Concert review: Maynard James Keenan and pals celebrate his 61st birthday at the X

Maynard James Keenan knows how to throw a party When the Tool frontman turned he performed a series of shows in Los Angeles with his two other bands A Perfect Circle and Puscifer along with his pals Primus He called it Cinquanta which is in Italian Keenan was so pleased with the results last year he took the show now dubbed Sessanta on the road to celebrate his th birthday The outing was such a success Keenan did it again this year While Sessantuno is just sitting there ready to go Keenan went with Sessanta V instead Regardless of its title the tour landed at St Paul s Xcel Potency Center Sunday night for a memorable show quite unlike anything seen in arenas Rather than three distinct performances Keenan turned the evening into a three-hour concert mashup that only stopped for a -minute intermission The bands played three separate sets of three to four songs each one after another To be clear each has a distinct sound of their own Primus specialize in bass-heavy off-kilter rock with a goofy sense of humor The the bulk commercial of the trio A Perfect Circle offer a guitar-driven take on alt-rock while Puscifer boasts a more dramatic and electronic approach with help from a second vocalist British signer songwriter Carina Round Still Sunday s show brought out the acts similarities and obvious camaraderie A giant riser at the back of the stage held three full drum kits as well as sofas drink carts and stairs to the main stage on either side Throughout the show various band members who weren t playing hung out in full view of the crowd During Puscifer s Bullet Train to Iowa roadies even pulled out a ping pong table for two members of APC to use There were also plenty of collaborations like when Keenan and Round added backup vocals to Primus new single Little Lord Fentanyl their first recording with their terrific new drummer John Hoffman Primus reportedly auditioned more than drummers before finding Hoffman With the level closed off the show could have easily downgraded to the ceiling Armory in Minneapolis Then again it felt like the sort of spectacle custom made for arenas and amphitheaters And the grand finale of Primus Southbound Pachyderm with all three drummers and Puscifer s Grand Canyon with all three bands had fans cheering so loud it sounded like a full house Related Articles Concert review Post Malone fills U S Bank Stadium with help from Jelly Roll Two Minnesota State Fair free concert stages lose corporate sponsorship Summer Nights in Rice offers free concerts in St Paul s Rice Park Los Lobos and Arrested Evolution among acts to play free Minnesota State Fair shows Concert review Katy Perry offers garish migraine-inducing spectacle at Target Center