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And Finally Artist News Gigs & Festivals Live Business
A Perfect Circle fans who take pictures at shows will be booted out for at least 25 more years
By Andy Malt | Published on Thursday 9 November 2017
Maynard James Keenan has addressed complaints that fans were ejected from an A Perfect Circle show earlier this week for using their mobile phones to take photos and record videos of the gig. “Unplug and enjoy the ride”, he said. And something about 25 years.
A notice at the show in Reading (Pennsylvania, not Berkshire) on Monday told fans that taking photos and recording video would “result in ejection”. This sort of notice is nothing new, and is commonplace at performances by all of Keenan’s projects, although actually going so far as to kick fans out is a step most artists don’t take.
According to Metal Sucks, when one fan posted a picture of the show at the Santander Arena to Instagram, the venue’s manager commented: “You’re good. We tossed over 60 people last night for taking pics”.
Referencing all three of Keenan’s bands, he also added: “This was 110% the band’s policy and has been for Tool, APC and Puscifier. It’s not a new policy”.
When Keenan himself posted a picture to Instagram later this week, featuring him and his dog, at least one fan took this as an invitation to register complaints about the policy. The fan in question noted that “you shouldn’t enforce others to enjoy your art the way you want”, especially if a person is just “recording a song or two for your friend or wife etc who is stuck at work, the hospital or got deported”.
He added that moshing, crowdsurfing and having tall people stand in front of you are all much bigger gig issues for him, noting: “My cellphone is tiny and the light is nothing compared to the ones used on stage”. Indeed, those pesky stage lights really ruin my enjoyment of any show I go to.
Keenan responded with a curt: “No. Recording. Of. Any. Kind. For. 25. Years. Guided experience. Unplug and enjoy the ride”.
If that means we’ll all be allowed to photograph Keenan’s shows as much as we wish in 25 years from now, that should be just in time for the new Tool album.
