Maynard Keenan

[james]

INTP?

I think so.

 

[Ermine]

I wouldn't be surprised. Everyone in Tool strikes me as an xNxP. That guy never ceases to amaze me.

 

[IfloatTHRUlife]

I have actually thought about this myself, tool being one of my favorite bands and, Maynard's music, and opinions about the media and how he goes about protecting himself from fame, all just make you wonder.

But i would also contest that a lot of his music is more emotionally based and that he is probably more F than T.

 

[Inappropriate Behavior]

I saw an interview with him once and thought definitely INTP. He was soft spoken and highly intelligent. I think his music sometimes helps him explore his emotional side but I don't think he is an F.

 

[IfloatTHRUlife]

INFPs are soft spoken and can be intelligent.

 

[Sapphire Harp]

But also music is one of the arenas where INTP emotion comes out to play...
​

 

[james]

I think he's NT. Listen to Undertow or Opiate. He is pissed. Pissed off and tellin it as he see's it. NF's don't express themselves like that.

 

[james]

He reflected all my mannerisms perfectly. Kinda shy, have intelligent things to say but need time to think, soft-spoken, kinda disinterested in talking in the first place.

Are other people here soft-spoken?

 

[IfloatTHRUlife]

Very much so, to the point that i just don't say anything sometimes

But about Maynard, i can agree that he seems a lot like me too. It is very possible he is INTP.

Its hard to predict someones personality though. I have had 2 people who i was almost absolutely sure were INTPs take the test and they came back ISTP and INFP. Sadly.. I'm still the only INTP i know in real life My brother had someone take the test and it came up INTP but my brother and I both agreed the results were wrong.

 

[Ermine]

Yes, his songs are very emotional at times, but music seems to be one of the few arenas where emotion flows freely for us.

And I'm quite soft spoken. I've been told I have a soft, passive, almost timid voice most of the time. Unless you get me worked up about politics or something else important or if you catch me in a debate. And in all seriousness, when my Fe rears its ugly head in the worst way possible, Maynard's screams really resonate with me.

 

[louiesgonnadie]

I initially thought INFP because I thought his Te seemed inferior, based on the way he explains his viewpoints. However maybe he's INTJ? His reasoning towards things seems Fi-heavy.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WNaUg8Nlg_M

However, that video does showcase his humorous side, which really seems to showcase a lot of the jovial, wacky, out-of-the box humor that INTPs have. Even though I've never really met INTPs IRL, but based on their humorous writings online I imagine them acting like that if they wanted to be funny. Can any of you maybe relate to this?

Also, Maynard was probably on acid in that video.

 

[Brontosaurie]

INFP i think


from is lyricals, the lyricals:


credulous at best, your desire to believe in angels in the hearts of men
pull your head on out your hippy haze and give a listen,
shouldn't have to say it all again...
the universe is hostile, so impersonal
devour to survive, so it is, so it's always been

 

[louiesgonnadie]

INFP i think


from is lyricals, the lyricals:


credulous at best, your desire to believe in angels in the hearts of men
pull your head on out your hippy haze and give a listen,
shouldn't have to say it all again...
the universe is hostile, so impersonal
devour to survive, so it is, so it's always been

Then again, there's the possibility he didnt write that song.

 

[Solitaire U.]

My guess is ISFP. Seems unlikely an INTP world willingly express something like:

"over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind.
Withering my intuition leaving opportunities behind.
(And I must) Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line.
Reaching out to embrace the random.
Reaching out to embrace whatever may come.

I embrace my desire to
I embrace my desire to
feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow
to feel inspired to fathom the power, to witness the beauty,
to bathe in the fountain,
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human."

Seems like Keenan has/had possible INTP origins, but I think he's transcended any such finite categorization.

TOOL
A Perfect Circle
Puscifer

If I had to narrow down a linear path for Keenan, I'd wager his work ethic is ISTP-ish, and the creativity fueling it is ISFP-esque.

 

[redbaron]

My guess is ISFP. Seems unlikely an INTP world willingly express something like:

"over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind.
Withering my intuition leaving opportunities behind.
(And I must) Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line.
Reaching out to embrace the random.
Reaching out to embrace whatever may come.

I embrace my desire to
I embrace my desire to
feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow
to feel inspired to fathom the power, to witness the beauty,
to bathe in the fountain,
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human."

Seems like Keenan has/had possible INTP origins, but I think he's transcended any such finite categorization.

