On May 16th, 2000 — less than a week before the release of their debut LP, Mer de Noms — A Perfect Circle stepped away from their tour with Nine Inch Nails and visited Late Night With Conan O'Brien to perform the album's smash single "Judith." The song is deeply personal and seethes with vivid despair and outrage. The biting lyrics revolve around singer Maynard James Keenan's mother, Judith Marie, who suffered a stroke and was restricted to a wheelchair for the rest of her life yet still maintained her belief in God. Needless to say, Maynard did not share in her religious faith. "How the savior has abandoned you," he sings. "Fuck your God."
All the visceral emotion of the song pours out in APC's Conan performance. Keenan, wearing a loose, oversized suit, delivers his lines with characteristic intensity from center stage, flanked by the swaying figures of guitarist Billy Howerdel and bassist Paz Lenchantin. It's a mesmerizing run-through — worthy of the single's iconic, David Fincher-helmed music video. Watch above.
