Somewhere inside every alternative metal band lurks a platinum-selling stadium rock act looking for a way out; Perfect Circle appear intended to be Tool front man Maynard James Keenan's ticket to the big time. While Tool's uncompromising take on industrial goth metal have taken them so far, Keenan clearly dreams of bigger things: there are moments on Mer De Noms, notably "Rose", that are in meaningful danger of being confused with Jethro Tull and others, which call to mind the most wretched excesses of Whitesnake. Though there are plenty of worse metal albums out there, it is hard to imagine what conceivable use Mer De Noms will serve. --Andrew Mueller