A Perfect Circle, Puscifer & Primus conclude ‘Sessanta Tour’ in Queens (recap, photos)

The ‘Sessanta Tour’ is one of the most brilliant ideas I’ve ever heard of. It’s a tour featuring members of the bands Puscifer, A Perfect Circle, and Primus, but unlike a normal tour, they are all sharing the stage and performing together throughout the entirety of the concert.

The tour’s name comes from the Italian word for “60,” which I had no idea until Les Claypool filled all of us slow folk in as he took the stage. The tour was essentially a celebration of Maynard James Keenan’s 60th birthday, which he marked last month on April 17th. The bands basically rotated every three songs, seamlessly and with purpose. It was great to see such highly professional musicians and crew pull off such a cool feat.

They combined their equipment to create a two-story stage with double-sided stairs, allowing the artists to rotate between songs and performances. One side of the stairs actually had a medical stair lift that members would take turns using to go up and down. Seriously, what a genuinely cool and comedic idea.

Sadly though, from where I was sitting, there was a huge screen blocking two-thirds of the stage so I never got to see the drummers, which as a drummer myself, was definitely a bummer. There was also a ton of stuff happening on the second deck lounges with band members throwing stuff at each other. On stage left, Keenan was being quite the mixologist, making drinks for everyone. Shaking and stirring.

Forest Hills Stadium is certainly an amazing venue, but when it’s cold, holy moly, it’s unforgiving. There’s nowhere to hide, except the bathrooms. This concert was, in my eyes, brutally cold. I’m a tiny frail little boy and I was not prepared for this. Claypool and Keenan made a point early on to mention how cold it truly was.

With a fun and playful extended version of ‘Tommy the Cat’ from Primus and videos of Keenan in the hospital being played on the jumbotrons, it really made this show its own experience. Even seeing moments like Gunnar Olsen and Tim Alexander playing simultaneously was truly a sight to see.

NO CELLPHONES! The rule was heavily enforced. Obviously, if you were sneaky you can get by, but Keenan and the venue made sure to stop people from capturing the performance on their phones. Until the last song of the night, when Keenan told everyone they had been a very good audience and encouraged them to let their phones fly high. It was quite refreshing not seeing phones out all night, though. I really can’t stand being at a concert where there are as many phones as there are people.

Great show! I wish I could have seen more, but I’m very happy I was able to attend such a wonderful night in Queens. Keenan definitely thought we were in Brooklyn though as he said “WHAT’S UP BROOKLYN,” and no one knew how to reply. Maybe he was fucking with us, who knows. Womp Womp. This wasn’t the first time I’ve heard Brooklyn mentioned at a Queens venue. Burn.

The night ended with a couple of “60” piñatas being smashed by all the band members. I was lost in the world of photography, but I’m pretty sure they were all ping pong balls inside, no candy! Great bands, fun times, and innovative ideas in live music—would I go again? Of course! Keenan, Claypool, and the entire crew always bring such a presence to the stage that cannot be replicated by anyone else.

Check out photos from the Sessanta Tour finale in Queens, NY, in the gallery below, captured by Dylan Lappin, followed by the setlist. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Setlist:
A Perfect Circle set I
The Package
Disillusioned
The Contrarian
Primus set I:
Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers
Too Many Puppies
Eleven
Puscifer set I:
Galileo
Tiny Monsters
Indigo Children
Primus set II:
Jerry Was a Race Car Driver
My Name Is Mud
Tommy the Cat (with Maynard James Keenan)
Puscifer set II:
Postulous
Momma Sed
Bullet Train to Iowa
The Underwhelming
A Perfect Circle set II:
The Noose
The Hollow (with Tim Alexander)
The Outsider
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
Puscifer set III:
The Humbling River
The Remedy
A Perfect Circle set III:
Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums
Judith
Primus set III:
Southbound Pachyderm (with Sean Lennon) (All three drummers on stage)
Sessanta E.P.P.P.:
Kindred
No Angel
Pablo’s Hippos (with Maynard James Keenan)
All 3 Bands:
Grand Canyon

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