TOOL
A Perfect Circle
Puscifer

If I had to narrow down a linear path for Keenan, I'd wager his work ethic is ISTP-ish, and the creativity fueling it is ISFP-esque.

Interesting.

I always saw this expression as a sort of frustration at his own inability to connect - that he wants to be able to, 'switch off' for once and to be able to connect to the world around him without getting bogged down in the details and constantly seeing the flaws in everything.

Quotes:
I think the biggest problem working with me would be that I'm an only child, and so I have an internal dialogue that goes on that I just assume you can hear

If the education of our kids comes from radio, television, newspapers - if that's where they get most of their knowledge from, and not from the schools, then the powers that be are definitely in charge, because they own all those outlets.

Maybe a bit arbitrary, but I think indicative of his personality in some way: married his wife on February 29, so that he would only have to celebrate his anniversary every four years (may or may not be true, wouldn't surprise me if he was just fucking with the interviewer).

Personally I think he's a rational, based a lot on his earlier works and the way he interviews. I think as he's matured over the years as he's become more knowledgeable and aware of the emotional/valued-based side of his personality. Still it's hard to say because he's so reclusive.

 

[SpiralHacker]

Love Lateralus. I thought maybe INFJ but I have not done a quality analysis.

 

[louiesgonnadie]

INTJ could work much better than I thought, damn. Gonna watch some more interviews.

 

[EvilBlitz]

Reading Maynard Keenan's wiki he comes across as an INFP.

 

[Brontosaurie]

Then again, there's the possibility he didnt write that song.

i thought jones wrote the music and keenan the lyrics for most of their songs?

 

[EvilBlitz]

A quote from the wiki

"A primary purpose of Keenan's lyrics for Tool involves a desire to connect with the listeners on a personal level; to encourage them to look within themselves for self-identity, understanding and reflection."

Connection on a personal level is very Fi. There is also a very very strong message of independence and thinking for oneself from Tool/Keenan. No way he is a J.

 

[DrGregoryHouse]

Tool. Amen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5sIXUbMgF0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hglVqACd1C8

 

[DrGregoryHouse]

A quote from the wiki

"A primary purpose of Keenan's lyrics for Tool involves a desire to connect with the listeners on a personal level; to encourage them to look within themselves for self-identity, understanding and reflection."

Connection on a personal level is very Fi. There is also a very very strong message of independence and thinking for oneself from Tool/Keenan. No way he is a J.

furthermore, perhaps bolstering the argument of INTPness, from wikipedia,

"In live performances with Tool, Keenan has often been known to be situated on a platform towards the rear of the stage,[63] without a spotlight,[64] facing the backdrop rather than the audience.[65][66] Breckinridge Haggerty, the band's live video director, says that the dark spaces on stage "are mostly for Maynard". He explains, "a lot of the songs are a personal journey for him and he has a hard time with the glare of the lights when he's trying to reproduce these emotions for the audience. He needs a bit of personal space, and he feels more comfortable in the shadows.""

 

[DrGregoryHouse]

INFP i think


from is lyricals, the lyricals:


credulous at best, your desire to believe in angels in the hearts of men
pull your head on out your hippy haze and give a listen,
shouldn't have to say it all again...
the universe is hostile, so impersonal
devour to survive, so it is, so it's always been

personal anthem? might be mine. Is it possible 6:35 forward not give an INTP the chills? Its like my mind has been revealed in video format.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq0HpoKXaFk

 

[B.C.P.]

My guess is ISFP. Seems unlikely an INTP world willingly express something like:

"over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind.
Withering my intuition leaving opportunities behind.
(And I must) Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line.
Reaching out to embrace the random.
Reaching out to embrace whatever may come.

I embrace my desire to
I embrace my desire to
feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow
to feel inspired to fathom the power, to witness the beauty,
to bathe in the fountain,
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral
to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human."

Seems like Keenan has/had possible INTP origins, but I think he's transcended any such finite categorization.

TOOL
A Perfect Circle
Puscifer

If I had to narrow down a linear path for Keenan, I'd wager his work ethic is ISTP-ish, and the creativity fueling it is ISFP-esque.

I, along with RedBaron, also interpreted these lyrics as referring to intuition getting in the way of sensing the world.

