.
For “Thrust”, Keenan and Round remained on the raised platform at the back of the stage for almost the entire song while Mitchell, Olsen and Moreau held court on the main level. For “Self Evident” Keenan and Round remained with the rest of the band on the main level switching from side to side with microphone stands that doubled as canes, spears, flagpoles through the various pantomiming of Keenan and Round. Throughout the show, the two interacted with wordless interactions with each other as they criss-crossed back and forth over the stage and up and down the staircase to the upper level.
The band made a strong point of their resistance to cell phone cameras with signs throughout the venue and even an animated introduction that expressed their disapproval clearly. Their desires were met with virtually no cell phones being held up for photos and videos as ushers screened through the aisles to ensure compliance. The result was an audience focused on the music and performance without interruption of sight or interference of technology. The on-stage lighting was dark and back-lit for the most part with the audience often being bathed in more light than the performers.
Puscifer’s unique sound brought out a diverse audience that ranged from leathered Metalheads and punk rockers to fans who would have looked just as at home at an Eagles concert at The Sphere. In fact, one of The Sphere’s most famous residents – Trey Anastasio from Phish – was seated in the orchestra section and expressed his excitement for being able to catch the band on his visit to San Francisco before beginning his solo tour in Portland in a few weeks.
The first set closing version of “The Remedy” had the crowd at its highest energy of the night, as Keenan and Round engaged in an ever-intensifying duel of various Nerf weapons as the song built to its crescendo. “The Humbling River” which came after the 10-minute intermission was a very close second and snapped the crowd snapped completely back into attention. An eerie version of “Seven One” with narration and accompanying video was mesmerizing as it dug into the power of the number seven. The haunting version of “Grand Canyon” with Mitchell’s impressive guitar intro and swampy “Conditions of My Parole” were also among the highlights of the night.
The Golden Gate Theatre has not held a lot of concert events in recent times, but those in charge are aiming to supplement downtime between run of top-notch musicals and plays with visiting musical acts. The gorgeous venue seats about 2,300 people, but feels much more intimate via its design and higher levels and will be a welcome addition to the Bay’s historic venues.
