Tool falls short of sell-out

Ticket sales for Saturday night's Tool concert fell short of a sell out according to attendance figures released Monday by the Show Me Center.

Show Me Center Marketing Director Shannon Buford said 3,849 people attended the concert, slightly below the 4,051 who attended Martina McBride's June 7 concert at the venue. The arena still looked packed because seats on the 200 level were curtained off, creating a crowded feel in the seats that did remain.

The concert by the prog-metal four piece had been highly anticipated among local rock music fans for months. Fans at the show stood during the band's entire two-hour set.

Buford said despite falling short of a sell out, the venue considers the show a success. In recent years few rock bands have made stops at the Show Me Center.

"I think, if anything, it definitely shows there are people out there who want to see rock shows," Buford said.

Saturday night's concert was a late addition to Tool's current tour for their latest album "10,000 Days". The band inserted the date between its Friday headlining performance on the main stage at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., and another late-added date Sunday in Evansville, Ind.

Tool front man Maynard James Keenan joked about Cape Girardeau's small size, asking the crowd several times to remind them where the band was.

"Cape Girardeau? I keep looking for an ocean," Keenan said.

Buford said getting an act like Tool -- currently rated seven in concert industry tracking site Pollstar.com's "power rankings" -- depends on the right circumstances, such as a band having free dates while in the Midwest.

"A lot of times they just don't have time to stop at these smaller venues," Buford said.

Southeast Missouri State University police reported one incident at the concert -- an unruly fan who allegedly assaulted the band's security director and a member of the Show Me Center staff. The man was escorted out of the venue and no charges were filed.

msanders@semissourian.com

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