 

[Ex-User (8886)]

I am very emotional too, while singing. I played guitar, and all teachers in music school was saying that I was talented. Because I was not only playing guitar, but I WAS GUITAR. I felt instrument. It's only part of my life where I feel strong emotions. I think Maynard has same. It's hightly possible that he is an INTP

 

[kaispan]

I think music is about the only way I am able to let down my walls and can safely experience emotions--in fact, revel in them--I wonder if that's not the same for a lot of INTPs and/or Maynard himself? I wouldn't think singing about emotion could definitively label you as either F or T haha. I don't think any act of artistic self-expression does, either: you're setting free what you keep inside, even if it happens to be a very small inferior Fe. Then again, maybe I just want Maynard to be an INTP since I've loved and related to his music for so long, but I would need proof that he is not T versus proof he is F. If that makes sense? xD

He makes jokes and references that I think F-dominants would find in poor taste, and indeed, I'm sure a lot of those types could be offended by some of his subject matter and lyrics. (Stinkfist, Prison Sex, etc) Also his inclusion of some of Bill Hick's material in Third Eye, whose dark comedy strikes me as something that might alienate quite a few people ("Hitler had the right idea; he was just an underachiever!"), and the fact they dedicated Aenima to him and felt their ideas resonated seems telling.

"It helps people understand where we're coming from as well if they can get perspective like that. They'll get Bill's tapes and listen to what he's talking about, listen to our album, and then hopefully have enough intellect to make the leap and say `I see where the connection is.'" (article here)

I'm not sure if it's just my own connection to the songs that I must see them in this light, but a lot that resonated with me was with this inability to connect and being overwhelmed or afraid of emotion and wanting to keep it bottled up safely. I don't think that is an F attitude; it seems like it could be the mark of someone with inferior Fe who is alarmed by it/doesn't know how to handle it. Take the song "H", for example; this one hits me really hard and is probably my favorite.

"My son in front of me begs me to let my guard down, to love, to grow again.... considerately killing me"

Someone who is experiencing literal pain at opening up; it's hard for him. But it's such a positive song, too, about moving on and overcoming that; I wonder if it's not reflective of that journey others have mentioned, about him growing and evolving--which has been a central theme to a lot of their songs.

And here I am probably projecting... (one thing I absolutely love about their lyrics is how open to interpretation they are, and how layered and how everyone can experience them differently: they promote critical thinking and analyzing; they're just packed with possible meanings and all these different paths to take) Wings for Marie and 10,000 Days both seem to be holding this idealized "Feeling" maternal mother up to a level he can't ever reach... like he wishes he could be as good and loving as she is but knows she's better than him... and me with a traditional ESFJ mother who has so much love/cares about everything and feels everything so hard-- it just makes me feel inferior and pitiful beside that... (Sorry, TMI? Uncalled-for projecting?? xD)

I don't think I can explain this very well, but I feel like it could be someone awed by the power of a truly-developed Fe, something he might be struggling to achieve or feel like he's missing, and it's what makes him admire her even more. Gah, that song seriously is making me tear up and I'm not even listening to it. I literally think the only time I can emote at all is through the use of music, haha...

Some of his earlier songs especially seem rather disdainful and scornful towards "the masses" and "sheeple" and mindless consumerism and that kind of thing, which strikes me as a very NT issue, but to be fair, I haven't discussed that perspective with any NFs, either. It was my impression that INFPs are prone to depression/sadness over that sort of thing, versus being disgusted in an angry way; that kind of colder disregard for humanity seems to cry "T". (Although could certainly depend on who is writing the lyrics, to be sure. ^^)

Whether he is an INTJ or INTP could be a little more of a challenge, though his rather unkempt appearance has never suggested "J" to me at all, and his use of metaphors and symbolism seem to be far less direct than how I perceive "J" types; it's been my understanding that they have little interest and/or patience for poetry and that sort of thing, but that has just been my own personal observation.

Sooo I will keep happily assuming he is an INTP unless given really strong evidence against that haha, but I can fully admit I could easily be seeing what I want to see... I was just already discouraged by all the characters I related to (few though they were!) and thought could be INTPs and then looked them up and found out no one agreed with me; perhaps INTPs are as hard to find IRL as they are in fiction. It would just be nice if an artist I admired and respected and whose work I related to I could relate to on this level, as well. ^^

Thanks for a great topic! It was really interesting to read through; I honestly hadn't considered it overmuch aside from being certain he was an introvert.

 

[DrGregoryHouse]

listen to his comment about "uneducated emotional people" in reference to the music industry.

I would say this would apply generally to all segments of society as well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCJx03h1vwk