Source: http://loudwire.com/a-perfect-circle-the-doomed-new-album-2018/

Maynard All The Time

To start out with, I've been a fan of Maynard Keenan for a couple decades. Tool has been a mainstay, A Perfect Circle just as awesome, and Puscifer continues to surprise and delight. I think that Maynard is one of the key artists of our age - he's always put the craft front and center, and has never stopped. Branching out in musical ventures, as well as horticultural ones. He is very productive, and I'm quite happy for that.

While we've been waiting for the long delayed new Tool album, it seems that a new "A Perfect Circle" album has been in the works, and I was very happy to see the first single drop this week.

Behold The New Christ

Well, here it is. Give it a spin.

So yeah, give it a listen. Give it a few listens actually. Follow the lyrics: https://genius.com/A-perfect-circle-the-doomed-lyrics

If you look at some of my earlier posts on steemit, it's pretty clear of what I think of the United State (my) President. Trump is a despicable charlatan - a man utterly without any morality, or regard for the truth. I believe that we live in a dark time, with not enough people being able to effectively push back against it. Sure, we've got fact checkers, people speaking truth to power (such as it is), but so far it hasn't been enough. To me, it's clear as day that Trump isn't fit to hold this extremely influential and powerful office, and his continued presence in it represents a clear and present danger to not only the United States, but our global civilization.

Now, back in the comparatively tame days of 2004, A Perfect Circle put out eMOTIVe, which was essentially a war protest album. So many people had doubts and concerns over Bush's leadership of the country, but at this point I would be quite happy to have him back.

Let me also add some comments from Maynard himself:

“Fourteen years have passed since we released eMOTIVe,” says Maynard James Keenan. “A new release is long overdue. In light of this current difficult and polarized social, spiritual and political climate, we artist types need to open our big mouths and share the light a little louder.”

The Doomed

When you're a star, you can do anything

This song is a reaction to the upside down we live in with a man such as Donald Trump as the President. This is conflated by his supposed support by the religious right, and so called "family values" conservatives, that, maybe not in all cases actually voted for him, but have indeed continued to support him in office. I'm as atheist as they come, and don't believe in any sort of objective morality, and I can't believe that 100% of this country isn't as revolted in this snake-oils salesman as I am.

His stature in politics and culture is an inversion of everything we'd thought of to be decent and normal concerning Presidential politics. This is the driving theme of "The Doomed"

Good luck, you're on your own

Blessed are the rich, may we labor, deliver them more

So, to finish this off, here' a tour through my interpretation of the lyrics.

Behold a new Christ
Behold the same old horde

We've got a new savior, but we are still the same. The same rambling hungry beast, but now with a new focus, and a path of salvation the likes of which is the stark opposite of the lamb.

Gather at the (altar)ing [ALTERING]
New beginning, new word
And the word was death
And the word was without light
The new beatitude:
"Good luck, you're on your own"

More of the negation of the original beatitude. No longer should we turn the other cheek, but this crude new world focused through the lens of the election of Trump is one where all violence is met with wrath - there is no extending of the hand to the brother. All events are transactional. The other is only worth as much as they are worth to yourself. Otherwise, good luck.

Blessed are the fornicates
May we bend down to be their whores
Blessed are the rich
May we labour, deliver them more
Blessed are the envious
Bless the slothful, the wrathful, the vain
Blessed are the gluttonous
May they feast us to famine and war

Now a very literally perversion of the beatitudes. Trump is a fornicator that is on the record as a sexual predator. He has piled riches on the back of cheated contractors. He has nothing but envy for former President Obama, with which his disgusting and xenophobic rise to political esteem was drawn on the tide of the birther movement.

While Trump spoke out against, and promised that his golfing would have to diminish, this hasn't been the case. It's clear by his absurd comments on policy that Trump abhors the real work of being President. His wrathfulness is apparent, and vanity without question.

And, of course, the gluttony:

What of the pious, the pure of heart, the peaceful?
What of the meek, the mourning, and the merciful?
All doomed
All doomed

Now after spending so much time on the "new way of things," Maynard quietly (and rhetorically) asks about those outside of the salvation of this new Christ. Here he answers himself proclaiming their doom, and then follows this reminder:

Behold a new Christ
Behold the same old horde
Gather at the (altar)ing [ALTERING]
New beginning, new word
And the word was death
And the word was without light
The new beatitude:
"Good luck..."

A reiteration of the start, hammering the point in

What of the pious, the pure of heart, the peaceful?
What of the meek, the mourning, and the merciful?
What of the righteous?
What of the charitable?
What of the truthful, the dutiful, the decent?

Such a sad interlude between the pounding intonations of the doomed

Doomed are the poor
Doomed are the peaceful
Doomed are the meek
Doomed are the merciful
For the word is now death
And the word is now without light
The new beatitude:
"Fuck the doomed, you're on your own"

This is a song utterly without hope, it's just a protest, a message. This is the world that has been brought on by our decisions. If we can change it is yet to be seen.