| Maynard James Keenan |
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BIOGRAPHY Keenan was born to a Southern Baptist family in Ravenna, Ohio on April 17, 1964 . He joined the Army in 1982 , studying at West Point Academy prepschool from 1983 to 1984 . However, he eventually left the military to study art at Kendall College Of Art And Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan , which eventually landed him a job in Los Angeles "applying spatial design concepts." Before his years with Tool , Keenan sang for Children Of The Anachronistic Dynasty , and played Bass Guitar for TexAns . In the 1980 s Keenan moved to Los Angeles , apparently to work in interior design. He formed Tool with Guitarist Adam Jones and Bassist Paul D'Amour (later replaced by Justin Chancellor ). The lineup was not completed until Keenan's neighbor Drummer Danny Carey agreed to join. They released the '' Opiate EP '' in 1992 and toured with friendly bands Fishbone and Rage Against The Machine . Shortly thereafter, the U.S. saw the release of Tool's 1993 debut album, '' Undertow '' (see 1993 In Music ), which eventually launched the band into success. Keenan's lyrics and vocals were melodic, grim, and angst-ridden. However, as Keenan continued to record with Tool, his lyrics evolved into increasingly introspective and spiritual pieces of art that focused not only on anger but on the positive benefits of transcending it. Keenan has repeatedly used his voice to push issues which are of special interest to him. One of the first noted occasions being an appearance at a Benefit Concert for Tori Amos ' RAINN (the Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network) on 1997-01-23 at the Madison Square Garden in New York City . So this is one of my dearest friends. This is Maynard from Tool, and uh, I call him up when I'm feeling terrible and he sings me lullabies. So I asked him to come and sing tonight. After the release of ''Aenima'' the band would find themselves in a prolonged legal battle with their label Volcano Records (formerly Zoo Records). Following this legal battle, which resulted in a new three record deal, the members of Tool decided to take some time off. During this period, Keenan found time to work with Billy Howerdel (a guitar tech known to the band) on a different project. The band they formed, A Perfect Circle , began performing in 1999 and released its first album '' Mer De Noms '' in 2000. They eventually released a successful follow-up, '' Thirteenth Step '' in 2003. In February , 2005 , Keenan appeared as a surprise vocalist at a Seattle Benefit Concert for victims of the recent Tsunami in southern Asia , performing with the partly reformed Alice In Chains in place of the deceased vocalist Layne Staley on the songs "Them Bones", "Man in the Box" and "Rooster." Keenan is unmarried and has one son named Devo (born August 5 , 1995 ). He was engaged to Jennifer Fergusson , but they broke up before marrying. The song "Breña," by A Perfect Circle , uses her middle name, while another song bears the name of Keenan's mother, Judith. Keenan's newest project is winemaking. He owns Merkin Vineyards and Caduceus Cellars, based in the unincorporated area of Page Springs/Cornville, Arizona, southwest of Sedona. In 2003, Keenan surfaced under the moniker ". This track is called "The Undertaker (Renholder Remix)". That same year Keenan explained in an interview conducted by French magazine "Rock Hard", that his band A Perfect Circle is not only on hiatus due to the release of Tool's fourth full-length studio album, but finished. {Link without Title} KEENAN AND COMEDY Bill Hicks Keenan became friends with legendary comedian Hicks did on Tool's Lollapalooza tour in 1992, when he asked the audience to look for a Contact Lens he'd lost. Thousands of people complied. {Link without Title} Keenan so enjoyed this joke, he repeated it on a number of occasions. "Finding Jesus" On April 1 , 2005 Keenan announced as an April Fool's joke - to the shock of many of his fans and friends - that he had "found jesus" and would be abandoning the recording of the new Tool album temporarily, possibly permanently. Kurt Loder of MTV contacted Keenan via email to ask for a confirmation and received a very nonchalant confirmation. When Loder asked again, Keenan's response was simply "heh heh". Loder also noted that Keenan had not capitalized Jesus , uncommon for someone who had just converted to Christianity. The announcement was most likely inspired by Brian "Head" Welch's 2005 decision to leave his band KoЯn to dedicate his life to Christianity. On April 7 , the official Tool site announced that the gag was up with the statement; "Good news, April fools fans. The writing and recording is back under way." When approached for comment on his recent encounter with the "Son of God", Keenan said, "That guy's a punk!" Mr. Show , Keenan in his role as Puscifer's vocalist replies "Guilty? Yeah. I mean, we're guilty, and you don't know it. So who's really in jail?" ] Keenan is featured in several segments of . DISCOGRAPHY
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