I caught this band in a very intimate setting and it is a memory forever engrained in my memory. To me, it really doesn't matter what band MJK fronts, he is always just amazing. At the end the day, it's not really a side-project at all. It's another band that MJK is in. So here we go. Let's get the needle fired up!

Mer de Noms (French for "sea of names") is the debut album A Perfect Circle. The album was released on May 23, 2000. It was certified platinum by the RIAA on October 31, 2000. The album entered the Billboard 200 at No. 4, making it the highest ever Billboard 200 debut for a rock band's first album. It sold over 188,000 copies in the first week, and stayed on the charts for 51 consecutive weeks. The album peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog Albums on October 4, 2003, three years after the album's release.

A Perfect Circle was conceived by Billy Howerdel, a former guitar technician for Nine Inch Nails, The Smashing Pumpkins, Fishbone and Tool. Howerdel met singer Maynard James Keenan in 1992 when Tool was opening for Fishbone, and the two became friends.

Three years later, Keenan offered Howerdel, who was looking for lodging, a room in his North Hollywood home. This provided Howerdel the opportunity to play demos of his music for Keenan. Pleased with what he heard, Keenan remarked, "I can hear myself singing [those songs]."

Although he originally desired a female vocalist, Howerdel agreed that Keenan would be a good fit, and A Perfect Circle was formed a short time later.

All songs written and composed by Billy Howerdel and Maynard James Keenan.