Puscifer release “ImpetuoUs”, the third and final preview of their highly anticipated album ‘Normal Isn’t’, arriving February 6 via Puscifer Entertainment/Alchemy Recordings/BMG. “I’m looking forward to hearing where this song takes people,” Maynard James Keenan says. “As the writers, we forget that in a way, we are carpenters and that we’ve been with this song since it was a pile of lumber. Our perspective may differ from the final occupant of this space we’ve constructed. Shelter, bridge or gallows, coffin? Curious to find out.” The accompanying visualizer offers a first look at the Puscifer comic book series “Tales From The Pusciverse”, with the debut issue spotlighting character Bellendia Black, originally introduced in the “Pendulum” video. The band previously released two tracks from the 11-song album: “Self Evident”, which Stereogum called gnarly while noting Keenan and Carina Round operatically growl on the four-minute outing, and “Pendulum”, a nod to the post-punk underground of the 1980s that Consequence said sounds like the lovechild of Bauhaus and Sisters of Mercy.
Written and recorded across Arizona, Los Angeles, and on the road during last year’s Sessanta tour, the album blends dark electronics and sharp humor Puscifer is known for with a more spontaneous creative process. “From the outset, we had discussed an element of rawness and edge, which guitar brings,” shares Mat Mitchell, who co-produced the album. “We got rid of the guard rails and made the music more aggressive.” Keenan adds that ‘Normal Isn’t’ reflects this time we are living in. “As storytellers and artists, our job is to observe, interpret, and report. We take in our environment and share what we see, and what we see around us does not appear normal. Not by a long shot.” Album guests include Greg Edwards on bass, Gunnar Olsen on drums, Sarah Jones on drums, Tony Levin on bass for “Normal Isn’t” and “Seven One”, Danny Carey on drums for “Seven One”, and Mr. Ian Ross, father of Atticus Ross, who narrates “Seven One”. The album is available for pre-order and pre-saves in multiple limited-edition vinyl variants including standard black, indie retail orange swirl, a Zia Records tan smoke exclusive, and a Puscifer.com-only black ice and clear with black splatter, alongside CD, cassette, and digital formats.