A PERFECT CIRCLE: THIRTEENTH STEP 2003-2004
UNIONDALE, NY [NASSAU COLISEUM]
5.7.04


By Tragedy


I had the immense pleasure of seeing A Perfect Circle last friday out in Long Island NY. Figured you'd like a review so here are my general thoughts on the show.

First opening band was Mini-Kiss. They were great! And so tiny! I think I want to find them at their next tour and keep them in my pocket. Or at least meet them. Their covers of the Kiss songs were really good. Unfortunately they only had a twenty minute set. In my opinion they should of had a longer set than the other opener.

The other opener was Burning Brides. The music was all right and they get points for having a female bass player, but the vocals were awful. Often through the set it sounded like something I would hear at this old DIY venue that I used to go to. Thankfully the set ended and I was still alive.

Next up was the main event.. A Perfect Circle. The band is seriously one of the best I've seen live. And that's saying something when you consider the number of bands I have seen. Maynard's voice is mind blowing in person. Twiggy is a very close second to Nikki Sixx for bassists in my opinion. Totally different styles, but talent wise there is definitely reason to compare them. James amused me with his platinum blonde hair. At first when he took stage I had a flash thought that Twiggy broke out the blonde wig again. But nope.. it was just James. Billy and Josh are very talented as well. Josh is a great drummer for their style of music. And Billy's guitar playing is excellent. I loved the way that it complimented James' playing. The show was very atmospheric. They played a long set and I loved each song. Even "The Package" and "The Nurse Who Loved Me" sounded awesome and those are the two songs I skip when listening to "Thirteenth Step". I don't recall the complete set list but the band opened with "Vanishing" and closed with "Judith". They played a lot of material off of both albums. Twiggz has a great voice and he really shined during "The Noose" and a few other songs. His demeanor onstage is much more calm than it used to be with his past bands, but suits him well. He comes off very sweet and gentle [which isn't too varying from his actual person]. He looked fantastic too. Speaking of fantastic.. Maynard's ass. Damn! Sorry I had to say that. It wasn't as if he was trying to hide it anyway. Through the whole set he contorted his body and touched his self in a very suggestive manner. That combined with his amazing vocal ability is enough to capture any girl's attention. He also seemed to be in a very good mood with his ramblings about CA [more specifically the new governor], nipples and censorship. Kept the audience laughing. I was kind of sad when the show ended. I would have sat there for hours on end listening to them. Even if they repeated songs!

After the show I was lucky enough to meet Twiggy and the rest of the band and to hang out with them until bus call. They are all very sweet and thankful for the support they receive. I must say though that Maynard's eyes are so intense. When we were speaking in the back I felt as if his eyes were searching the depths of my soul. Kind of freaky.

So yep, that's my great review of the show. My only complaint is that cameras weren't allowed unless you had a press pass. I would have loved to get some shots of their set.