Later this week, A Perfect Circle are set to unveil Eat the Elephant, their first new album in 14 years. As an advanced preview ahead of the album’s release, Maynard James Keenan appeared on BBC’s Rock Show with Daniel P. Carter, where he debuted a new song called “So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish”.
Leading into the premiere, Keenan explained the origins of the song: “[It] was [in] one of those pile of tracks [guitarist] Billy [Howerdel] had laying around in a folder,” he said. “I heard it and went, ‘Ah, yeah. People are going to hate me for this one, so let’s do that.'”
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Keenan shared that he was inspired by the “sarcastic nature” of the R.E.M. classic “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)”. Falling in line with that theme, Keenan sings, “Time is money and money’s time/ We wasted every second dime/ On politicians, fancy water and guns and plastic surgery.”
Elsewhere on the track, he salutes deceased celebrities such as Gene Wilder, Carrie Fisher, and Muhammad Ali as well as music legends David Bowie and Prince.
“We all cope with the absurd in our own manner,” Keenan further elaborated in an issued statement. “The Italian side of me produces and shares wine with friends in order to feel grounded and connected in the midst of all the madness. But once the wine is gone, the drunk and sarcastic Irish side of me goes straight for the unreasonable jugular. #comedyfirstandalways”
Take a listen below, and read/listen to our review of Eat the Elephant here.
Eat the Elephant arrives April 20th. APC previously shared “Disillusioned”, “The Doomed”, and “TalkTalk”. They are currently on the road in support of the release. Find their complete tour schedule here, and grab tickets here.
