May 23, 2000 - A Perfect Circle and Mer De Noms

It's a double release day! On the same day as my last release a new band joins my library when A Perfect Circle released their debut album "Mer De Noms" on May 23, 2000. But who are A Perfect Circle? They are an alternative rock/metal band from Los Angeles, California founded by Tool lead singer Maynard James Keenan and Billy Howerdel (guitars, bass, keyboards), who used to be a guitar technician for Tool, among other bands. They are joined on this album by drummer Josh Freese as well as two other people who contribute very little but still have official credits: Paz Lenchantin (violin, backing vocals) and Troy Van Leeuwen, who does two guitar solos/sections, but nothing else. A Perfect Circle sound a little like Tool, but they are definitely not as heavy overall and provide their own unique spin on the genre and really ride the line between alternative rock and alternative metal. Let's see what A Perfect Circle is all about!

The album kicks off with "The Hollow" and Howerdel plays some solid guitar and bass. Maynard comes in to sing a solid verse and Howerdel plays some pretty cool-sounding guitar that words don't do proper justice for. Everything sounds very smooth and epic as Howerdel plays some solid guitar and bass throughout the whole song, and Maynard sounds like his usual, epic self and even though things aren't as directly heavy, his voice fits in with this music as well. A pretty sweet way to open the album! Up next is "Magdalena" and Howerdel plays some cool low bass as well as some epic lead guitar to slowly drive things. Maynard holds some nice long, fluttering notes in the verse and the pace and heaviness both pick up a little as they enter the chorus and Maynard sounds great here as well. After another round Howerdel delivers his first guitar solo and while it's not super flashy, it sounds pretty good still and it fits the mood perfectly. They finish strong as well with Maynard yelling a nice final chorus and Howerdel bringing things to a nice end. Track 3 is "Rose" and Howerdel plays some light but cool guitar as well as some super low and distorted bass that sounds pretty sweet! Together this makes for an interesting main riff and Maynard sings a perfect verse to match the creepy, slightly industrial mood. Freese's drums are nice and tight and Maynard sounds great as usual, but words can't do proper justice to all the cool stuff Howerdel plays on guitar and bass; he is the driving force, always in the spotlight, and he's handling it very nicely. Lenchantin shows up for the first time at the end as they close out this song with a violin part and things sound decent, but it's a weird way to wrap up what was otherwise a pretty cool alternative song. The next track is the big hit single "Judith" and A Perfect Circle achieve a rare feat by having the big hit single be probably the best song on the album! The rhythm section sounds pretty good, but it's Howerdel and Keenan that both sound REALLY GOOD on this one. Maynard sounds great singing with a nice heavy edge and he holds a really long yell at the end of the song. Howerdel's guitar is phenomenal the wbole way through and I couldn't possibly describe all the cool sounds and riffs that he plays on this song. It's hands down my favourite off the album and a song that's so good, it might even give some Tool songs a run for their money, and that's very high praise! Track 5 is "Orestes" and Howerdel plays a dreamy and space-y lead guitar riff while Maynard sings a perfect verse to follow along. This is the vibe for pretty much this whole song: it's very light and space-y, bit very nicely done and definitely a solid song still even though it's not a headbanger. Up next is "3 Libras" and Lenchantin plays some nice epic violin in the opening before Howerdel settles into a light but catchy main riff with a catchy drum beat by Freese as well. Maynard sounds great as usual, singing so smoothly and perfectly along with the music. This sums up the whole track, but I was never bored and I thought they did a fine job. Track 7 is "Sleeping Beauty" and Howerdel plays a solid lead guitar riff and it's actually Lenchantin who plays the bass on this song only. Maynard sings a nice verse as you'd expect and he sounds pretty good holding the name of the song in the chorus. It's very smooth the whole way through despite not being too flashy and it ends a little abruptly. The next track is "Thomas" and after a quiet opening they move into a nice heavy main riff that sounds pretty cool. Maynard sings a space-y verse overtop and he sounds really good in the heavy chorus. When they suddenly return to the quiet opening riff it's a nice shift that sets up the loud return of the guitar and bass. Howerdel plays a cool new riff that takes us to the end of this pretty cool song. Track 9 is "Renholdër" and Howerdel plays a cool light guitar riff to lead the way as well as some nice backing piano. Maynard drones along to match the mood perfectly and then Lenchantin joins in with some decent violin. Along with some solid light drums by Freese this all makes for a pretty interesting short tune. Up next is "Thinking Of You" and Howerdel plays a sweet bass riff to drive things and also plays some pretty great guitar overtop. Maynard sounds awesome in the verse and chorus and this is definitely some cool stuff! After a couple solid rounds they jam out a new part where Maynard just repeats the name of the song a bunch and this part is okay but not great. They finish strong with a mother nice chorus though and this was still a pretty good tune. Track 11 is "Breña" and it's a slower one with Howerdel playing some nice light guitar and bass. Maynard leads a nice high verse and the guitar turns heavier in the cool chorus as Maynard holds some nice long notes. After another round Howerdel plays a nice long, slow and melodic guitar solo and Freese plays some pretty great drums in the background the whole rest of the way. Howerdel ends the song on a perfect wlic note and then after a bit of silence we reach the album's final track "Over". It's actually Maynard who plays the gord (this xylophone-like instrument) and he sings a quiet verse overtop of his interesting gord playing. Howerdel comes in with a nice piano riff for a bit, and then Maynard finishes up by himself in this weird little ending to things.

That is the end of "Mer De Noms" and I thought it was a pretty sweet debut album! We already knew that Maynard James Keenan was a great singer and his voice is also pretty perfect for this lighter style. There's still lots of heaviness though and Billy Howerdel is a pretty wicked guitarist, bassist and songwriter. It's pretty cool that Maynard has two bands ongoing at the same time, I look forward to hearing more A Perfect Circle!