Some say the end is near. Some say we’ll see Armageddon soon. Among those is Tool’s Maynard James Keenan, who sang those words back in 1996. 21 years later, the vocalist is sounding the same note in an interview with The Guardian. Keenan, who moved from Los Angeles to Arizona, speaks in the interview about enjoying farming and having his own vineyard, and suggesting that many others in the US get back to nature:
“If you study history at all, the US is long overdue for a fall. So you know, just keeping that in mind … I’m not being a doomsayer, it’s just that changes occur, it’s what happens. If you want to enter the proverbial, metaphorical kingdom of heaven – which to me just means ‘survive’ – if you want to survive this storm, [you need to] understand what a storm is. You need to understand how to survive it. It’s simple. Grow your own fucking food. Don’t rely on someone else to make it for you. Don’t rely on somebody else to build your house for you, don’t rely on someone else to bring water to you.”
He elaborates in a different part of the interview:
“Nobody’s coming to your rescue,” Keenan says. “If these things are true, all [the things] the doomsayers and all the naysayers are saying in the press about this presidency … you have to default back to what really matters, what truly keeps you connected, and learn how to not only survive yourself, but to help your neighbours survive.”
That’s a little dark, and will probably be taken out of context (hell, we’re guilty – just look at the headline), but it’s pretty good advice regardless. When asked about Trump, he compares the presidency to an Andy Kaufman stunt, but doesn’t really rhinkg he’s going to change anything about what the does for his art:
“As an artist, what we do is observe, interpret and report,” he says. “I won’t change anything that we’re doing, though I might be a little louder about it. Great art comes from friction, but I think at some point there is such a thing as too much friction.”
It should be noted that it’s not like Keenan is hoping for the endtimes (except for in the title track to Aenima, which we started the article with), but urging people to be ready to fend for themselves.
[via theprp]
