Sessanta V2.0 at the PNC Bank Arts Center

See the Sessanta V2.0 tour featuring Primus, Puscifer, and A Perfect Circle at the PNC Bank Arts Center on Saturday, May 17th!

The party keeps rolling on, as the Sessanta tour, originally to celebrate Maynard James Keenan turning 60, pushes on to 2025. While being best known for being the vocalist of Tool, Maynard is going to be going to be manning the helm of both of his side projects Puscifer and A Perfect Circle. With all three bands on stage at the same time, who knows what can happen! Known for their wacky, outlandish lyrics and bass-driven music, Primus got their start in 1984 in El Sobrante, California. The band has toured with many bands that are both in the same odd and funky vein as them, as well as massive names in metal such as Slayer. While the band may not be for everyone, very early on Les Claypool would tell people his band sucked while receiving praise, which turned into the band’s own catchphrase “Primus sucks”. This self-deprecating attitude has prevailed, and lends itself to the band not taking itself too seriously. They have released a total of nine studio albums, including Primus & the Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble (2014) which is the band’s own take on 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory’s soundtrack. The band never really had any “major chart-topping” successes, however that has not stopped the band from growing a dedicated fan base, reaching gold and platinum status for numerous records, and getting three Grammy nominations. The group also has several popular tracks including “My Name is Mud”, “Tommy the Cat”, and of course the theme song for South Park. Maynard James Keenan’s “creative subconscious” project Puscifer got started in Los Angeles in 2003. Keenan has called the band “simply a playground for the various voices in my head” and treated it as such. The band only has four albums and tours rather infrequently, in part due to Keenan’s activity in Tool, yet has a dedicated following. Another massive draw to the group is the fact that, at least at first, Maynard was the only true “member” of the band, with everyone else being touring musicians only. Over time and after touring with Maynard more times than not, Carina Round and Mat Mitchell also became official band members. This doesn’t change the fact that there are still at least two other band members that rotate, allowing every chance you get to see the band to be just a little bit different. Maynard James Keenan’s first side project A Perfect Circle got its start in Los Angeles in 1999. Much like his other side projects, the band is prone to extended periods of downtime due to Maynard’s other commitments. The band released its first three albums, Mer de Noms (2000), Thirteenth Step (2003), and the cover album Emotive (2004) before going on a hatius until 2010, where they sporadically played shows until 2013 where they went inactive again. A Perfect Circle picked back up again in 2017 when they began working on 2018’s Eat the Elephant, which was followed by touring in support of the album. However, the reunion was once again short lived, as they became inactive once again. Now, the band has resurrected once more to celebrate Maynard’s 60^th, and more recently announced 61^st, birthdays on the Sessanta tour.