SESSANTA Tour Stops In Indy: A Recap

SESSANTA Tour Concert Review and Photos By John Geiger

Ruoff Music Center

May 24, 2025

Maynard James Keenan performing on stage at Ruoff Music Center.

If there was ever a night built for progressive rock fans to completely lose themselves in

mind-bending riffs and surreal sonic storytelling, it was this one. The SESSANTA Tour,

bringing together Primus, Puscifer, and A Perfect Circle, hit the Ruoff Music Center with

the kind of immersive power that only a triple-threat supergroup can deliver.

The evening defied traditional concert formats. The bands rotated on stage, not in

sets but in seamless transitions, forming a single extended performance, much like a three-headed musical beast. Maynard James Keenan served as both vocal chameleon and

satirical ringmaster, effortlessly switching roles between his bands while never breaking

the spell.

Primus stood out with their twisted grooves and bass wizardry. Les Claypool, ever the

iconoclast, led with quirky intensity, making classics like “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver”

feel simultaneously nostalgic and fresh.

The chemistry between bands was palpable, whether trading verses or blending

instruments, the fusion was mesmerizing. Fans weren’t just watching a show; they were witnessing a rotating, genre-blending ritual that challenged musical norms. The visuals were moody and theatrical, with each band’s aesthetic perfectly merged into a dystopian dreamscape of sound and light.

In a time of predictable tours, the SESSANTA Tour is a revelation—and May 24 at Ruoff

was proof that live rock can still be wildly innovative, daring, and downright weird in all

the best ways.

SET LIST

Act I:

A Perfect Circle

The Package

Disillusioned

Blue

Primus

Here Come the Bastards (with “Cygnus X-1” tease)

Groundhog's Day

Duchess and the Proverbial Mind Spread

Puscifer

Man Overboard

Tiny Monsters

Indigo Children (Versatile Mix)

Act II:

Primus

Little Lord Fentanyl (with Maynard James Keenan)

Welcome to This World (Partial; >)

My Name Is Mud

Jerry Was a Race Car Driver

Puscifer

Flippant

No Angel

Bullet Train to Iowa

The Algorithm

A Perfect Circle

The Contrarian (with Carina Round)

The Doomed (with Carina Round)

Weak and Powerless

The Outsider

Act III:

Puscifer

The Humbling River (with John HoXman) (Versatile Mix)

Polar Bear (with John HoXman)

The Remedy (Maynard & Carina play rock ‘em sock ‘em robots)

Primus

Pablo's Hippos (with Maynard James Keenan)

Too Many Puppies

A Perfect Circle

The Noose

Kindred

Judith

Primus

Southbound Pachyderm (with Billy Howerdel, also with Gunnar Olsen and Josh Freese)

All Three Bands

Grand Canyon (Puscifer)

SESSANTA Tour Stops In Indy: A Recap was written by journalist John Geiger. You can purchase music by Puscifer, A Perfect Circle, and Primus from Indy CD & Vinyl in the store or online at shop.indycdandvinyl.com