Puscifer’s new album, Normal Isn’t (Puscifer Entertainment/Alchemy Recordings/BMG) is out now. The collection marks Puscifer’s first new album in five years and finds the trio of Maynard James Keenan, Mat Mitchell, and Carina Round embracing the post-punk influences that shaped their early musical experiences, channeling those roots into a darker, more guitar-driven sound.
“Oral Tradition, the practice of passing down legends, myths, and metaphors, has always fascinated me,” Keenan reflects. “The stories contain history, important lessons, values, social contracts and the like. One of my favorites has always been the Cherokee tale of the Two Wolves. This story serves as a metaphor for our inner battle between good/wise/loving choices and poor/selfish/hateful choices. The wolf that thrives is the wolf you feed.”
Puscifer is a band of three creative confidants, namely Mat Mitchell, Carina Round, and Maynard James Keenan, who fuse music, performance, and visual art into a singular experience. Over the years, Puscifer has carved an indelible mark on the cultural landscape, releasing a series of acclaimed albums, selling out famed venues, appearing on the lineups of Coachella, Bonnaroo, and other major festivals, and even curating their own touring festival, Sessanta. They’ve provided what was essentially the soundtrack to the first season of “Yellowstone,” and their albums regularly land on the top 30 of the Billboard Top 200. They’ve made memorable appearances on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “The Late Show,” bringing their signature blend of precision, wit, and theatricality to late night television.
Puscifer has also welcomed a revolving door of collaborators, from musicians like Greg Edwards, Gunnar Olsen, and Sarah Jones to remixers including Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Phantogram, and Sir Mix-A-Lot, as well as actors Bob Odenkirk and Milla Jovovich. It’s also a universe for the (mis)adventures of original characters: Billy D, (his wife) Hildy Berger, Major Douche, and Special Agent Dick Merkin. More than a band, Puscifer is a creative ecosystem; a boundary-pushing collective where sound, story, and spectacle collide.
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