Maynard James Keenan is against phone use during his shows.
In a new interview with Phoenix New Times, the frontman discussed his upcoming 60th birthday show and how annoying his shows get when people pull up their phones to record the performance. When asked why he bans phones on live performances, he explained:
“It’s rude. Not to us, I mean, I just did a whole photoshoot. I’m not afraid of cameras and I’m not afraid of phones. I’ve got mine right here. It’s a very useful tool.”
He added explaining that people miss the authenticity of the real performance by recording the entire show:
“There’s no way you can actually capture what’s happening in that live moment on a phone. You’re missing the opportunity of actually absorbing in real time what’s happening. The art of storytelling. Being able to actually recount what you saw without having to record it. Training your brain to live in the moment and see the thing, but more importantly, stop annoying the person behind you. It’s annoying, it’s distracting and it’s distracting for us, too. So put it the f*ck away, grow the f*ck up. It’s only two hours.”
In the end, the band does not completely ban the phone use in their shows. He added:
“And at the end of the show, we usually let you film a song, so you get your souvenir.”
Keenan Once Yelled At A Fan For Recording
Tool has been pretty firm about their no-phone policy during gigs lately, except for letting fans record the last song, usually ‘Stinkfist.’
However, even with the rules, some fans have still been using their phones during his shows. As a result, Keenan called out a fan for using their phone during one of Tool’s performances in February.
A user on Reddit posted a video of the band performing the song ‘Intolerance,’ and in the clip, Keenan was heard yelling:
“Put your f*cking phone away, d*ckhead, seriously!”
One person commented on the post saying:
“The irony of this moment being caught on camera.”
Another noted that the person had been using his phone to record long chunks of almost every song. You can watch the footage below.
Don’t mess with Maynard!!! Black belt
Tool Night 1 in LA at the Arena
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.©️Tool #rock #mjkeenan #maynard #Tool #Army #opiate #undertow #Ænima #Lateralus #Salival #10000days #FearInoculum #viral #adamjones #justinchancellor #dannycarey pic.twitter.com/QEz9O7XzmP
— Tool band Mx (@ToolbandMx) February 15, 2024