Maynard James Keenan has never been one to mince words, and in a recent interview on Kyle Meredith With…, the Puscifer frontman spoke candidly about politics, extremism, and the mindset behind Puscifer‘s new album, Normal Isn’t.
While much of Puscifer‘s past catalog leaned heavily into absurdist satire, theatrical lore, and tongue-in-cheek humor, Keenan says the new record is more directly shaped by the moment we’re living in. When the album was announced last October, he made its intent clear: “Normal Isn’t reflects this time we are living in… what we see around us does not appear normal. Not by a long shot.”
That doesn’t mean the album is a blunt political manifesto. Keenan has still embraced a deliberately campy persona for this cycle, layering humor and irony over the darker themes.
But when asked about the rise of tribalism and ideological absolutism, he was unambiguous — especially regarding fundamentalist extremism: “I’m always going to be on the side of fuck fundamentalist extremists in any way. Left, right, center—I don’t care… fundamentalist extremists can go fucking suck a bag of dicks. And you can quote me on that.”
Later in the conversation, Keenan also addressed the long-standing perception of Puscifer as the “lesser” Keenan project compared to Tool or A Perfect Circle. Despite being his most prolific creative outlet, Puscifer‘s dense mythology, characters, and theatrical framing have often alienated parts of his broader audience.
Discussing the track “Impetuous,” the final single from Normal Isn’t, Keenan framed the band’s outsider status as a strength: “Puscifer‘s definitely been marginalized and relegated to the third side project category… I’ve always been on the side of the underdog. The marginalized underdog is always going to get my vote.”
He added that the song embraces the idea of being different — and being comfortable with that difference: “It’s okay to not think like everybody else… If you feel like an island, then lean into it. Don’t think of it as a flaw.”
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