The seven greatest front people, according to James Maynard Keenan
When producer Sylvia Massey saw Tool perform live, she thought two things: 1) This is amazing, 2) How the fuck am I going to record this?
A lot of bands struggle to take a song from the studio to the stage. They overcomplicate things and layer their songs in a way that is borderline impossible to play live, meaning fans leave their shows disappointed. Then you have other bands who have the exact opposite problem, where they struggle to take songs from the stage to the studio. This was the issue that Tool had.
James Maynard Keenan is celebrated throughout music as being one of the most innovative frontmen out there. His style, the way he moves around the stage and engages with the crowd, is unlike anything you’ll ever see. However, the standout aspect of his performances is his killer vocals, as he screams with a vigour that could only be contrived deep in the pocket of a rock show.
This is the issue that Massey had when it came to recording the band’s debut album, Undertow. How do you take such a live-centric sound and replicate it in the studio? When she was trying to get his scream to the same level as it is on stage, she found that it was constantly coming out flatter than she would have liked it.
“Tool’s Undertow album is filled with blood-vessel-popping screams, like on the song ‘Crawl Away’,” she said, “I had heard them in rehearsals, I heard them onstage. But in the studio, Maynard’s screams were lacklustre, even with the perfect complement of the C 1000 [microphone].”
Massey had a sudden brain wave, it wasn’t one that Keenan was a fan of, but it got the job done. “After several attempts at one of those ten-second screams without a good take, and with his voice obviously wearing thin, I finally asked him to go outside and run around the block five times,” she explained, “This would make him furious, but after doing it he nailed those screams. He was pissed and you could hear it in his voice.”
This was a genius move by Massey, but the measures she had to take in order to get Keenan’s vocals as good as they are during the band’s live show highlights just how standout a performer he is. A lot of this comes from the endless creative depths of his own mind, but he is also inspired by a number of greats. When Keenan was asked to name his seven favourite frontpeople in the world, some of his responses you would expect, but others are more left field.
There are plenty of musical greats that make the cut who are renowned for putting on great stage shows. The likes of Gerald Casale, Henry Rollins, Joni Mitchell, Patti Smith and David Bowie make the cut. “He went through his changes gracefully,” said Keenan when talking about Bowie, “And he explored all these different areas as an actor, as a music maker, as a visual artist. ‘Ashes to Ashes’ is still one of my favourite videos ever.”
Some of his other picks might come as more of a surprise. For instance, he mentioned actor and comedy legends Bill Murray and Steve Martin. “He shreds on the banjo. He has totally inspired me as a frontman, as a performer, and as a musician,” he said about Martin, “I never saw him onstage other than on video, but he’s amazing with a crowd, and his stand-up albums were like rock records.”
Maynard James Keenan’s seven favourite front people:
- Steve Martin
- Gerald Casale
- Henry Rollins
- Joni Mitchell
- Bill Murray
- Patti Smith
- David Bowie
