Puscifer - V Is for Vagina [2LP]

V Is for Vagina is Maynard James Keenan off the leash, the debut Puscifer album where the voice of Tool and A Perfect Circle trades epic weight for groove and mischief, here on 2LP.

Released in 2007, it introduced Puscifer as Keenan's playground, a loose collective rather than a conventional band. The cast list is impressive: Primus drummer Tim Alexander, Nine Inch Nails keyboardist Alessandro Cortini and dark ambient artist Lustmord all pass through, while Rage Against the Machine's Tim Commerford and Brad Wilk share writing credits on Momma Sed. Mat Mitchell produced alongside the project, with Alan Moulder among the mixers.

The result is darker and funnier than many expected from him. Queen B struts with sleazy, tongue-in-cheek swagger, and The Undertaker coils into slinky electronic menace that later surfaced in remixed form too. Momma Sed slows things to a dusty, reflective crawl, the closest the album comes to a heartfelt confession, and Vagina Mine digs into heavier, more brooding territory.

Indigo Children and Sour Grapes stretch the mood into stranger, longer and more hypnotic corners.

For fans who know Keenan only from his heavier bands, this is a revealing and often hilarious side of his work, and it sounds terrific spread across four sides.