Some early songs like “Stinkfist” were, in his opinion, failed jokes. Why he’s reluctant to perform it live today.
Maynard James Keenan spoke openly about his critical attitude towards some of the band’s early songs in a recent podcast interview.
In conversation with Steve-O for his podcast “Wilde Ride!” The Tool frontman was unusually self-critical about certain texts from the band’s history.
The distance to the early compositions
The singer admitted that he is reluctant to perform some of Tool’s older tracks live because he feels he hasn’t done them justice. “There are old Tool songs that I don’t like playing because I feel like I’ve let them down,” Keenan explained. Although they are popular songs, some of the lyrics were written as failed jokes that no longer hold up today.
Specific examples: “Stinkfist” and “4 Degrees”
Maynard James Keenan cited the track “4 Degrees” from the debut album “Undertow” as examples. The US artist admitted that, in retrospect, the attempt to write a humorous text was not successful. “The music is great, the melody works, but the words are just stupid,” is his self-critical assessment.
He also appeared distant on the 1996 track “Stinkfist”.
No new music since 2019
But a quick reminder: Tool have not released a new studio album since the album “Fear Inoculum” from 2019. The band toured at the end of 2025 and played well-known pieces as well as rarely performed songs and a cover version of Black Sabbath’s “Hand Of Doom”.
Editorial recommendations
But when asked about new music last year, Keenan responded curtly: “Writing, I guess.” Bassist Justin Chancellor explained in an interview that the band works according to its own rules and does not bow to any external time pressure.
Puscifer album as next project
While fans wait for new material from Tool, at least Keenan’s side project Puscifer is releasing a new album titled “Normal Isn’t” on February 6th.
